tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71524564407352843782024-02-07T16:57:20.528+00:00Random Musings and Manic Ramblings of a ReadaholicAlexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.comBlogger333125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-19475249625589148262015-06-02T20:58:00.001+01:002015-06-02T20:58:13.583+01:00The It Girl by Katy Birchall<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh2l61t8wSlFY73rnsJW9gzzhFkFVRBotg4q-I69j85azLIt5hT9wFHH5RIyiE19gwXS4FXHLGlENtiQn-SL8zrLgKb6lKATdZ5VlScVl3AQQwRgsp_fc3en-EdAa772EOJF97jV3BCJU/s1600/the+it+girl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh2l61t8wSlFY73rnsJW9gzzhFkFVRBotg4q-I69j85azLIt5hT9wFHH5RIyiE19gwXS4FXHLGlENtiQn-SL8zrLgKb6lKATdZ5VlScVl3AQQwRgsp_fc3en-EdAa772EOJF97jV3BCJU/s320/the+it+girl.jpg" width="208" /></a>The It Girl (2015) (Egmont)<br />
Katy Birchall<br />
Grade: B<br />
Genre: teen lit<br />
Source: own<br />
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<i>The It Girl: </i>(1) The It Girl</div>
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New girl Anna Huntley has but a
few aims in life: re-enact the ‘lift’ scene from the Lion King with her pet
Labrador, Dog; not set Deputy Queen Bee Josie’s hair on fire, again; keep her
two new best friends by not doing anything socially inept, and; manoeuver her
way around as Britain’s newest It Girl. Anna is catapulted into the national
spotlight when her father announces his engagement to the famous actress,
Helena Montaine. Helena’s daughter, Marianne Montaine has already built up a
formidable reputation as Britain’s biggest It Girl and by association, Anna is
expected to follow in her footsteps – after all, everyone wants to be a famous
It Girl … don’t they?</div>
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Marketed as perfect for fans of
Geek Girl and Louise Rennison, Katy Birchall is a fresh new voice in ‘clean
teen’ and a real must-read for middle-grade and early-teen readers this summer.
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The It Girl </i>is brilliantly funny as
we watch Anna and Dog muddle their way through social protocols, a new school
and a new family. Anna is hilariously awkward and constantly lands herself in
the most bizarre situations without warning or grace; her ineptitude literally
knows no bounds. While I can definitely agree with the comparison to Louise
Rennison’s own heroine Georgia Nicholson, in my opinion, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The It Girl </i>shares more than a few similarities with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Princess Diaries</i>. Even as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">PD </i>celebrates fifteen years of teen lit,
Katy Birchall proves that heroines like Anna still strike a chord with a new
generation of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Princess Diaries </i>readers
today.</div>
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This was clearly predictable, but
that was half the fun – and in some ways, Anna is just crazy enough to make the
unpredictable look predictable. It was a great fluffy read and I can see why it
appeals in so many international markets – there are girls like Anna (with
#moveslikeanna) everywhere. Anna’s got a great set of friends in Jess, Danny,
Dog and Marianne and her relationship with her parents is unconventional to say
the least. Brilliantly funny and sometimes a touch outrageous, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The It Girl </i>is just one of those
feel-good books that you can’t get enough of. I can’t wait to see what
adventures Anna gets up to next.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/b/katy-birchall/it-girl.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.</div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-18041948949207179792015-05-25T15:06:00.000+01:002015-05-25T15:06:06.694+01:00Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcOqkxcEulrTKzbX1fr0ABXCzaQJuYTRHMAVVPzRMC4u9JKyNjm1g0LU3bS54C2r5AnmJS_eDcT0b6-ve00pveduOxFIu6OG9eglQ85ARjT3SgehnoyGaBstv5JH_7I1sTgg8s4fsRIQs/s1600/death+comes+to+pemberley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcOqkxcEulrTKzbX1fr0ABXCzaQJuYTRHMAVVPzRMC4u9JKyNjm1g0LU3bS54C2r5AnmJS_eDcT0b6-ve00pveduOxFIu6OG9eglQ85ARjT3SgehnoyGaBstv5JH_7I1sTgg8s4fsRIQs/s320/death+comes+to+pemberley.jpg" width="201" /></a></div>
Death Comes to Pemberley (2011) (Faber & Faber)<br />
P.D. James<br />
Grade: B-<br />
Genre: crime / historical fiction / Austen-inspired<br />
Source: own<br />
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<i>TBR RBC 2015: A crime novel</i> </div>
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Six years have passed since we
left <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pride and Prejudice </i>and all is
well: Elizabeth has transitioned into her role as the new mistress of Pemberley
perfectly and she and Darcy dote on their two young sons, Fitzwilliam and
Charles. She’s revived the annual Lady Anne’s ball, traditionally held to
celebrate the birthday of Darcy’s mother, but which had been dormant since her
death. Preparations are well into the final touches on the eve of the ball in
1803, when death comes suddenly and shockingly to Pemberley … It is Lydia Wickham,
Elizabeth’s younger, unreliable sister who brings the news in her usual state
of hysteria, believing that her husband, George Wickham, is dead. And so
follows an investigation that threatens to rock the Darcy family to its core …</div>
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I was first introduced to PD
James’ world of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Death Comes to Pemberley </i>through
the 3-part BBC adaptation that graced the country’s screens during Christmas of
2013. It was gripping and well-written and everything that Jane Austen would be
if murder ever did come to Pemberley. Of course there was a book behind it, and
it was only a year later that I picked up the novel to explore how close the
adaptation truly was.</div>
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Like I mentioned in my review of
Shannon Hale’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Austenland, </i>I’ve never
been a fan of Austen-inspired novels. I can see why they still appeal to
generations of readers today, but I’ve never personally seen their appeal. That
doesn’t stop me, however, from watching whatever television or film adaptation
happens to be shown on television. When I saw the television adaptation of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">DCtP</i>, I was intrigued enough by the world
that had been created to seek out the book. I was glad that I did: the
screenplay is wonderfully true to the book and PD James creates a world worthy
of taking a place in the highest ranks of Austen-derivative literature with
complex characters (how <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">adorable </i>are
Georgiana and Henry Alveston?) and a well fleshed-out plot. I’ve watched parts
of the TV-adaptation multiple times now and it’s still as enjoyable as the
first time – though <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">DCtP</i> isn’t my
usual reading material, I think I could definitely see myself reading it again
and again.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Death-Comes-Pemberley-James/9780571311170" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>. </div>
<i> </i>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-7575700922323635832015-05-23T20:13:00.000+01:002015-05-23T20:23:58.102+01:00The Friend Zone by Kristen Callihan<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyFQVHj30tXxAK1WnRD21wyUpJaoBWQb4GIqV6n8Aze1UVr5RVgeqsCxkceL83KIACSOkoiLJNZ9auUVLVkZHPA5QxF15j_i3WeLqefFmIOQ73sqNLBtlL13-gDy7YF_2Ly1L0d3U8rnw/s1600/the+friend+zone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyFQVHj30tXxAK1WnRD21wyUpJaoBWQb4GIqV6n8Aze1UVr5RVgeqsCxkceL83KIACSOkoiLJNZ9auUVLVkZHPA5QxF15j_i3WeLqefFmIOQ73sqNLBtlL13-gDy7YF_2Ly1L0d3U8rnw/s320/the+friend+zone.jpg" width="214" /></a>The Friend Zone (2015) (self-published)<br />
Kristen Callihan<br />
Grade: A-<br />
Genre: New Adult<br />
Sex scenes: hot<br />
Source: own<br />
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<i>Game On: (1) The Hook Up, </i>(2) The Friend Zone</div>
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<i>Romance RBC 2015: A new adult book</i> </div>
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The daughter of a sports agent,
Ivy Mackenzie knows better than to get involved with a football star,
especially a guy like Gray Grayson who can’t turn around without bumping into
another one of his sexual conquests. But what starts out as just harmless
banter and texting while Ivy spends a year abroad with her mother quickly
becomes much more when Ivy returns home. Not only have Ivy and Gray become the
best of friends and each other’s better half through their endless texting, but
the irresistible sexual spark that’s constantly been simmering in the
background flares to life when they meet in the flesh. It all makes for an irresistible
read: while Ivy is insistent that she won’t follow the cliché and just become
another notch on Gray’s bedpost, Gray is similarly determined to seduce the
pants off of Ivy – Game On.</div>
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I loved this. This was one of
Smexy Books’ SSS (Sex Scene Sunday) excerpts and even though it wasn’t nearly
as explicit as other excerpts that have appeared on the weekly feature, there
was just something about the extract that was chosen and the way that the book
was described that made me want to find out more – see it <a href="http://smexybooks.com/2015/05/smex-scene-sunday-135.html" target="_blank">here</a> and their full review <a href="http://smexybooks.com/2015/05/review-the-friend-zone-by-kristen-callihan.html" target="_blank">here</a>. Despite my
promises to myself that I won’t buy any more books, I’m so glad that I followed
my hunch on this one. Easily the funniest book I’ve read all year – that is, so
far.</div>
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Ivy is a great heroine – really,
the best kind of New Adult heroine you can get, because she doesn’t need saving
from a damn thing. Sure, she’s only ever been in one relationship (that
obviously hasn’t inspired her to date more) but it wasn’t life-shatteringly
devastating and she hasn’t experienced any major childhood trauma that’s left
her scarred for life. Her father might have been a compulsive cheater during
his football-playing days (hence her aversion to dating football players) but
otherwise she’s had a generally healthy upbringing, though her parents
admittedly live on different continents. Otherwise, she’s a well-rounded
heroine who’s still looking for her calling in life when she strikes up her
friendship with Gray. She’s been working for her mum in London for a year,
learning how to run a bakery. Ivy loves baking, but it isn’t her passion. It’s
wonderfully refreshing to read about a heroine who’s just embarking on her
life; I’m at the start of my professional career myself and it is in this
aspect of her life that I find myself most identifying with Ivy. Romance is
undoubtedly my favourite genre but I’ve never been able to identify with their
heroines, though this has never stopped me reading more. It would take a lot
more encouragement to get me reading more new adult, but Kristen Callihan has
definitely put me on the right path. <br />
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Ivy and Gray are still very much
at the beginning of their lives but both have been forced to grow up fast in
different ways – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Friend Zone </i>only
teaches them more life lessons. While Gray can’t complain about the doors that
his talents on the field have opened for him, he’s grown out of his days of
sleeping around and knows now that Ivy is the only girl for him. Learning from
the (bad) example that her parents set, the last thing Ivy expects is to fall
for a football player. She denies her feelings for Gray for a long time – it only
makes the ending that much sweeter. </div>
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This was really funny. There were
echoes of Ruthie Knox in Kristen Callihan’s writing stye and regular readers of
this blog (are there actually any of you?!) will recall that Ruthie Knox was my
favourite new author of 2014 – I literally devoured everything she wrote,
whether it be contemporary romance or new adult. After I read their
text-exchanges, I thought that nothing could top their banter once they met in
real life – but Kristen Callihan happily proved me wrong, despite some awful
jokes. This is one of the said text-exchanges – brilliant, or what?:</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">GrayG: </b>So as friends, can I still say inappropriate, sex-related
things?</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ivy Mac: </b>Sure. Think of me as just another guy. With a vagina.</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">GrayG: </b>A. Shudder. B. Yeah, no. C. I had this dream that you were
sucking my 8==> But when I looked down, I discovered it was actually a goat …
you know. Then I really woke up because I yelled so hard, I fell out of bed.
And now I live in mortal terror of goats.</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ivy Mac: </b>LMFAO! Gray got it from a goat!</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">GrayG: </b>>:-[</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ivy Mac: </b>Goat-on-Gray action! Heeeee! *Falls down dead*</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">GrayG: </b>You suck, you know that?</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ivy Mac: </b>No, the goat does! *Dies again* My sides. My sides!</div>
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I’ve already downloaded Kristen
Callihan’s other contemporary novel: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Hook Up</i>, which is the first book in this series and I’m really excited to
see what else she has to come. She’s already the author of a darker, mystery
(historical?) series called Darkest London which looks promising – when I have
time, which is a complete laugh. I have a feeling that I’ll be reading much
more of Kristen Callihan to come.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/c/kristen-callihan/friend-zone.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.</div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-90314955583977486922015-05-16T14:39:00.000+01:002015-05-16T14:39:07.609+01:00The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow by Katherine Woodfine<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5LOPnJ3e1QgS8Ovy5hBSC2BmKfot5qo4BZ3GigK8cKwTEJiLU2nGAqoyIVBVmEsVLiO47wLC8FTgveyaHVEaSrMfe2dhl6n6M5k8adRoQ_ChEqABUeq4ut1NZibglvyKvCRpqFeWCpqQ/s1600/the+mystery+of+the+clockwork+sparrow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5LOPnJ3e1QgS8Ovy5hBSC2BmKfot5qo4BZ3GigK8cKwTEJiLU2nGAqoyIVBVmEsVLiO47wLC8FTgveyaHVEaSrMfe2dhl6n6M5k8adRoQ_ChEqABUeq4ut1NZibglvyKvCRpqFeWCpqQ/s320/the+mystery+of+the+clockwork+sparrow.jpg" width="208" /></a>The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow (2015) (Egmont) (publishing 4 June 2015)<br />
Katherine Woodfine<br />
Grade: A<br />
Genre: children's / historical<br />
Source: own<br />
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<i>Sinclair's: </i>(1) The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow</div>
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Recently orphaned Sophie Taylor is
just one of many shop girls in London’s newest and most illustrious department
store, Sinclair’s – and it hasn’t even opened its doors to the public yet!
She’s immensely proud of her position in the store’s millinery department and though
the other girls make fun of her, she’s learnt to ignore their snide comments
and whispered asides and instead concentrate on building a new life for
herself. When Sinclair’s is burgled the night before it’s due to open and all
the precious and priceless jewels stolen from the Exhibition Gallery, including
the rare and unique clockwork sparrow, London’s greatest department store only
gets more famous. Sophie is of course, naturally curious about the break-in,
but doesn’t expect to discover that she’s the prime suspect! With her new
friends, Billy, an apprentice porter and Lil, a store model, Sophie is
determined to clear her name whilst uncovering the mystery surrounding the
clockwork sparrow ...</div>
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I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">adored </i>this debut from Katherine Woodfine, the Booktrust’s arts
project manager, who finds time to manage the Children’s Laureate programme and
Young Adult Literature Convention (YALC) on top of writing this stunning debut.
Tapping into the growing trend and thirst for detective historicals (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Clockwork Sparrow </i>is set in the
Edwardian era) like Robin Stevens’ acclaimed <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Murder Most Unladylike </i>(Wells & Wong #1) published in 2014,
this is a book that will appeal to boys and girls and young readers and more
advanced readers alike. The stunning cover (oh, what beautiful foiling!) and
internal illustrations (J<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">úlia
Sardà is a genius) only enhances the appeal – I got a few stares on the train!
– and though you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, I hope that it encourages
lots of people to pick it up.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Woodfine has a wonderful way of pulling the reader in,
whether you intend it or not. Suddenly, another five chapters have flown by and
though it’s time for bed or your train is pulling in at your station, it is
ridiculously difficult to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not </i>turn
the page. This is partly because the characters are so easily likeable: Sophie
is innocent yet forced to grow up fast in difficult circumstances after her
father dies; Lil is bold and charming as one of Mr Sinclair’s ‘Captain’s Girls’
and; young Billy is inquisitive and forever getting into trouble for reading instead
of working. It’s hard not to like them as their adventures take them to all
corners of Sinclair’s as they are compelled to do the Right Thing and discover
the truth behind the missing clockwork sparrow. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Woodfine spins a great story and everyone who reads <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">TMofCS </i>will definitely want to get their
hands on book 2 in Sophie’s adventures: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Mystery of the Jewelled Moth</i>, due on our shelves in 2016. I’m expecting
great things of both titles, once they’re published: the writing is slick and
fast-paced, still weirdly relevant despite being set a century ago and Woodfine
is a fresh new voice in the middle-grade age range that deserves a voice in the
crowded market. In Nancy Drew meets Mr Selfridge, Katherine Woodfine is one to
watch as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">TMotCS </i>joins my (growing)
list of 2015 favourites.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/w/katherine-woodfine/mystery-of-the-clockwork-sparrow.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.</span></div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-58952119229355828892015-05-14T20:22:00.000+01:002015-05-14T20:22:27.049+01:00Tribute by Nora Roberts<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWUnDdrBos8zNw_3z5_RWfMU0INB9ul5i2b5aDtukgJf6F184qdjNAv0OvQg3nnhSEYgZAERAuRekF6man7SaBkb21O8xOhn1aN_AZSlkSb5eU1hMMcmOOWhNPn59dumcC-mMSfKaIxxU/s1600/tribute.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWUnDdrBos8zNw_3z5_RWfMU0INB9ul5i2b5aDtukgJf6F184qdjNAv0OvQg3nnhSEYgZAERAuRekF6man7SaBkb21O8xOhn1aN_AZSlkSb5eU1hMMcmOOWhNPn59dumcC-mMSfKaIxxU/s1600/tribute.jpg" width="208" /></a>Tribute (2008) (Piatkus)<br />
Nora Roberts<br />
Grade: B-<br />
Genre: romantic suspense<br />
Sex scenes: mild<br />
Source: own<br />
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<i>TBR RBC 2015: A book by Nora Roberts</i> </div>
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A third generation actress and
granddaughter of one of Hollywood’s greats, Cilla McGowan has very deliberately
cast off her child actress persona and made a very successful business of
renovating houses. Her latest project is a house that’s very dear to her heart:
the house of her grandmother, the glamorous and notorious Janet Hardy. Left to
ruin after her death by apparent suicide, Cilla plans to restore the house to
its former glory. With the whole town invested in her project and Ford, her
very hot neighbour and his dog, Spock, just next door looking on, this is the
biggest project of Cilla’s career. But there’s someone in the community who
wants Janet’s secrets to stay that way and they’re determined to keep Cilla
from finishing the house, whatever it takes …</div>
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I am so very close to finishing
what I call Nora Roberts’ ‘strong women, powerful suspense’ series, so named
because these romantic suspenses were published with that tagline on the blurb
and a beautifully complementary set of covers. I love
this ‘set’ of books, even though they’re all standalones and have absolutely
nothing to do with each other – I count a few of them in my favourite Nora
Roberts titles. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Tribute </i>was a
middling one – there were some fantastic parts and I loved our protagonists and
their character development, but the suspense parts particularly dragged in the
middle and was too repetitive.</div>
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Cilla is wonderful. She’s found
her calling in property development, though many people still have fond
memories of Cilla as a little girl on their TV screens. I love the attention to
detail given to the renovation and you’re really taken through the house’s lifecycle
from abandoned property to much-loved home. I’m a big fan of property shows
like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Grand Designs, The Restoration Man </i>and
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Homes Under the Hammer </i>in the UK,
where the presenters follow home-owners through the journey of taking an old,
derelict house, or even just a piece of land, from start to finish. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Tribute </i>tapped into a theme that I love
seeing on TV, and transported it into a book, which is something that I’d never
read about before, except in newspapers in ‘real life’; it was fantastic and
more authors need to develop characters with these sorts of everyday jobs or
hobbies. Additionally, it’s great to see Cilla at work in what is traditionally
seen as a male-dominated workplace and as a female, it was empowering to read. </div>
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Similarly, I loved seeing Ford at
work. He’s a celebrated comic book writer and artist, ready for a new direction
when Cilla comes along. She becomes the inspiration for his next character and
it was cool seeing how he takes Brid from an idea to paper. His dog, Spock, is
one of the cutest dogs ever. He has a personality of his own and brings a
dimension to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Tribute </i>that would
really have been lacking without him. Ford is one of those heroes who falls head-over-heels
for the heroine without realising it, yet embraces his feelings wholeheartedly,
without question, once he realises what has happened. Cilla might be a little
slower off the mark initially, as a result of a dysfunctional childhood and
family life, but they really complement each other well, bringing qualities to
their relationship that they never realised they missed.</div>
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Would I read <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Tribute </i>again? Maybe. The suspense and mystery bogs down what was
otherwise a great book and although there’s always the option of skipping over
the boring bits, Ms Roberts’ writing is so intertwined that that’s almost
impossible. I will definitely remember Cilla, Ford and Spock for a long time to
come and if I’m ever looking at my shelves, looking for something to re-read,
they’re the factors that will swing the vote in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Tribute</i>’s favour.</div>
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Images courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Tribute-Nora-Roberts/9780749939229" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>.<i> </i></div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-92145799157935858632015-05-11T19:33:00.000+01:002015-05-11T19:33:53.313+01:00Angelfall by Susan Ee<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9NyPcrADU7CuHfDfa9mqMnlv8SFLxsUKZigrJJxIRHNdurqG2ScVbLLgMIamkuGKGp2yv_-_2-zN1Gd2GXtA423vQsUm8vO37b9OsE0msqIFiiBioEIpxjbHvhSitwzq-hhrIHKfcUJk/s1600/angelfall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9NyPcrADU7CuHfDfa9mqMnlv8SFLxsUKZigrJJxIRHNdurqG2ScVbLLgMIamkuGKGp2yv_-_2-zN1Gd2GXtA423vQsUm8vO37b9OsE0msqIFiiBioEIpxjbHvhSitwzq-hhrIHKfcUJk/s1600/angelfall.jpg" width="208" /></a>Angelfall (2012) (Hodder & Stoughton)<br />
Susan Ee<br />
Grade: B-<br />
Genre: young adult / supernatural<br />
Source: bookbridgr<br />
<i>Penryn & the End of Days: </i>(1) Angelfall<br />
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<i>TBR RBC 2015: A bookbridgr title</i> </div>
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Six weeks ago, angels came to
Earth and destroyed humanity as we know it. The streets are deserted, houses
are ransacked and for those lucky enough to still be alive, it’s a fierce survival
of the fittest. Seventeen-year-old Penryn is left distraught when an angel
flies away with her wheelchair-bound younger sister, Paige. Enlisting the reluctant
help of Raffe, an injured angel she finds on the streets, who’s been cast out
by his own kind, the unlikely pair make their way across the devastated
landscape with individual missions in mind: Penryn will do absolutely anything
to get her sister back and Raffe will put himself at the mercy of his greatest
enemies in order to be made whole again.</div>
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I first saw this on the
‘recommended reads’ shelf in Waterstones a few months ago and was immediately
drawn to the beautiful, beautiful cover. It’s even better in person, as the
title and each little ridge on the wings are embossed, creating a stunning
overall effect and proving that simplicity is key. I’m glad to see that the
other two books in the trilogy (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">World
After </i>and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">End of Days</i>)<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>follow the same, simple and stunning
cover design. Seeing <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Angelfall</i> on
bookbridgr more recently, I couldn’t say no.</div>
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This is a great twist on the
usual depiction of angels as holy, pure and all-round good beings. The angels
of this world are acting on God’s orders, which they follow without question.
Humanity is left devastated as angels continue to roam the land and destroy
what’s left. Humans are helpless against angels’ greater power and the
prospects for the future of the human race are dismal. I like the strength of
Penryn’s conviction and every time a hurdle falls into her path, she just finds
a way around it. Raffe is a lot more reluctant to cooperate with Penryn and it
makes for a funny relationship as they increasingly come to rely on the other. I’m
interested to see how their relationship will evolve over the course of the trilogy.</div>
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I am highly tempted to read books
2 and 3 of this series, but I’ve resolved only to do so if they become
available on bookbridgr; I simply cannot buy any more books. The world that
Susan Ee has created is dark and twisted and perversely unputdownable – how can
anyone want to wish for the end of the world? Raffe is a constant mystery and I
can imagine that he has a huge following amongst fans of the series. This isn’t
exclusively a young adult series and the darkness of the storyline edges the
book towards the adult end of the spectrum and I would encourage readers of all
ages to pick it up. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Angelfall </i>began
life on the internet and is one of those rare-but-growing phenomena in
publishing that start life on the internet before making the transition to
traditional print. If that’s not a testament to how good this series is, then I’m
not sure what more I can say.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/e/susan-ee/angelfall.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>. </div>
<i></i>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-17762106495469513212015-05-09T09:59:00.000+01:002015-05-09T09:59:03.461+01:00For the Roses by Julie Garwood<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxlT5FXvhEykBuvMO641h7qvD2YuTq-UO88bsEA7GsWq65b4JZTIHfp6j9wrS1w2sgSlNo2SMJi9t-3kx1GCkyQQKT6acwnRuDafOjcxIfbwzJIO6QvEFkINideoqwBTjxKvr92M5jLKg/s1600/for+the+roses.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxlT5FXvhEykBuvMO641h7qvD2YuTq-UO88bsEA7GsWq65b4JZTIHfp6j9wrS1w2sgSlNo2SMJi9t-3kx1GCkyQQKT6acwnRuDafOjcxIfbwzJIO6QvEFkINideoqwBTjxKvr92M5jLKg/s1600/for+the+roses.jpg" width="199" /></a>For the Roses (1995) (Pocket Books)<br />
Julie Garwood<br />
Grade: A<br />
Genre: American historical<br />
Sex scenes: hot<br />
Source: own<br />
<i>Claybornes' Brides: </i>(1) For the Roses<br />
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<i>TBR RBC 2015: A book by Julie Garwood</i> </div>
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When four young street urchins in
New York find a tiny, perfect baby girl thrown in a dumpster, their lives
change forever. Though they’re little more than children themselves, Adam,
Cole, Douglas and Travis shoulder the responsibility of bringing up the little
girl they call Mary Rose Clayborne. All four have pasts they’re trying to
escape from and so they head west, in the hope that they can find a place where
they can erase the past and build the future that Mary Rose deserves.</div>
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Fast forward nineteen years and
the Claybornes are well-respected in the tiny town of Blue Belle, Montana.
Bringing up Mary Rose by themselves was a challenge and a learning curve, but
the Clayborne brothers have strived to provide her with every opportunity as
befitting a young woman of genteel upbringing. Enter Harrison Stanford
MacDonald, a Scottish lawyer who’s worked in England for many years. He arrives
in Blue Belle with a secret agenda and befriends Mary Rose, who adopts him for
her own, much to the confusion and annoyance of her brothers. When Harrison’s
news is revealed, it’s sure to turn this tight-knit family upside-down …</div>
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I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">loved </i>this – I don’t know why it’s not on any AAR Top 100 Romances
lists, or basically any recommendations for Julie Garwood’s books. It’s
definitely one of my favourite Garwoods and one I will certainly remember and
re-read again and again, partly because it’s a lot less formulaic than her
others; I genuinely expected this to be a medieval romance because that’s just
what I’ve come to expect. Julie Garwood does manage to keep making each
medieval fresh in its own way, but a change in setting and time period was
refreshing and just what I needed.</div>
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I know literally nothing about
this time period (I don’t think I’ve ever read anything from this time) – I had
to look it up on AAR. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">For the Roses </i>is
set between 1860 and 1879, making it an American Historical or Victorian when
they get to England. I have no idea how accurate Julie Garwood’s representation
of this era is, but I couldn’t get enough of it. Montana isn’t yet in the
United States and the racial tensions between the North and South are a very
real threat. Blue Belle is a tiny town and over the years, the Claybornes have
been accepted and integrated into the very fabric of the community. It’s really
cute to watch.</div>
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One of my favourite parts of the
book was chapter 1, when the young boys stumble across the basket that Mary
Rose has been left in and make a pact to keep her safe and do what is right by
her. Their ages range from only eleven to fifteen, yet they realise how
important it is for Mary Rose to have the opportunities that were denied to
them. Even better, each chapter ends with a letter from one of the boys to ‘Mama
Rose’, Adam’s mother and their collective adopted mother. Watching Mary Rose
grow up in this way is almost unbearably cute. I fell in love with the family
at the first chapter and with every page, they prove that family isn’t just
about blood ties.</div>
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Julie Garwood writes heartbreak
perfectly. Once Harrison drops him bombshell, Mary Rose has a major decision to
make. Ultimately, she sacrifices her own happiness to the benefit of those
around her and it destroys her very identity – we literally see the generous,
loving and full-of-life Mary Rose that we know crumble before our eyes. It almost
made me want to cry. As always, no way does Harrison grovel enough.</div>
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This was completely different to
all the other medieval, historical and contemporary romances that I’d read from
Julie Garwood. She’s proved that she can cross genres, but this was by far the
best yet. These were characters that I could seriously root for and while I’d
loved some of her previous heroes and heroines, it was nothing compared to what
I felt for the Claybornes in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">For the
Roses</i>. You can guarantee that I’ll be re-reading this many times before the
year is out and for years and years to come.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/For-Roses-Julie-Garwood/9780671870980" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>.<i> </i> </div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-21720825772563662152015-05-07T11:21:00.002+01:002015-05-07T11:21:53.886+01:0021 Proms by various (anthology)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq7vltzhYcMO7ajVB4ngN20e2H-CaPMYbR9Ch5RE0KBdUsNqgf9YrejkwhtpLdqKMju8GFUKGneH97q0Iy-LNwZHvI_t7V0GWMtini-8ZarhiNASwx5PRdbxu84yzkRDZ10vY-JFhd4AM/s1600/21+proms.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq7vltzhYcMO7ajVB4ngN20e2H-CaPMYbR9Ch5RE0KBdUsNqgf9YrejkwhtpLdqKMju8GFUKGneH97q0Iy-LNwZHvI_t7V0GWMtini-8ZarhiNASwx5PRdbxu84yzkRDZ10vY-JFhd4AM/s320/21+proms.jpg" width="209" /></a>21 Proms (2007) (Point, Scholastic Inc.) (short story collection)<br />
Various<br />
Grade: C<br />
Genre: young adult / anthology<br />
Source: own<br />
<br />
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21 popular young adult authors
come together in this anthology to share a story about high school’s biggest
event: the Prom. With female and male protagonists alike, prom enthusiasts and
prom-haters, chaperones, corsages, boutonnieres and limos aplenty, there’s a
story for everyone, whether you sit in the enthusiast or hater camp. Whether the
night is a success or failure, each will be a night that you will never forget …</div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">21 Proms </i>is another book from the 2009 batch and another one joining
the discarding pile. There were a couple of really good stories in this
collection (John Green’s backwards prom story was my favourite) but on the whole,
I just didn’t get it. Prom is now an accepted rite of passage in the UK,
whether you’re leaving secondary school at 18, or making the transition from
primary to secondary school at 11, but it’s still nothing like the institution
that it is in the US. It was a fun read that you can consume in little,
bite-sized pieces since each story is only about 10 pages long, but I think it’s
definitely more suited to readers on the other side of the Atlantic.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/e/daniel-ehrenhaft/21-proms.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.</div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-78637379581901821502015-05-05T11:03:00.000+01:002015-05-05T11:03:30.007+01:00Austenland by Shannon Hale<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgUnlN0bWuZSrOqpwowN-mUnKT5mm9jGhmzHFstRaWR6a1KRrJe6pGLdQCU9IrXY0_EKUhVLJ1-1JeeCDE2faQ-ecUFSb48CARjAgLq__3Y_bOeEHowM6dTTH6qZDlmd2uEJmod3m7pBM/s1600/austeland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgUnlN0bWuZSrOqpwowN-mUnKT5mm9jGhmzHFstRaWR6a1KRrJe6pGLdQCU9IrXY0_EKUhVLJ1-1JeeCDE2faQ-ecUFSb48CARjAgLq__3Y_bOeEHowM6dTTH6qZDlmd2uEJmod3m7pBM/s1600/austeland.jpg" width="205" /></a></div>
Austenland (2007) (Bloomsbury)<br />
Shannon Hale<br />
Grade: C<br />
Genre: chick lit<br />
Source: own<br />
<i>Austenland: </i>(1) Austenland <br />
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<i>Romance RBC 2015: A book that became a film</i> </div>
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Thirty-something Jane Hayes has
always had a slight obsession with all things Jane Austen-related, and her
obsession has only intensified over time. Proud owner of all the books and DVDs
of television and film adaptations alike, Jane has modelled her perfect man on
none other than Mr Darcy (the Colin Firth version, of course), meaning that all
her boyfriends have never quite lived up to her expectations. When a wealthy
aunt leaves Jane an all-expenses-paid-for three-week trip to English
countryside retreat ‘Austenland’ in her will, where visitors immerse themselves
into nineteenth century living, Jane can’t say no. Jane sees this as her
opportunity to get her final fill of Jane Austen and close the door on her
unattainable fantasies, but will this trip give Jane the closure she wants, or could
she possibly get a Mr Darcy of her own?</div>
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This is the second Austen-inspired
novel I’ve read, though I’m more than aware of the plethora of literature that
has been published in this field. I am a fan of the numerous screen
adaptations, especially <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Emma</i>. Until I
read <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Death Comes to Pemberley</i> at the
beginning of this year, I had never really had much interest in these ‘spin-off’
books and to be honest, they still don’t hold very much appeal for me.</div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Austenland </i>was really amusing at times: each chapter ended (or
started?) with an anecdote about one of Jane’s ex-boyfriends and how their
relationship (or lack of) broke down, or failed to start at all. It’s hilarious
and keeps the tone really light-hearted, which is exactly what this book is all
about. Jane’s time at Pembroke Park is all about embracing the Austen-lifestyle
and naturally, Jane has a fun time acclimatising to wearing corsets, dresses
with empire waits and getting used to the slow, countryside way of life. It’s
really fun watching as the professionals at Pembroke Park act as if everything
is real.</div>
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This was slow at times and I didn’t
really think very much of the overall direction of the plot – it was very
anti-climatic and uneventful. But the main thing is that this was a fun read,
great for passing the time by and getting an Austen fix. I see that this has
been made into a film which I’m actually quite tempted to watch. I’m more than
happy sitting down for a few hours to watch a re-make of an Austen novel or a
derivative of such, but I think I’ll be steering clear of the books for a while. </div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Austenland-Shannon-Hale/9781408840092" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>.</div>
<i> </i>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-33903599752489932052015-05-03T12:12:00.002+01:002015-05-03T12:12:27.681+01:00Night Moves by Nora Roberts<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5EfTcoXF9FoRUc9t8iCJvVJi2k3yWKhenN0Fs02D-6KFlAngFIHhcOpCWTN19PjUJOwPwgKomxVNscGmLcwVSU9vZydVC7sROhpAjg8fcGRjfClCtm0-Gv4tAprDVohahZlhjI6ARCuw/s1600/night+moves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5EfTcoXF9FoRUc9t8iCJvVJi2k3yWKhenN0Fs02D-6KFlAngFIHhcOpCWTN19PjUJOwPwgKomxVNscGmLcwVSU9vZydVC7sROhpAjg8fcGRjfClCtm0-Gv4tAprDVohahZlhjI6ARCuw/s1600/night+moves.jpg" height="320" width="190" /></a>Night Moves (1985) (Silhouette Books)<br />
Nora Roberts<br />
Grade: C+<br />
Genre: romantic suspense<br />
Sex scenes: mild<br />
Source: own<br />
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<i>TBR RBC 2015: A romance novel</i> </div>
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When award-winning Hollywood
composer and golden child Maggie Fitzgerald leaves her comfortable life in L.A.
for a rundown and abandoned house in the tiny town of Morganville, population
142, no one believes she’ll last. Least of all, Cliff Delaney, the local
landscaper Maggie’s hired to tackle her overgrown garden. Their chemistry is
instantaneous and explosive, yet both parties try to deny and suppress their
feelings based on a mutual dislike of the other. When Cliff’s crew dig up a
body where Maggie envisages her new pond, a ten-year-old mystery is dredged up
that somebody wants to keep a secret …</div>
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I didn’t expect this to be of the
romantic suspense persuasion (rather, straight contemporary) but that was more
than OK. The dead body added a bit of mystery to the story and gave Cliff more
than ample reason to act even more alpha, protective male than he already was.
Of course, the actual suspense element wasn’t nearly as developed as it might
have been in one of NR’s more ‘modern’ romantic suspense’s, but I found that
since Maggie (and to a lesser extent, Cliff) were so great, I couldn’t care
less.</div>
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I’m not sure what the history
about Maggie’s parents and ex-husband really added to the story, but I wasn’t
really fussed. Loyal fans (i.e. myself) don’t read Nora Roberts’ novels
expecting award-winning level literature; I read Nora Roberts for escapism and
because I know I can rely on her to provide me with a cute, fluffy HEA. That’s
exactly what I got. I liked the glimpses into Maggie’s work as a composer,
which is one of the reasons why I love Nora Roberts so much – she cares about
the detail. Also, watching Maggie take responsibility for renovating her house
when she doesn’t have a clue about where to start and flits about between
projects, is hilarious.</div>
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This definitely isn’t a keeper,
but it puts me one step closer towards my goal of reading all of Ms Roberts
novels. Her latest standalone, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Liar</i>
was released recently and so that’s another one to read at some point. I’m
astounded by Ms Roberts prolificacy – she’s well over 200 books by now and
still going, releasing about five books per year. I did like this a little more
than some of her earlier novels of the early 1980s, but still, it would never
make any favourites lists.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Night-Moves-Nora-Roberts/9780263896749" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>.<i> </i></div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-76546755051217548252015-05-01T21:01:00.001+01:002015-05-01T21:01:41.338+01:00Th1rteen R3asons Why by Jay Asher<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3GRaPy7d45Lp9I96AXdVhz-eBeM3JvIz75k5pLp1AEXUXHc7DzH77_QbuKoPKBZTHbMBgKktgPap-fpjcABsqW1VDiSI-uYQurjWjb8lcobG0h7i1NIf1oTbAi9Ho264Jg0HGKp5PVQ8/s1600/thirteen+reasons+why.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3GRaPy7d45Lp9I96AXdVhz-eBeM3JvIz75k5pLp1AEXUXHc7DzH77_QbuKoPKBZTHbMBgKktgPap-fpjcABsqW1VDiSI-uYQurjWjb8lcobG0h7i1NIf1oTbAi9Ho264Jg0HGKp5PVQ8/s1600/thirteen+reasons+why.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a>Th1rteen R3asons Why (2007) (Razorbill, Penguin)<br />
Jay Asher<br />
Grade: B-<br />
Genre: young adult<br />
Source: own<br />
<br />
When Clay Jensen receives a
package of cassette tapes in the post, the last thing he expects is to hear a
dead girl talking to him. Hannah Baker killed herself several weeks ago, and no
one knows why. For Clay, who had a secret crush on Hannah for ages, yet never worked
up the courage to ask her out, to hear her story now is devastating. Relatively
new to the town and school, Hannah found herself saddled with a reputation
amongst her peers that was, for the most part, undeserved and utterly false. Through
thirteen stories, Hannah reveals the thirteen people at school who helped her
make the decision to end her life. Told through Hannah and Clay’s dual
narrative, Jay Asher’s debut explores how the smallest actions and remarks can
have a massive impact on others’ lives.<br />
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This is another book that’s been
sitting on my shelf since 2009 (clearly my year for buying (young adult) books
and not reading them), <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">TRW </i>was a
debut that I’d heard a lot of critical acclaim about online; it has won and
been nominated for more than a handful of awards to prove it. Jay Asher has
used a really innovative way of storytelling to capture and convey a serious
and heart-breaking topic in a sensitive manner. There’s a really fine balance
to be struck and he manages it with aplomb.</div>
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<br /></div>
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It’s a strange narrative, but it
works brilliantly. Hannah is speaking through the tapes and you get Clay’s
reaction instantaneously – at times, the power of this is like a punch in the gut.
A lot of books switch between multiple characters points of view between
chapters, but this works so much better given the circumstances and storyline.
I couldn’t connect very well with Clay or Hannah, but that’s not necessarily
the point. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">TRW </i>highlights the
devastating effects of persistent bullying and challenges all readers to think
about the impact of their treatment of others. There’s a powerful but simple lesson
to be learnt here about just being a nice human being. Lots of people could do
well to remember this.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I’m not sure I’d read this again,
but it was an interesting, gripping and potent read while it lasted – I can see
why it’s award-winning. I love the format of the book (more authors need to
think out-of-the-box like this!) and the book also features the best author
interview I’ve come across: Jay Asher answers thirteen questions about the
book. It’s usually a lottery whether or not I’ll read an author interview, and
more often than not, I won’t take anything (useful) away from it. Fans of
Laurie Halse Anderson, Gayle Forman and Sara Zarr will love this. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Thirteen-Reasons-Why-Jay-Asher/9781595141712" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>.</div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-34314720202519284952015-04-29T08:45:00.000+01:002015-04-29T08:45:46.104+01:00Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ0m7jcxX_ndQWoA5AO5U2qWyxBp-7HPR5nun1_1e-P33fJtHf0-dxEXojaO6QOWrV1j0FNL8MJoZtHBArhkzESnDmTwCSkMSBWvFPAdWyKR5vbVFqGCUoIy19cYxK5_8pIw22oGyxemE/s1600/something+rotten.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ0m7jcxX_ndQWoA5AO5U2qWyxBp-7HPR5nun1_1e-P33fJtHf0-dxEXojaO6QOWrV1j0FNL8MJoZtHBArhkzESnDmTwCSkMSBWvFPAdWyKR5vbVFqGCUoIy19cYxK5_8pIw22oGyxemE/s1600/something+rotten.jpg" height="320" width="206" /></a>Something Rotten (2004) (Hodder)<br />
Jasper Fforde<br />
Grade: A-<br />
Genre: fiction / crime / alternate reality<br />
Source: own<br />
<i>Thursday Next: (1) </i><i><i><a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-eyre-affair-by-jasper-fforde.html" target="_blank">The Eyre Affair</a>, (2) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2014/12/lost-in-good-book-by-jasper-fforde.html" target="_blank">Lost in a Good Book</a></i>, (3) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-well-of-lost-plots-by-jasper-fforde.html" target="_blank">The Well of Lost Plots</a>, </i>(4) Something Rotten<br />
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<i>TBR RBC 2015: A book by Jasper Fforde</i> </div>
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<br /></div>
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After two years as the ‘Bellman’,
head of Jurisfiction in The Well of Lost Plots (the place where all fiction is
written), Thursday has decided that she’s had enough. While the work keeps her
busy and certainly keeps her busy, she needs to get back to the real world to
get her husband, Landen, uneradicated by the mammoth Goliath corporation and let
her son grow up in a world out of books. Tasked with acclimatising Hamlet to
the real world, evading both her official stalker and the assassin trying to
kill her, stopping a coup against President George Formby, trying to save all
Danish books from a terrible fate and preventing the end of the world with an awesome
game of Superhoop, will Thursday ever have time to fix her own troubles?</div>
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The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thursday Next </i>series is like a breath of fresh air at the moment –
I can’t get enough and even though I’ve got three more books to go, I’m already
sad thinking about the end. Jasper Fforde has penned several other series, but
I’m doubtful that they’ll ever live up to the amazingness that is the world of
Thursday Next. After all that she’s been through, I do hope that she’ll finally
get her happy ever after and that it stays that way.</div>
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<br /></div>
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After two books of living <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">inside </i>books, Thursday returns (for the
most part) to the real world where life is just as complicated, messy and
life-threatening. After changing the ending of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jane Eyre</i> to the delight of most Br<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ö</span>nte fans, ridding the world of its greatest immoral
genius, Acheron Hades, and making an enemy of the evil Goliath Corporation,
Thursday is practically a celebrity. Unfortunately, it doesn’t make her task of
saving the world any easier. As always, I’m breath-taken by just how awesome
Jasper Fforde manages to make the book. There are so many sub-plots whirring on
at once that you might think it makes for a confusing read, yet there’s just
something about how it’s written that you can pick up different threads super
easily when they’re re-introduced. As always, everything is inter-linked and
you have to marvel at how well Jasper Fforde manages to keep so many balls in
the air yet still produce a thundering finish. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Something Rotten </i>takes place over two years after <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Well of Lost Plots</i>. Even though I’m
annoyed that we’ve missed seeing Thursday’s two-year tenure as the Bellman,
it’s probably just as well because her son Friday has just started to get
interesting. We’ve had a glimpse into how Friday turns out as an adult, so I’m
intrigued to see the years inbetween. He’s certainly added a new dimension to
Thursday’s life and while she’s not a particularly fussy mother (living in
books with a gorilla as your primary babysitter will probably do that to you)
it does add a whole new layer of fun.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I can’t begin to choose my
favourite element: from the Superhoop to Hamlet’s antics to uneradicating
Landen – it was all fabulous. It’s probably a good idea to steer clear of other
books while reading a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thursday Next </i>novel
– the latter in itself is at least three novels rolled into one, if not more. It’s
fresh and funny and once you’ve had a taste, you crave more. The concept seems
crazy, but it works because Jasper Fforde isn’t afraid to think out of the box –
in fact, it seems that the crazier the better. These books are literally a joy
to read and you’ve got the added bonus of learning tidbits about classic
literature too!</div>
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<br /></div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Something-Rotten-Jasper-Fforde/9780340825952" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>.</div>
<i> </i>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-46522449066077038962015-04-27T08:57:00.000+01:002015-04-27T08:57:28.865+01:00The Here and Now by Ann Brashares<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSUrjNt34aYNdWD4egnFqTaYJjmHASNFkaYo7khKEdOQvZN-Lh1onjH2b6A3TBDhyphenhyphendv0gc_5yKgXXGOFAPeQ7u_syvQDMIGH3s5AZUqfhIXwreQV3_tDwiGzmRHuMYUZqGsCMa-VKE868/s1600/the+here+and+now.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSUrjNt34aYNdWD4egnFqTaYJjmHASNFkaYo7khKEdOQvZN-Lh1onjH2b6A3TBDhyphenhyphendv0gc_5yKgXXGOFAPeQ7u_syvQDMIGH3s5AZUqfhIXwreQV3_tDwiGzmRHuMYUZqGsCMa-VKE868/s1600/the+here+and+now.jpg" height="320" width="202" /></a>The Here and Now (2014) (Hodder Children's Books)<br />
Ann Brashares<br />
Grade: C+<br />
Genre: young adult / time travel<br />
Source: own / NetGalley<br />
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<i>General RBC 2015: A book set in the future</i> </div>
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<br /></div>
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Follow the rules. Remember what
happened. Never fall in love.</div>
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<br /></div>
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These are the most important
rules of Prenna’s community – the rules that she knows she must abide by if
they’re to blend in and appear normal. Ethan is the first and only person who
makes Prenna want to risk revealing her community’s secret: that they’re from
another time … In the future, a mosquito-borne disease is rapidly killing huge swathes
of humanity. The early twenty-first century is identified as a ‘safe haven’
where those who have managed to avoid the disease can start over. But the
restrictive rules about never revealing where they’re from, never dramatically changing
the course of history and never being intimate with someone from outside their
community are put to the test as Prenna and Ethan are drawn into a course of
events that has the potential to destroy the world – and history – as they know
it …</div>
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I’m more than happy to admit that
the sole reason I wanted to read this is because it was written by the mighty
Ann Brashares. I worshipped <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants</i> series (I’m only counting books 1-4
here) as a teenager and that’s still the case more than ten years on. Every so
often, I’ll have an urge to pick up one of the books and flick through to find
my favourite scenes (Bee was always my favourite character). Post-<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sisterhood</i>, I’ve definitely tried to see
whether Ann Brashares can replicate her writing magic in other books and series.
She’s a fantastic writer and I have enjoyed her standalones since, but I’m not
sure that the magic of the sisterhood can ever be replicated.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I said in my review of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2015/04/a-knight-in-shining-armor-by-jude.html" target="_blank">A Knight in Shining Armor</a> </i>that I hadn’t
had very much experience with time travel. I had completely forgotten that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Here and Now</i> is a time travel novel,
as well as Ms Brashares previous standalone novel, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2012/07/my-name-is-memory-by-ann-brashares.html" target="_blank">My Name is Memory</a> </i>(2010) – amazing book, by the way. Clearly, I
have a tendency to forget the element of time travel as an integral part of the
book afterwards. This is probably more of a deficiency on my part than the
writer’s, but it has made me think about my attitude towards it. I have
absolutely no trouble with accepting time travel as a concept or plot device,
whether it’s in books, TV or film, however outlandish it might seem in real
life. In fact, it looks like I’m so accepting of time travel that I sometimes
forget about it altogether – even when I’m reading the book itself. Perhaps that’s
an indication of great writing: that the author has managed to integrate time
travel so completely and seamlessly that it doesn’t come across as an alien idea.
I would never go as far to say that I love time travel books and make a special
effort to read them, but I’ve made it my mission to finally finish Diana
Gabaldon’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Outlander</i> this year!</div>
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<br /></div>
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I found it hard to get into this
and connect with the characters. There was a detached-ness about the writing
that I’d never experienced in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Sisterhood</i> that made it really hard to care for the characters and persist
with reading this book. Sure, it was good at times, but out of the time travel
books that I have read, it’s probably made the biggest deal of highlighting the
differences between the two different worlds – losing the seamlessness that I mentioned
above. Further, the ending killed me in that Prenna and Ethan deserved so much
more – you’ll have to read it to find out what I mean. In terms of time travel
books, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">My Name is Memory</i> was
definitely more gut-wrenching and heartfelt in this respect. In that book, there
were times when I just wanted to weep for some characters and strangle others –
that’s what I love about Ann Brashares; unfortunately, she didn’t evoke the
same emotions in me with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">THaN</i>.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I wanted to like this, but it
seems that it wasn’t meant to be. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants</i> was just one of many series of books
that played an integral part of my childhood and early teenage years. To be
fair to Ann Brashares, I doubt that anything written by these authors (mainly also
Meg Cabot and Tamora Pierce) now could hold a candle to the books I read in
those formative years. I’m not even sure that I would have the same reaction
and emotional investment in those books if I read them today for the first time,
but I think that’s part of the process of growing up with a particular set of
authors, books, series, characters or genres. I’ll happily state that Ann
Brashares has moved away from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Sisterhood</i> well and shown that she can write other genres, but if you’re looking
for a read similar to the adventures you experienced with Bee, Carmen, Tibby
and Lena, then you’re in for disappointment.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/b/ann-brashares/here-and-now.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.<i> </i></div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-88491908950096816682015-04-25T22:27:00.000+01:002015-04-26T17:50:57.925+01:00A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix78MgkjmSzhGYWkN7RvjawyH8mpjiLsHAmUf0Xy_9tYXCfu6S69RCBF8X3DZFV7nd4NSr1ib7iChxh8V9-PXKeJcEaanZVhY_i0xJ6oAlLmT8jsE8YfxVbxYcQ1_QPherZyQ1lF-Mexw/s1600/a+knight+in+shining+armor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix78MgkjmSzhGYWkN7RvjawyH8mpjiLsHAmUf0Xy_9tYXCfu6S69RCBF8X3DZFV7nd4NSr1ib7iChxh8V9-PXKeJcEaanZVhY_i0xJ6oAlLmT8jsE8YfxVbxYcQ1_QPherZyQ1lF-Mexw/s1600/a+knight+in+shining+armor.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a>A Knight in Shining Armor (1989, 2002) (Pocket Books)<br />
Jude Deveraux<br />
Grade: B+<br />
Genre: time travel / contemporary romance / historical romance<br />
Sex scenes: mild<br />
Source: own<br />
<i>Montgomery: ... </i>(16) A Knight in Shining Armor<br />
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<i>Romance RBC 2015: An AAR Top 100 Romance 1998</i> </div>
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<br /></div>
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Dougless Montgomery is used to
being the failure in her family, whether this is in relation to her job, her
friends or her love life. When she is unceremoniously deserted in the middle of
the English countryside by the man she thought she loved and his bratty
daughter, Dougless is at her wit’s end. Her family are the last people she
wants to turn to, but as she considers her (limited) options in an old church
in a tiny village, she realises that she has no other choice … that is, until,
a knight in shining armour literally appears out of nowhere …</div>
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<br /></div>
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One moment Nicholas Stafford,
Earl of Thornwyck was locked in a tower awaiting his execution, and the next he
finds himself in a strange, fast-paced England where his title means nothing
and he supposedly died over four hundred years earlier, leaving behind a
damning reputation and legacy. At first, Dougless thinks Nick is simply a very
authentic and dedicated role-player, but as he reveals more about his life, she
is forced to re-evaluate. As the pair help each other navigate unfamiliar
ground, they are launched into an adventure that will change their lives – and
the course of history – forever …</div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Knight in Shining Armor </i>(sorry, having to follow the American
spelling here) took the number one spot on AAR’s Top 100 Romance poll in 1998.
In the five polls since, it has slipped ever-further down the rankings, with
the exception of 2013 where it was boosted back into 37<sup>th</sup> place. The
hype surrounding this title is the main reason why this book has been on my TBR
list for years and at the time of writing this review, I discovered that this
book also featured on Heroes and Heartbreaker’s 2014 list of their Top 10 romance
novels of the 1980s. There’s multiple reasons why this is regarded as such a
classic romance novel, and I was determined to find out why.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I had absolutely no idea what <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">AKiSA</i> was about, which was a great start
– seriously. The only other Jude Deveraux book I’ve read is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lavender Morning </i>in 2011 and to my
surprise, I really disliked it; I wanted to like her because of her reputation,
but I just didn’t understand what the fuss surrounding Jude Deveraux was about.
Thus, with no preconceptions about the type of romance <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">AKiSA </i>was, this was as close to a fresh slate as I could get. The last
thing I expected it to be about was time travel, but it was a pleasant
surprise. I haven’t had a great deal of experience with time travel romances
(Linda Howard’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Killing Time</i> and Nora
Roberts’ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Time Was </i>and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Time Again</i> come to mind) but I really
enjoyed this, though it hasn’t tempted to me to actively seek out more.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I found this really funny, in an
outrageous kind of way. Dougless finds it hard to believe that Nicholas is
telling the truth, and Nicholas has an interesting time adjusting to the
twentieth century. Some parts were over-the-top (Gloria, the bratty daughter,
for example) and I did get really irate at Dougless for being so spineless in
Robert’s (the boyfriend) treatment of her, but I suppose the point was to
highlight how horrible they are. Even the simplest tasks like buying new
clothes for Nicholas or checking into a hotel are hilarious because the
concepts are so utterly alien to him. It’s a really entertaining read and I’m glad
that even after sitting on my TBR list for years, it still lived up to its
hype. I’m not sure whether I’ll be trying other Jude Deveraux books, given my
less-than-positive first experience, but I’ll definitely be reading this one
again and again.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="https://www.waterstones.com/ebook/a-knight-in-shining-armor/jude-deveraux/9780743459440" target="_blank">Waterstones</a>.</div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-60275313808374741612015-04-21T08:57:00.000+01:002015-04-21T08:57:37.047+01:00Me and Mr J by Rachel McIntyre<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsuhv4l5q9XwfAcsHwHsM0yh8pkK_VnPWt8Hz_EUJ4roT2688qSMsZVJmGookeN_PG1BsLU8XA8X_wzxWSzMYgc-__rkkKUguJOfezwdMDERVATLoZcFq0ZOXJgd_ThPaAMXkx4kIsZNk/s1600/me+and+mr+j.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsuhv4l5q9XwfAcsHwHsM0yh8pkK_VnPWt8Hz_EUJ4roT2688qSMsZVJmGookeN_PG1BsLU8XA8X_wzxWSzMYgc-__rkkKUguJOfezwdMDERVATLoZcFq0ZOXJgd_ThPaAMXkx4kIsZNk/s1600/me+and+mr+j.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></a>Me and Mr J (2015) (Electric Monkey, Egmont)<br />
Rachel McIntyre<br />
Grade: B++<br />
Genre: young adult<br />
Source: own<br />
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<i>TBR RBC 2015: A book on Egmont's frontlist</i> </div>
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<br /></div>
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Lara Titliss (Worst. Surname.
Ever.) has recently found salvation in her new diary – an unexpected and
unwanted gift from her grandmother. It is in these pages that Lara documents
the bullying and torment she suffers from her peers as a result of being a
tall, gangly red-head and the least popular girl at school, yet also her
discovery of her soulmate. One problem – he’s her teacher. Mr Jagger is the
best thing that has ever happened to her school. All the girls in Lara’s class
unashamedly throw themselves at him, but she’s the one who he praises in class
and asks for help with a special project. He’s the first person who takes her
seriously and takes the time to listen to her problems; it’s no wonder that she
falls helplessly over heels in love with him. Surely he can’t love her back …</div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Me and Mr J </i>takes a difficult and sensitive topic and handles it
brilliantly. Jacqueline Wilson’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Love
Lessons</i> (2005) is very similar, following the story of a girl falling in
love with her male teacher, but in my opinion, Rachel McIntyre does it better. Lara’s
diary is heartfelt, gritty and painful, taking the reader on the same emotional
turmoil that she’s experiencing. As if her troubles at school weren’t enough,
her parents are going through a difficult time in their relationship and Lara’s
best friend has moved away, meaning she has no one to confide in. Rachel
McIntyre has a great style and it is effortless to connect with Lara and root
for her as a heroine and the underdog. Besides the whole
falling-in-love-with-your-teacher element, there are some great messages about
bulling and school culture that can’t be ignored and I hope the right people
are shouting far and wide about this book. Well done to Rachel McIntyre for
capturing all these issues so well.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/m/rachel-mcintyre/me-and-mr-j.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.</div>
<i> </i>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-4185295618454041592015-04-19T11:21:00.000+01:002015-04-19T11:21:06.142+01:00Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0jRjn2CztOqQQw-Hwt4Z7-SVaVsMqSfmW7WT_BR668fml0LtXu795NTvirlP1czoiIHUMP882Y9oUj2Ftm2tUiWIulPQmA-8usjfc-A33vNcEslGheFWtMAdPSMMzX3WXEeuP4g2fLb4/s1600/half+blood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0jRjn2CztOqQQw-Hwt4Z7-SVaVsMqSfmW7WT_BR668fml0LtXu795NTvirlP1czoiIHUMP882Y9oUj2Ftm2tUiWIulPQmA-8usjfc-A33vNcEslGheFWtMAdPSMMzX3WXEeuP4g2fLb4/s1600/half+blood.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></a>Half-Blood (2011) (Hodder)<br />
Jennifer L. Armentrout<br />
Grade: B<br />
Genre: young adult / supernatural<br />
Source: bookbridgr<br />
<i>Covenant: </i>(1) Half-Blood<br />
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<i>General RBC 2015: A book based on a myth</i> </div>
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The Hematoi descend from the
union of Gods and mortals. Children of two pure-blood Hematoi possess god-like
powers and are like the royalty of their community. Children of a pure-blood
and a mortal – not so much. They have two choices in life: become a slave in
the households of pure bloods, or train to become a Sentinel and protect their
community.</div>
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Three years ago, Alexandria
Andros was taken away from the Covenant by her mother. Now that her mother’s
dead, Alex has been returned to the Covenant and must fight for the right to
stay – not easy given that she’s missed three years of training. The delectable
Aiden has taken responsibility for Alex’s training and Alex is determined to
prove that she’s got what it takes to become a Sentinel. Her journey isn’t
helped by both others’ wish that she fail and her forbidden attraction to
pure-blood Aiden …</div>
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I really didn’t expect to like
this; I’ve more than grown out of the young adult supernatural/paranormal scene
and have no real desire to actively seek out new material in this genre. Despite
this, I was pleasantly surprised to see that that hasn’t stopped me from
enjoying <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Half-Blood</i> and the world
that Jennifer L. Armentrout has created. An American import, this was first
published in 2011 and has only recently been picked up and publish</div>
ed in the UK
by Hodder. Presented to the right following, this series has great potential to
re-slake the thirst for YA supernatural lovers, moving away from the current
trend towards contemporary.<br />
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For the most part, I liked Alex. She
experiences considerable trauma over the course of the book and generally
handles it well, channelling her anger towards her training, though she has a
tendency to get side-tracked easily. Her friends mean a lot to her and she
stands up for what she believes in, even if her opinions might be unpopular
amongst her peers. Aiden is an incredibly patient teacher and though I admit to
sometimes losing my patience with the repetitiveness of the book, there is
great potential and Jennifer L. Armentrout has definitely set the wheels in
motion for what will be an explosive series.</div>
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I am highly tempted to seek out
book two in this series, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pure</i>, and
find out what happens next. Given that five full-length and two ‘half’ books
have published before this series even hit the UK, this is some commitment. The
fact that I’m tempted despite the ridiculous number of books that I’ve already
started and am due to start, is a great testament to Jennifer L. Armentrout’s
writing, characters and the intrigue she’s spun. At this point, I don’t think
it’ll take much to get me hooked onto the series.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/a/jennifer-l-armentrout/half-blood.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.</div>
<i> </i>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-54033124552214887302015-04-17T21:23:00.002+01:002015-04-27T21:58:45.906+01:00The Well of Lost Plots by Jasper Fforde<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE9UeCE5_FSu8uW0z6BS9iAcSIJVz97-KCdZJnAxH8NaZOELmdzKqwNgJfPr1A-tO23W8KdJNwMi7uCz0EOAc555PSpZYtKMztzExEE0yp54XTrKTKQMfQ5dSYJGSYs3RSfPsCzTRfl04/s1600/the+well+of+lost+plots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE9UeCE5_FSu8uW0z6BS9iAcSIJVz97-KCdZJnAxH8NaZOELmdzKqwNgJfPr1A-tO23W8KdJNwMi7uCz0EOAc555PSpZYtKMztzExEE0yp54XTrKTKQMfQ5dSYJGSYs3RSfPsCzTRfl04/s1600/the+well+of+lost+plots.jpg" height="320" width="203" /></a>The Well of Lost Plots (2003) (Hodder)<br />
Jasper Fforde<br />
Grade: B+<br />
Genre: fiction / crime / alternate reality<br />
Source: own<br />
<i>Thursday Next: (1) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-eyre-affair-by-jasper-fforde.html" target="_blank">The Eyre Affair</a>, (2) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2014/12/lost-in-good-book-by-jasper-fforde.html" target="_blank">Lost in a Good Book</a>, </i>(3) The Well of Lost Plots<br />
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<i>General RBC 2015: A funny book</i> </div>
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Former literary detective
Thursday Next has recently taken up residence in the Well of Lost Plots, the
place where all fiction is created. In the real world, the evil Goliath Corporation
want her dead and she needs to think about the safety of her unborn child. Settling
in to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cavendish Heights</i>, an
unpublished novel of dubious quality, this is the perfect time for Thursday to consider
how she’s going to approach single-parenthood and how she can reverse Goliath’s
eradication of her husband, Landen. Amidst training with Miss Havisham to
become a Jurisfiction agent and saving <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cavendish
Heights </i>from a disastrous future, Thursday realises that something is
seriously wrong in the Well and must work out who she can trust, and who wants
her dead …</div>
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Jasper Fforde is phenomenal. Every
time you think that he can’t get any funnier, weirder, more ridiculous or out-of-the-box,
he takes the challenge and smashes expectations out of the park. This is book
two without Landen and I thought I would start getting bored with watching as
Thursday figures out how to get him back, but really, very little of the book
is actually devoted to this. I love how Thursday takes whatever life throws at
her and just goes with the flow. Sure, her life is a complete mess right now,
but she knows that moping and sitting still won’t achieve anything. I had the
greatest fun reading about Thursday’s adventures in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Well of Lost Plots</i> and I cannot wait to see where Jasper Fforde
takes the reader next. I’m sure there’s plenty more I could be saying about
this series, but this is really one that you have to discover for yourselves
with as little pre-warning as possible.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/WELL-LOST-PLOTS-FFORDE-JASPER/9781444784282" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>.</div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-84401136528978181702015-04-12T18:01:00.000+01:002015-04-25T22:41:37.150+01:00Seed by Lisa Heathfield<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Or7HYlpvKte4ZFODRqAWJTs8nSF1t_Q7aaih3VhRLVdQXI4eFICqoB3QD0sf8IO6jtVmmMKRJo3ComVOPDnn0uz9rEjvFBXZYBedLp8NnlLBCs6AcvC_MH_9isszjqkoancNoo8SMxc/s1600/seed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Or7HYlpvKte4ZFODRqAWJTs8nSF1t_Q7aaih3VhRLVdQXI4eFICqoB3QD0sf8IO6jtVmmMKRJo3ComVOPDnn0uz9rEjvFBXZYBedLp8NnlLBCs6AcvC_MH_9isszjqkoancNoo8SMxc/s1600/seed.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></a>Seed (2015) (Electric Monkey, Egmont) (publishing 16/04/2015)<br />
Lisa Heathfield<br />
Grade: A+<br />
Genre: young adult<br />
Source: own<br />
<i>Seed: </i>(1) Seed<br />
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<i>General RBC 2015: Free Square</i> </div>
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Seed loves her. Seed will never
let her go ... </div>
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<br /></div>
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All Pearl knows is life at Seed. At
Seed, they’re all children of Mother Nature who will love and protect them so
long as they remain true to each other and live pure lives. In contrast, life
on the Outside is dangerous, evil and poisonous. Their tiny community reap and
sow the land under the guidance of their charismatic leader, Papa S. At fifteen
years old, Pearl will soon become Papa S’s Companion, a role she simultaneously
looks forward to, yet fills her with unease. When a new family from the Outside
joins their way of life at Seed, this is just the start of a massive upheaval affecting every aspect of their lives. Ellis forces Pearl to
question everything she has ever been told about the Outside world, and he challenges
some of the very beliefs that they hold dearest at Seed. As some shocking truths are discovered, it's time for Pearl to re-evaluate everything she believes in ... </div>
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I powered through this in about 2
hours over an evening and morning commute. This was as unputdownable as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">We Were Liars</i>, if not a step up. There
aren’t enough words to describe how stunning Lisa Heathfield’s debut is; all I
know is that I just couldn’t stop. If you’re looking for an out-of-the-box
young adult novel, then get your hands on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Seed</i>.
If I haven’t convinced you to read this by the end of this review, then you should
still pick it up just to experience the utter joy that comes with seeing,
touching and reading a book with such a breath-taking cover – you’ve never seen
so much beautiful, multi-coloured, light-catching foiling.<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>It’ll take your breath away.</div>
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<br /></div>
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There are some stunningly
backwards and WTF views and scenes in this book. In the opening chapter,
15-year-old Pearl gets her period for the first time and she thinks that she’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">dying</i>. Then she’s put in a hole in the
ground to spend the night so that her body can be made ready for bearing
children further down the line in her future. It’s mind-boggling how little
they know about things that we take for granted as general knowledge, just
because we’re exposed to so much advertising, news, culture, politics etc in
everyday life. Even so, it’s impossible to get angry with Pearl as with every
page, you’re forced to remember that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">this
is all she has ever known.</i> Not that I speak from personal experience, but Lisa
Heathfield does a fabulous job in capturing the insularity of cult life. </div>
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I’m desperately excited to see
where Lisa Heathfield will take Pearl next. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Seed</i>
ends on a massive cliffhanger and there’s meant to be a second book in the
series in 2016. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Seed </i>was absolutely
stunning: the character development was brilliant, making me love some
characters, while simultaneously hating others; there were some super haunting
and sinister scenes that will send a shiver up your spine and; possibly most
importantly, this was something <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">different.</i>
I’ve seen my fair share of crime shows where people infiltrate cults to uncover
some sort of criminal activity, but it’s a completely different experience when
you’re reading the words. Lisa Heathfield does a spectacular job and I can
imagine that I’ll be re-reading this several more times before <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Seed #2</i> is out.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Seed-Lisa-Heathfield/9781405275385" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>. </div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><i> </i>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-10930296326114186342015-04-10T15:57:00.000+01:002015-04-10T15:59:59.042+01:00The Game and the Governess by Kate Noble<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0INJ1xqQCZBRVvsT9XDHVfsbBZSlw3bJF3RaVB-A8Rk68l-B1HhDkhaVdu99RrssrgfA8uTho-rlyOOcoYT6VYZGfBLPq-KuAIKdEy0QEkNGADraMfl6Ukrx8dIgvx4xqHwFX8Nk7KMg/s1600/the+game+and+the+governess.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0INJ1xqQCZBRVvsT9XDHVfsbBZSlw3bJF3RaVB-A8Rk68l-B1HhDkhaVdu99RrssrgfA8uTho-rlyOOcoYT6VYZGfBLPq-KuAIKdEy0QEkNGADraMfl6Ukrx8dIgvx4xqHwFX8Nk7KMg/s1600/the+game+and+the+governess.jpg" height="320" width="204" /></a>The Game and the Governess (2014) (Headline Eternal)<br />
Kate Noble<br />
Grade: C<br />
Genre: historical romance<br />
Sex scenes: mild<br />
Source: bookbridgr<br />
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<i>Winner Takes All: </i>(1) The Game and the Governess</div>
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Lord Edward Granville, Earl of
Ashby, has never been short of luck. From his time on the battlefield to his
way with the ladies and at the card table, he’s more than earned his nickname
of ‘Lucky Ned’. When Ned is challenged to a wager with his best friend and
secretary, John Turner, he can’t say no. John doesn’t think that Ned can win
over a lady without the benefit of his title, and so the pair agree to switch
identities during a trip to visit one of Ned’s properties.</div>
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Governess Phoebe Baker wants
nothing more than to keep her employers happy whilst making sure that her
students are getting a good education. There’s no one she’d rather avoid than
the Earl of Ashby. Phoebe has a past with the Earl that she would rather keep
private and so when she discovers that he’ll be staying for a week with his
secretary, it’s her worst nightmare. Thankfully, she doesn’t see much of the
Earl, but his secretary is persistent in crossing her path … and making her
pulse flutter …</div>
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At over 400 pages, this is a
dense romance novel without actually possessing much action. Ned and John’s
wager is amusing and has the potential to either further strengthen or break
their relationship. Their friendship is one that was forged on the battlefield but
has only deteriorated over time as John has begun to resent the way that his
role and Ned’s treatment of him has affected their once easy-going
relationship. Aside from their ruse and their respective attempts to thwart the
other’s stake, nothing much happens. Obviously it’s inevitable that Phoebe will
eventually find out that they’ve swapped places and react badly, but I was
expecting something in addition to the obvious. A real anti-climax.</div>
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Rose and Henry – Phoebe’s charges
– are really cute kids. I wish we had seen more of them. I know the book wasn’t
about them (they were just ancillary characters, really) but seeing more of
them wouldn’t have done anyone any harm. Phoebe is wonderful with them and I
thought her interaction with them was the most interesting part of her
character. There was an interesting scene when we found out that she’s a
talented artist, but then there’s no follow-up which is again, highly
disappointing.</div>
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So it sounds like all I’ve done
so far is complain. There isn’t anything major that I didn’t like about this;
rather, it’s the culmination of lots of little things. I wasn’t crazy about the
number of characters at the house party, which made it super difficult to keep
up with who was who. The book dragged on for ages without anything of interest
taking place and it was like it was never going to end. I wasn’t convinced by
the class-differences element of Ned and Phoebe’s relationship; the couple who
feature in book two in this series are thus even less convincing. Sorry, Kate
Noble, you just didn’t do it for me.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/n/kate-noble/game-and-the-governess.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.</div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-10200848464553567912015-04-03T22:22:00.001+01:002015-04-25T22:41:37.089+01:00The Executioner's Daughter by Jane Hardstaff<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3TaerVzCNgo4tJCkgNjIY854NZR4sHCwHQchvp5X_jJbT4HZnO-aimUFYGyfTTqUV0ua3lSP4z3E0me7XmAFdMp-0CAYzH3eolEzn8DgNb1Cp_sfitL23_WCQi46s_MFYgGUHNirgDpw/s1600/the+executioner's+daughter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3TaerVzCNgo4tJCkgNjIY854NZR4sHCwHQchvp5X_jJbT4HZnO-aimUFYGyfTTqUV0ua3lSP4z3E0me7XmAFdMp-0CAYzH3eolEzn8DgNb1Cp_sfitL23_WCQi46s_MFYgGUHNirgDpw/s1600/the+executioner's%2Bdaughter.jpg" height="320" width="209" /></a>The Executioner's Daughter (2014) (Egmont)<br />
Jane Hardstaff<br />
Grade: C<br />
Genre: children's<br />
Source: own<br />
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<i>The Executioner's Daughter: </i>(1) <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/h/jane-hardstaff/executioners-daughter.htm" target="_blank">The Executioner's Daughter</a> </div>
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<br /></div>
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The people of London love a good
beheading. The streets are always bustling on beheading day as spectators
jostle to get the best view and satisfy their bloodthirsty curiosity. Moss can
imagine nothing worse, but unfortunately, she’s present at every single one. As
the daughter of the executioner, it’s her job to catch the poor soul’s head in
her basket. Living with her father, Moss has never seen outside the Tower’s
walls and longs to follow the river and be free of their current life. Then Moss
meets Salter, a boy living independently off his wits on the river. But London
– and especially the Thames – is no place for children this harsh winter. Word
has it that something lurks in the water and it’s targeting children …</div>
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My twelve-year-old sister loved
this book. Me, not so much. I can understand its appeal amongst that age range
and it’s certainly well written with great scene-setting. This has been
recognised in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Executioner’s Daughter</i>’s
long-listing for the Branford Boase Award 2015, which seeks to celebrate new writers
and their editors, as well as excellence in writing and publishing. The short
list is announced in early May, so exciting times. The Tudor setting is an
unusual one for this age range but I wasn’t so keen on our heroine, Moss, for
some reason. Not a book I’d read again, but at some point, I’m willing to try a
hand at its sequel, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">River Daughter.</i></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/h/jane-hardstaff/executioners-daughter.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.</span></div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-9587736865233018172015-03-31T09:38:00.000+01:002015-04-25T22:41:37.162+01:00Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7iD0inQKLr5ifuSwv9ARLlHFmdsEsHvnb70Hz-XkOF7kXtRxCmpZ2Yswn1u6zWDGqWp3qZr59-lNqTjyAjqD_W_qYgEK-XGH_Vze9z5fOxrZdbv-Wkw5JyGYAo2iRNTYk94nLNvB1zS4/s1600/prep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7iD0inQKLr5ifuSwv9ARLlHFmdsEsHvnb70Hz-XkOF7kXtRxCmpZ2Yswn1u6zWDGqWp3qZr59-lNqTjyAjqD_W_qYgEK-XGH_Vze9z5fOxrZdbv-Wkw5JyGYAo2iRNTYk94nLNvB1zS4/s1600/prep.jpg" height="320" width="217" /></a>Prep (2005) (Quality Paperbacks Direct, by arrangement with Picador)<br />
Curtis Sittenfeld<br />
Grade: A-<br />
Genre: young adult<br />
Sex scenes: mild<br />
Source: own<br />
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<i>TBR RBC 2015: A classic YA novel</i> </div>
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When 15-year-old Lee Fiora is
offered a scholarship at prestigious boarding school Ault, her parents, though
puzzled about why she would choose this education, reluctantly allows their
eldest child to move away. But boarding school isn’t quite what Lee envisaged
after the glossy brochures and her preconceived ideas about what life and
classes would be like. Very much an outsider for her four years at Ault, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Prep </i>follows Lee as she establishes a
tenuous position in the school’s hierarchy, until one thoughtless mistake
throws her life into the balance …</div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Prep </i>is another one of my
I-bought-this-book-because-I-heard-it’s-really-good-but-it’s-gathered-dust-on-my-shelves-untouched-for-the-past-[insert
number of years]-years books. Now that I’ve read it, it’s one of those less
frequent I-wish-I-had-read-this-sooner books, but I don’t think I could have
appreciated it until now.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Prep </i>takes the reader through four years at Ault, but there’s also
seamless excerpts and flashbacks from both earlier in Lee’s life as well as her
life post-Ault. The style is a bit unusual – I’m reminded a little of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">To Kill a Mockingbird</i> where a grown-up
Scout reflects on the events of that summer. In a similar vein, an adult Lee (Fiora,
not Harper! You have no idea how old she is) reflects back on events and
conversations during her time at Ault. A lot of the time, the narration might
seem completely random and unconnected, but everything eventually has some kind
of impact on Lee’s experiences at Ault and her future. Whether or not you like
the style, Curtis Sittenfeld makes it work and the writing flows brilliantly.</div>
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<br /></div>
I don’t think that this is
poignant as such – reflective is a much better word. Lee never feels like she
can fit in at Ault and is constantly wary of how others perceive her. Nothing new
there from what you might expect from a particularly self-conscious teenager,
but once you factor in the tight-knit sense of community at boarding school and
the inevitable cliques, you’ve got a very uncomfortable life for Lee. What I like,
though, is that from the few glimpses we get of her life now (super infrequent,
though there’s more as the book progresses), you can tell that she hasn’t let
her mistakes at school take over her life and she’s come to accept that she is
who she is. There’s a lot of power in that seemingly minor realisation but it’s
that which means that the tone as Lee is reflecting isn’t bitter and angry –
but reflective. Powerful stuff.<br />
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Like I said, I don’t think I would
have appreciated <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Prep </i>if I’d read it several
years ago. From the blurb, you know from the beginning that Lee will commit one
mistake that throws her life into complete upheaval. There’s no indication of
quite how serious her error is, or the ensuing damage and I have to confess
that my imagination was going crazy. At every possible point, I was imagining
the worst. When the moment did come, the build-up (at 400+ pages of tiny text, this
isn’t an insubstantial book) almost made it all the worse. The ending did make
me endlessly frustrated by its lack of finality, but given the rest of the
book, that was probably expected. I was sorely tempted to lower the grade for
the less-than-stellar climax, but managed to refrain. After all, this is timeless book
that I’m going to be reading multiple times, probably cover-to-cover, in the
years to come – just give me another five years before I start again. </div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/s/curtis-sittenfeld/prep.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>. </div>
<i> </i>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-658910785727271392015-03-29T17:57:00.000+01:002015-03-29T17:57:45.864+01:00The Virgin by Tiffany Reisz<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibdvw07DZrz-4K2-aHIiYlEF3XvLWMunjOBl7vpFZ8MYmwwkJp8-Ag7W5xHCxdx60XsawtMgEMGXlk2jtK55-rcis9RG9mSpCh5NoXEvXj_HOb9hVSfY7_aIdUK9JFuoN2v1xfsQvYGG8/s1600/the+virgin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibdvw07DZrz-4K2-aHIiYlEF3XvLWMunjOBl7vpFZ8MYmwwkJp8-Ag7W5xHCxdx60XsawtMgEMGXlk2jtK55-rcis9RG9mSpCh5NoXEvXj_HOb9hVSfY7_aIdUK9JFuoN2v1xfsQvYGG8/s1600/the+virgin.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></a></div>
The Virgin (2015) (Harlequin)<br />
Tiffany Reisz<br />
Grade: B<br />
Genre: erotica<br />
Sex scenes: hot<br />
Source: NetGalley<br />
<i>The Original Sinners: </i><i>(prequel) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2012/07/seven-day-loan-by-tiffany-reisz.html" target="_blank">Seven Day Loan</a>, </i><i><i>(The Red Years): </i>(1) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2012/06/siren-by-tiffany-reisz.html" target="_blank">The Siren</a>, (2) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-angel-by-tiffany-reisz.html" target="_blank">The Angel</a>, (3) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-prince-by-tiffany-reisz.html" target="_blank">The Prince</a>, (4) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-mistress-by-tiffany-reisz.html" target="_blank">The Mistress</a>, (The White Years): (5) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-saint-by-tiffany-reisz.html" target="_blank">The Saint</a>, (6) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-king-by-tiffany-reisz.html" target="_blank">The King</a>, </i>(7) The Virgin<br />
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<i>Romance RBC 2015: A book with a writer heroine</i> </div>
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For years, Kingsley had warned
Eleanor that there would come a time when she, lover of a Catholic priest,
would have to leave for her own good. Twice a year for six years, she and
Kingsley ran through his evacuation plan if one of his five scenarios arose and
it was time for her to get out … When the time came, there had been no drill,
no practice run that would have <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ever</i>
prepared Eleanor for what she was forced to face in 2003, the year that became
known as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">that year</i> …</div>
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<br /></div>
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Knowing that Søren and Kingsley
will do all they can to find her and drag her back into their lives, Eleanor
escapes and finds some measure of peace in the one place they cannot follow …
with Eleanor gone, Kingsley too flees from his kingdom in New York and finds himself
on a beach in Haiti. It is there he meets Juliette, the one woman he wants more
than anything, and the one woman he cannot have …</div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Virgin</i> fills in the gaps about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">that year</i> just before we say goodbye to Eleanor Schreiber and welcome
her resurrection as Nora Sutherlin. We learn what happened behind the gates of
the convent where Nora found refuge for a year, how Kingsley met Juliette and
her own shocking story, and just how <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">that
</i>conversation between Eleanor and Søren went down. Like the other books in The
White Years sub-series, the main story is told as ‘flashbacks’ from the
present. It’s a super-effective way of satisfying readers’ insatiable curiosity
about Eleanor’s life pre-Dominatrix, while also carrying on the continuity of The
Red Years. Tiffany Reisz weaves seamlessly between the past and the present,
with just enough sex to whet her loyal readers’ appetites.</div>
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Boy did Eleanor get up to some
naughty things in the convent. She’s determined to keep her head down and do
her work (laundry, laundry and more laundry) to keep in the Mother Abbess’ good
books so she doesn’t get kicked out. But on the arrival of the beautiful, young
and innocent Kyrie, the convent’s newest novice, the monotony of Eleanor’s
daily life is thrown into disarray. Kyrie is inexplicably curious about
Eleanor’s life pre-convent and is absolutely determined to learn the truth,
however terrible Eleanor keeps insisting it is. It is Kyrie who gives Eleanor a
writing challenge and provides the confidence boost that Eleanor so desperately
needs about the next step in her life; and so, Eleanor the writer is born. This
is no more explicit than Reisz is normally, but if you’re a newbie to the world
of The Original Sinners (where on earth have you been?!) be warned that there’s
F/F, rape-play and edge-play abound. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. </div>
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Sadly, I wasn’t quite as
impressed with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Virgin</i> as I have
been with the other instalments of this series. I’ll concede that I have been
desperate to know what happened that night between Eleanor and Søren since it
was first mentioned in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Angel</i>, and
it was every bit as heart-wrenching as I had expected, but it wasn’t anything <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">extra</i> that I hadn’t already known or
anticipated. What was more exciting was the way that Kingsley met Juliette in
Haiti and their ensuing relationship. In The Red Years, you don’t question Juliette’s
part in Kingsley’s life and the Underground, but she’s got her own important
story to tell. As The Original Sinners series comes to its close, I’m glad that
we were given the chance to hear it.</div>
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Having followed this amazing
series from practically the beginning, it’s scary to think that three years have
passed and it’s almost over for Nora, Søren, Kingsley and everyone else who in
their crazy, beautiful, kinky world. No other author writes quite like Tiffany
Reisz and I know that once I’m done with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Queen</i> (publishing in October) there’ll be a massive gap that I have no idea
how to fill. Tiffany Reisz is the best representative that the erotica genre
could possibly have and if you haven’t read any of her work yet, then go and
rectify that immediately so that you can see what you’re missing.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Virgin-Tiffany-Reisz/9780778317975" target="_blank">Book Depository</a>.</div>
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<br />Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-67713371675245406592015-03-24T15:56:00.001+00:002015-03-24T19:10:43.399+00:00A Little on the Wild Side by Robin Kaye<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_4sRwrUkGWrNPcZ5sw_W0kXxluE-Mh96K2iqpTzWKItfh5D1ryPfvpA4oB8XS4a7bI9USZ8KlwoA6CU0QY5jr6GT_xw2hyphenhyphenHN0W1poy0oCNU6VO-r1W2z1XstfGIDrpcxBPZwEgKQNnt0/s1600/a+little+on+the+wild+side.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_4sRwrUkGWrNPcZ5sw_W0kXxluE-Mh96K2iqpTzWKItfh5D1ryPfvpA4oB8XS4a7bI9USZ8KlwoA6CU0QY5jr6GT_xw2hyphenhyphenHN0W1poy0oCNU6VO-r1W2z1XstfGIDrpcxBPZwEgKQNnt0/s1600/a+little+on+the+wild+side.jpg" height="400" width="242" /></a></div>
A Little on the Wild Side (2015) (Sourcebooks Casablanca)<br />
Robin Kaye<br />
Grade: C<br />
Genre: contemporary romance<br />
Sex scenes: mild<br />
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Source: NetGalley</div>
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Bianca Ferrari, former supermodel
turned high-flying businesswoman, almost has it all. Brains, beauty and a
successful modelling agency, Bianca has built life and career from the ground
up after emancipating herself from her parents. When she discovers that she’s
pregnant, Bianca has no inclination to contact the father, with whom she’s only
shared a handful of nights. By his own admission, Trapper can only maintain a
relationship for seventy-two hours and Bianca has no desire to test that limit.</div>
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<br /></div>
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What Bianca didn’t expect was the
strength of Trapper’s responsibility when he surprised her with a trip to New
York and discovered she was pregnant with his child. Her high blood pressure
and inability to keep any food down works against her and before she knows it, Bianca
is on a plane out to live with Trapper and be surrounded by his family for the
foreseeable future. Bianca slowly comes to realise that Trapper might be just
the thing that’s been missing in her life …</div>
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When I needed it, this was light
and funny and an all-round fluffy read. Bianca and Trapper’s interactions were,
for the most part, funny though predictable. Bianca could be a diva at times
but probably no more than any other heavily pregnant woman unexpectedly
uprooted and plonked in unfamiliar semi-hostile (Bianca has a somewhat negative
history with the Kincaids) surroundings. Trapper’s interactions with his
siblings were funny but I unfortunately have little desire to discover any of
their books. I enjoyed this ‘in the moment’, but this isn’t one I’d come back to.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/k/robin-kaye/little-on-the-wild-side.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.</div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span>Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-58308908626980440172015-03-22T20:59:00.000+00:002015-03-22T20:59:19.384+00:00We Were Liars by E. Lockhart<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQpQ-IkgFowB7sNofWMWapNrqflnq9y0sgrUorL2fFOm7N8FAwggkaC31iy_lYiqz5DlptumBk2RwXYwssROxglO65FBHq7GW_CO5cMD7TpYjWG-Ahtyu0pthuwhEYUUoK7zdCq2vXepU/s1600/we+were+liars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQpQ-IkgFowB7sNofWMWapNrqflnq9y0sgrUorL2fFOm7N8FAwggkaC31iy_lYiqz5DlptumBk2RwXYwssROxglO65FBHq7GW_CO5cMD7TpYjWG-Ahtyu0pthuwhEYUUoK7zdCq2vXepU/s1600/we+were+liars.jpg" height="320" width="211" /></a>We Were Liars (2014) (Hot Key Books)<br />
E. Lockhart<br />
Grade: A<br />
Genre: young adult<br />
Source: own<i> </i><br />
<i>General RBC 2015: A book without a love triangle</i><br />
<br />
“Welcome to the beautiful
Sinclair family. No one is a criminal. No one is an addict. No one is a
failure.”<br />
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<br /></div>
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Cady, Johnny, Mirren and Gat.
Gat, Mirren, Johnny and Cady. The family call them the Liars after Gat first
arrived on Beechwood Island in summer eight. Though the four lead separate
lives during the year, they are utterly inseparable during their summer months
on the family island. To the outside world, life for the Sinclair family is
privileged, effortless and enviable – that is, until summer fifteen. All Cady
knows is that she had an accident on the island and the past two years have
been spent in a haze of pain and pills, as her selective amnesia prevents her
from remembering much of what happened. Now, Cady is back on Beechwood for summer
seventeen, the first time since her accident two years ago and everything has changed
irrevocably. What is the truth? What is a lie?</div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">We Were Liars</i> is utterly breathtaking. This is Emily Lockhart’s
eighth book, but its stunning storyline, unreliable narrator and hypnotic writing
means that it packs all the power of something you’d expect in a debut. God
knows how much I simultaneously love and hate unreliable narrators, but Cady’s
situation means that you’re discovering the truth just as she does. And when
the plot twist comes, I was completely blown away. This is one of the most
devastating books I’ve read in a long time – only Sharon Bolton’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Now You See Me</i> comes close, and that was
back in 2012. You’ll need to read this book for a second time in close
succession to your first reading, to pick up on all the clues that you miss.</div>
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The only other Lockhart book I’ve
read is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Boy Book</i>, back in 2007. I
liked it, but I didn’t love it and truthfully, I didn’t understand what all the
fuss surrounding E. Lockhart was about. Fast forward seven-and-a-half years and
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">We Were Liars</i> was being quoted as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the</i> young adult book to read in summer
2014. E. Lockhart has without a doubt gotten better with practice. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">We Were Liars </i>is grittier and more poignant
than anything I remember, though it must be said that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Boy Book </i>is a different sort of book. Cady might be selfish,
whiny and full of her own self-importance, but it’s difficult to hate her for
it once you’ve got to the end of the book and all is revealed. </div>
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I’ve already read this book
twice, cover to cover. I’ll probably read it several more times before the year
is out. It is by far my favourite of my favourites of the year so far, not
least because E. Lockhart has an uncanny ability to leave you speechless and
clutching at straws as you try to figure out what on earth you missed. Combined,
it makes for a brilliant and thought-provoking read, messing with your head without
you even realising it. An amazing experience and you can’t ask an author to
give more than Emily Lockhart has done.<br />
<br />
Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/l/e-lockhart/we-were-liars.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.<i> </i></div>
Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152456440735284378.post-29320178450686440412015-03-14T12:51:00.000+00:002015-04-26T18:50:50.618+01:00Duke of Midnight by Elizabeth Hoyt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7viMZO8HJ_Iap-EDMvO-pbPCu5tZrsb0rET1-01leAtWEJT6Xsdo7-krdm3YfgrfbrYY-NNHqinl65D3L3Pz6tIlJG0ui7s8XETYLEMq1s3E2eYsiiy1nGJe9gXHSeweVWeun8dWG3QM/s1600/duke+of+midnight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7viMZO8HJ_Iap-EDMvO-pbPCu5tZrsb0rET1-01leAtWEJT6Xsdo7-krdm3YfgrfbrYY-NNHqinl65D3L3Pz6tIlJG0ui7s8XETYLEMq1s3E2eYsiiy1nGJe9gXHSeweVWeun8dWG3QM/s1600/duke+of+midnight.jpg" height="320" width="198" /></a></div>
Duke of Midnight (2013) (Grand Central Publishing)<br />
Elizabeth Hoyt<br />
Grade: A<br />
Genre: historical romance<br />
Sex scenes: hot<br />
Source: own<br />
<i>Maiden Lane: (1) Wicked Intentions, (2) Notorious Pleasures, (3) </i><i><i><a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2012/08/scandalous-desires-by-elizabeth-hoyt.html" target="_blank">Scandalous Desires</a>, (4) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2012/08/thief-of-shadows-by-elizabeth-hoyt.html" target="_blank">Thief of Shadows</a></i>, (5) <a href="http://randommusingsmanicramblings.blogspot.com/2013/09/lord-of-darkness-by-elizabeth-hoyt.html" target="_blank">Lord of Darkness</a>, </i>(6) Duke of Midnight<br />
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<i>Romance RBC 2015: A book with a green cover</i> </div>
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Artemis Greaves, lady’s companion
to her cousin, Penelope, is more than familiar with Penelope’s odd, whimsical
and often outlandish requests. When a wager sees them lurking on the dangerous
streets of St Giles after dark, they nearly lose their purses and lives – that
is, until the Ghost of St Giles comes to their rescue. The Ghost roams London’s
most dangerous streets after dark, ridding the city of its evil gin distilleries,
pickpockets, murderers and their ilk. The Ghost leaves an impression on
Artemis, as well as a ring which suggests he’s of noble birth …</div>
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It doesn’t take long for Artemis
to connect the Ghost to Maximus, Duke of Wakefield, currently the object of
Penelope’s undivided attention. With her twin brother Apollo wrongly imprisoned
in Bedlam for three murders he didn’t commit, Artemis has no qualms about using
her knowledge of the Duke’s secret identity to pressurise Maximus into setting
Apollo free. As they are brought together under Penelope’s suit and Artemis’
increasingly desperate pleas for help, they learn first-hand just how tempting
forbidden fruit can be …</div>
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Elizabeth Hoyt just gets better
and better. I think <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Maiden Lane </i>is
the only ongoing historical romance series that I’m still following, and I
never want it to stop. A lot of authors slowly lose their spark with each book,
but it feels like Ms Hoyt has still yet to hit her stride. With a lot of
series, I’m content with just reading them once and remembering the plot
through subsequent books, but I’m sorely tempted with this series to buy them
all just so I can read them over and over again. The phenomenal covers just add
another layer of temptation to the mix.</div>
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Artemis is wonderful. She’s
grateful to Penelope’s family for taking her in when she would have otherwise
ended up on the streets. There had been enough money to send Apollo to school,
but Artemis was left behind with her sick mother and mentally ill father. When
they both died and Apollo was imprisoned, Artemis’ only choice was to accept a
position as Penelope’s lady’s companion and retreat into the side lines for the
rest of her life. She’s accepted the fact that once Penelope is married, her
husband may have no use for a lady’s companion, and so she enjoys it while she
can. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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Maximus has been saddled with the
responsibility of the Dukedom since he was 14-years-old and witnessed his
parents’ deaths in the streets of St Giles. His incarnation as the Ghost has
been purely for selfish reasons: to find his parents killers, though he hasn’t
hesitated to also wield his political clout in St Giles too. Maximus recognises
that it’s time to do his duty to find a wife and produce heirs in order to carry
on his father’s legacy, but approaches the task as one might buy a horse:
having his valet produce a list of eligible young ladies and their desirable
(and not so desirable) qualities. Maximus has no qualms about keeping his other
identity a secret from his future wife, but Artemis is different. When he’s
with her, he doesn’t need to pretend that he doesn’t have a secret persona, or
worry about letting his other identity slip, because she’s already discovered
it. For the first time, there’s someone waiting and worrying if he’ll come back
in once piece and someone he can share the burden with. He knows that he can’t
marry her and uses her family’s history of madness as a flimsy excuse (yet by
the same rationale, he can still marry Penelope, her cousin …) yet he still
selfishly takes her virginity and ruins her for other men (this element is
super hot). I love the moment that Maximus realises that he can’t live without
Artemis, though of course he needed a life-or-death situation to see it.
Regardless, I think Maximus and Artemis have been my favourite couple so far.</div>
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Can Elizabeth Hoyt top <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Duke of Midnight</i>? I know that I’ve said
with each new book that it’s been my favourite, but I’m really exaggerating,
however cliché it sounds. The next in the series features Apollo now that he’s
escaped Bedlam, and book 8 is about Maximus’ youngest sister, Phoebe who is
virtually blind, and Captain Trevillion who has made it a personal mission to
track down the Ghost of St Giles – some beautiful irony. Personally, I think
Apollo and Phoebe would have made a wonderful couple (Phoebe can’t see and
after events in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Duke of Midnight</i>,
Apollo has lost his voice) but we’ll see what the next three books (which is
what has been published and is planned so far) have to offer. If you haven’t
discovered the joy of Elizabeth Hoyt already, you need to see what you’re missing.</div>
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Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/h/elizabeth-hoyt/duke-of-midnight.htm" target="_blank">Fantastic Fiction</a>.<i> </i> </div>
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<br />Alexandrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08752897277353680495noreply@blogger.com0