31 Jan 2015

Book Review / Night World Bind Up 3 by L J Smith

Includes:
Book 7 - Huntress
Book 8 - Black Dawn
Book 9 - Witchlight


Vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters - they live among us without our knowledge. Night World is their secret society, a secret society with very strict rules. And fallin in love breaks all the laws of the Night World.

The apocalypse is drawing near. But four Wild Powers can save the world from the impending doom. Circle Daybreak, an underground organization with both Night World and human members, is searching for the four who can stop the darkness.

A vampire hunter - who is half vampire - stalks her own kind to protect humans in Huntress.

In Black Dawn, Maggie stumbles upon an old Night World kingdom where the ruling vampire prince is both an enemy and an ally.

And Circle Daybreak hires Keller, a shapeshifting panther, to guard a new Wild power in Witchlight. But when Keller falls in love with the Wild Power's soulmate, her love could destroy everything...


Published:     7th April 2009
Publisher:  Simon Pulse
Author Website:  Click here
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Books 7, 8 & 9, Night World

Source:  My Own Book

 


My Review 

What I loved about this story...
I was so sad when I got to the end of the final book, this was a series that I can't believe I have left it so long to read and thoroughly enjoy.  I LOVED IT!!!!  As this is nearer the end of the series, there are a lot of plot lines that I cannot go into but what I loved the most about these three books and this series in general is the plot.  You have the Night World and all the characters in each of the stories in this series are living in it or around it.  With each story you follow a different character but you are still in the same world and there is definitely a bigger picture which becomes more apparent with story you read.  

What made this series even better was the fact that after I had finished reading the final book I found out via Goodreads that there is going to be a book 10.  I am not completely sure when that is coming out but possibly in 2015.  I am so excited for that one as I felt that there was a lot more story to tell in Night World....  

This is such a great series that I would HIGHLY recommend giving a go.  

About the Author
(from Goodreads)

L.J. SMITH, Lisa Jane Smith, is the New York Times #1 Bestselling author of The Vampire Diaries, The Secret Circle, The Forbidden Game, Dark Visions, Wildworld and Night World series. She has written over two dozen books for children and young adults, and has enjoyed writing every one of them. She lives in the Bay Area of California, with a backyard that is full of flowers, which she adores, especially with many different shades of roses.

She loves to visit a friend's little cabin in the Point Reyes National Seashore area, which has lots of trees, lots of animals, lots of beaches to walk on, and lots of places to hike. Once, while hiking, she saw a snow-white buck which allowed her to follow it nearly half a mile. She also likes to collect things: angels (they remind her of her late mother), tiny boxes from different countries or of fanciful shape, nineteenth century children's literature, and books about quantum physics--especially about the mystery of the dark energy in the universe. A militant optimist, she is also part of the Velociraptor Sisterhood (a fancy way of saying that she likes to read, write and discuss books with strong female characters), and she has traveled extensively in Europe and the Far East. The two countries she loves to visit most are Great Britain, with its historic monuments and amazing country landscapes, and Japan, with its bustling urban life and exquisite mountain scenery.

Her favorite current writer is Terry Pratchett, the author of the Discworld series, for its wild and witty satires on life, death, war, love, assassins, coppers, and Australia. Her favorite classical writer is Jane Austen. Her favorite poets are Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson. Her favorite movies are The Seven Samurai and Avatar (analyze that!). She doesn't have a favorite TV show, because she doesn't have time to watch TV (and only owns one for playing movies).

Her favorite people are her readers, each of whom she cherishes with deep and lasting affection.

Note: L. J. Smith wrote books 1-7 of The Vampire Diaries series. After that, a ghostwriter took over the rest of the series. L. J. wrote books 1-3 of The Secret Circle series. After that, a ghostwriter took over the rest of the series. L. J. did not write any of the Originals or Stefan's Diaries. These were written by Kevin Williamson and/or various ghostwritters. 



Continue reading Book Review / Night World Bind Up 3 by L J Smith

28 Jan 2015

Book Review / Nightworld Volume 2 by L J Smith

Includes:
Book 4 - Dark Angel
Book 5 - The Chosen
Book 6 - Soulmate


Vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters -- they live among us without our knowledge. Night World is their secret society, a secret society with very strict rules. And falling in love breaks all the laws of the Night World.

In Dark Angel, Gillian is saved from drowning by her guardian angel. Only visible to Gillian, Angel will fulfill her heart's every desire. But when Angel starts making strange and sinister requests, Gillian must question who he truly is and where he came from.

Armed with a wooden stake, martial arts, and the will to resist a vampire's mind control, Rashel struggles to avenge her mother's death in The Chosen. Then she meets Quinn, her soulmate, who is part of the world she has vowed to destroy.

Hannah receives notes warning her of incredible danger in Soulmate. But if death is her destiny, is the Lord of the Night World's love strong enough to save her?


Published:     18th November 2008
Publisher:  Hodder
Author Website:  Click here
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone: 
Volume 1 (inc. books 2, 3 & 4) Night World  
Source:  Bought


My Review

What I love about this book...
You may notice that there is not a section in this review for 'what I did not like about this book'.  That's because I loved this book.  After reading the previous book (book 3) which I was not fond of I was slightly worried that it was a sign of things to come but it really wasn't.  I liked the fact that you have one world, the Night World, and in each story you are in the same world but seeing it through the eyes of different characters in different situations.  I also like the fact that the more you read the more you see a bigger picture emerging throughout each book that I hope will come to a conclusion nearer the end of the series. 

I couldn't possibly say which of the three books above was my favourite, I loved them all and I really can't wait to read the next three books....


About the Author
 (from Goodreads)


L.J. SMITH, Lisa Jane Smith, is the New York Times #1 Bestselling author of The Vampire Diaries, The Secret Circle, The Forbidden Game, Dark Visions, Wildworld and Night World series. She has written over two dozen books for children and young adults, and has enjoyed writing every one of them. She lives in the Bay Area of California, with a backyard that is full of flowers, which she adores, especially with many different shades of roses.

She loves to visit a friend's little cabin in the Point Reyes National Seashore area, which has lots of trees, lots of animals, lots of beaches to walk on, and lots of places to hike. Once, while hiking, she saw a snow-white buck which allowed her to follow it nearly half a mile. She also likes to collect things: angels (they remind her of her late mother), tiny boxes from different countries or of fanciful shape, nineteenth century children's literature, and books about quantum physics--especially about the mystery of the dark energy in the universe. A militant optimist, she is also part of the Velociraptor Sisterhood (a fancy way of saying that she likes to read, write and discuss books with strong female characters), and she has traveled extensively in Europe and the Far East. The two countries she loves to visit most are Great Britain, with its historic monuments and amazing country landscapes, and Japan, with its bustling urban life and exquisite mountain scenery.

Her favorite current writer is Terry Pratchett, the author of the Discworld series, for its wild and witty satires on life, death, war, love, assassins, coppers, and Australia. Her favorite classical writer is Jane Austen. Her favorite poets are Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson. Her favorite movies are The Seven Samurai and Avatar (analyze that!). She doesn't have a favorite TV show, because she doesn't have time to watch TV (and only owns one for playing movies).

Her favorite people are her readers, each of whom she cherishes with deep and lasting affection.

Note: L. J. Smith wrote books 1-7 of The Vampire Diaries series. After that, a ghostwriter took over the rest of the series. L. J. wrote books 1-3 of The Secret Circle series. After that, a ghostwriter took over the rest of the series. L. J. did not write any of the Originals or Stefan's Diaries. These were written by Kevin Williamson and/or various ghostwritters.



Continue reading Book Review / Nightworld Volume 2 by L J Smith

27 Jan 2015

Waiting on Wednesday / Things we Know by Heart by Jessi Kirby

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly memo that is hosted by Breaking the Spine Blog.

Expected Release Date: 1st April 2015
(Release date obtained from Goodreads)

Goodreads link is here.


When Quinn Sullivan meets the recipient of her boyfriend’s donated heart, the two form an unexpected connection.

After Quinn loses her boyfriend, Trent, in an accident their junior year, she reaches out to the recipients of his donated organs in hopes of picking up the pieces of her now-unrecognizable life. She hears back from some of them, but the person who received Trent’s heart has remained silent. The essence of a person, she has always believed, is in the heart. If she finds Trent’s, then maybe she can have peace once and for all.

Risking everything in order to finally lay her memories to rest, Quinn goes outside the system to track down nineteen-year-old Colton Thomas—a guy whose life has been forever changed by this priceless gift. But what starts as an accidental run-in quickly develops into more, sparking an undeniable attraction. She doesn't want to give in to it—especially since he has no idea how they're connected—but their time together has made Quinn feel alive again. No matter how hard she’s falling for Colton, each beat of his heart reminds her of all she’s lost…and all that remains at stake.
Continue reading Waiting on Wednesday / Things we Know by Heart by Jessi Kirby

25 Jan 2015

Book Review / Night World Volume One by L J Smith

Vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters -- they live among us without our knowledge. Night World is their secret society, a secret society with very strict rules. And falling in love breaks all the laws of the Night World.

 In 'Secret Vampire', Poppy is dying. Her best friend, James can offer her eternal life - as a vampire. One kiss and she sees into his soul. But can she follow him into death ... and beyond?

In 'Daughters of Darkness', there are three sisters with a secret, on the run from their cruel and ruthless brother. Can their new human friend Mary Lynette resist the powerful charm of their brother -and save the sisters and herself from a deadly fate at the hands of a werewolf?

In 'Enchantress', Blaise is irresistible. She's lethal. She bewitches boys for sport. then she meets a boy who matters to her cousin. Thea. They become rivals in love. It's Thea's white magic against Blaise's black magic. They're both breaking the rules. But it's Thea who risks expulsion from the Night World ...


Published:     7th May 2009
Publisher:  Hodder

Author Website:  Click here
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Volume 1 (inc. books 1, 2 and 3) Night World

 Source:  Bought
Review:   4 out of 5

 

My Review

What I loved about this book...
Out of the three books that is in this bind up, my favourite by far was the first one - Secret Vampire.  I instantly felt for the main character, Poppy who is dying (as mentioned in the description above).  You have a best friend character, James, who is more than what he seems and more than what Poppy realises.  It has been a while since I last read a vampire and I am so glad I decided to pick up this one not only to be one of the first books of 2015 but one of my first books I reading for #projecttbr (challenge for this year which aims to reduce your tbr pile). 

Daughters of Darkness takes us in the same world (Night World) but we follow different characters, thi stime the there sisters.  They are part of the Night World and it was very interesting to see how they interacted in this world.  It was definitely fun to find out what they are up to and trying to figure out whether they are on the side of the good or on the side of the bad.  

Enchantress I will talk about more in the next section. 

What I was not fond of with this book...
Unfortunately, Enchantress was the third book in this series and it was one that I did struggle to get through.  Not because the story was not interesting enough but for the sheer fact that didn't like the character of Blaise.  I thought she was very selfish and hurtful I was pretty much annoyed with her for most of the story. 

About the Author
(from Goodreads)

L.J. SMITH, Lisa Jane Smith, is the New York Times #1 Bestselling author of The Vampire Diaries, The Secret Circle, The Forbidden Game, Dark Visions, Wildworld and Night World series. She has written over two dozen books for children and young adults, and has enjoyed writing every one of them. She lives in the Bay Area of California, with a backyard that is full of flowers, which she adores, especially with many different shades of roses.

She loves to visit a friend's little cabin in the Point Reyes National Seashore area, which has lots of trees, lots of animals, lots of beaches to walk on, and lots of places to hike. Once, while hiking, she saw a snow-white buck which allowed her to follow it nearly half a mile. She also likes to collect things: angels (they remind her of her late mother), tiny boxes from different countries or of fanciful shape, nineteenth century children's literature, and books about quantum physics--especially about the mystery of the dark energy in the universe. A militant optimist, she is also part of the Velociraptor Sisterhood (a fancy way of saying that she likes to read, write and discuss books with strong female characters), and she has traveled extensively in Europe and the Far East. The two countries she loves to visit most are Great Britain, with its historic monuments and amazing country landscapes, and Japan, with its bustling urban life and exquisite mountain scenery.

Her favorite current writer is Terry Pratchett, the author of the Discworld series, for its wild and witty satires on life, death, war, love, assassins, coppers, and Australia. Her favorite classical writer is Jane Austen. Her favorite poets are Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson. Her favorite movies are The Seven Samurai and Avatar (analyze that!). She doesn't have a favorite TV show, because she doesn't have time to watch TV (and only owns one for playing movies).

Her favorite people are her readers, each of whom she cherishes with deep and lasting affection.

Note: L. J. Smith wrote books 1-7 of The Vampire Diaries series. After that, a ghostwriter took over the rest of the series. L. J. wrote books 1-3 of The Secret Circle series. After that, a ghostwriter took over the rest of the series. L. J. did not write any of the Originals or Stefan's Diaries. These were written by Kevin Williamson and/or various ghostwritters.
 
Continue reading Book Review / Night World Volume One by L J Smith

21 Jan 2015

Waiting on Wednesday / The Artisans by Julie Reece

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly memo that is hosted by Breaking the Spine Blog.

Expected Release Date: 19th May 2015
(Release date obtained from Goodreads)

Goodreads link is here.


They say death can be beautiful. But after the death of her mother, seventeen-year-old Raven Weathersby gives up her dream of becoming a fashion designer, barely surviving life in the South Carolina lowlands.

To make ends meet, Raven works after school as a seamstress creating stunning works of fashion that often rival the great names of the day.

Instead of making things easier on the high school senior, her stepdad's drinking leads to a run in with the highly reclusive heir to the Maddox family fortune, Gideon Maddox.

But Raven's stepdad's drying out and in no condition to attend the meeting with Maddox. So Raven volunteers to take his place and offers to repay the debt in order to keep the only father she's ever known out of jail, or worse.

Gideon Maddox agrees, outlining an outrageous demand: Raven must live in his home for a year while she designs for Maddox Industries' clothing line, signing over her creative rights.

Her handsome young captor is arrogant and infuriating to the nth degree, and Raven can't imagine working for him, let alone sharing the same space for more than five minutes.

But nothing is ever as it seems. Is Gideon Maddox the monster the world believes him to be? And can he stand to let the young seamstress see him as he really is?
Continue reading Waiting on Wednesday / The Artisans by Julie Reece

15 Jan 2015

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Author Interview / Russell Brooks


CRACK THE CODE AND YOU'LL SAVE LIVES...BUT KNOWING IT EXISTS COULD GET YOU KILLED.

When two American embassies in northern Africa are bombed, CIA operatives, Ridley Fox and Nita Parris, are assigned to track down the perpetrators. 


However, when their top asset is killed in a failed op, the agents suspect that there may be a new threat. 

Their search for the truth puts them on a collision course with a powerful multinational—which will go to extreme lengths to bury its criminal activities.

However, the agents soon learn that someone with a personal vendetta against that company not only knows their secrets, but will expose them in a way that could result in the largest single-day attack against America.






1. If you could work with any other author, who would it be and why?
I'd like to work with Kevin Smith. He once penned a SUPERMAN script which was later canned by Tim Burton when he was assigned to make a Superman movie several years ago. I read the script online and thought that it would've made a pretty decent movie. I have an idea for a Superman/Wonder Woman screenplay. It would be cool if I could run it by him.

2. What would be a typical working day for you? When and where do you write? 
I write everywhere there's an electrical outlet and WiFi. That could be my dining room table, the plane, the train, at a friend's house. I don't write at any particular time of the day. It just depends on when I'm ready to do so.

3. What is the hardest part of the writing for you? 
Usually it's the fact-checking. The subject matter in my stories is very specific, and may be complicated for some. So it's important that I fact-check all of my explanations so that my stories make sense to everyone.

4. When and why did you first start writing? 
I began writing in elementary school. After my grade six French teacher read a short story I wrote, she told me not to give up.
5. How did you come up with the idea for the book your book? 
THE DEMETER CODE is a mash-up of scientific articles, documentaries, and several news reports. The central plot of the story is based on something that is actually going on right now--something we all take for granted. I won't reveal what it is because doing so would give away a major spoiler. However, if you look in the back of the book you'll see the 53 references that I used in order to research the story.

6. Are you a big reader? If so, what are you reading now? 
I love to read, and most of the books that I read I use to help me to improve my craft. I'm currently reading TEMPTED BY TROUBLE by Eric Jerome Dickey.
7. Do you have any advice for other aspiring writers?
Don't stop writing. That's the advice NYT Bestselling author Joseph Finder gave me while I was working on my first novel.




Continue reading Author Interview / Russell Brooks

13 Jan 2015

Waiting on Wednesday / The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly memo that is hosted by Breaking the Spine Blog.

Expected Release Date: 5th May 2015
(Release date obtained from Goodreads)

Goodreads link is here.


When Gia Montgomery's boyfriend, Bradley, dumps her in the parking lot of her high school prom, she has to think fast. After all, she'd been telling her friends about him for months now. This was supposed to be the night she proved he existed. So when she sees a cute guy waiting to pick up his sister, she enlists his help. The task is simple: be her fill-in boyfriend— two hours, zero commitment, a few white lies. After that, she can win back the real Bradley.

The problem is that days after prom, it's not the real Bradley she's thinking about, but the stand-in. The one whose name she doesn't even know. But tracking him down doesn't mean they're done faking a relationship. Gia owes him a favor and his sister intends to see that he collects: his ex-girlfriend's graduation party — three hours, zero commitment, a few white lies.

Just when Gia begins to wonder if she could turn her fake boyfriend into a real one, Bradley comes waltzing back into her life, exposing her lie, and threatening to destroy her friendships and her new-found relationship.
Continue reading Waiting on Wednesday / The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West

12 Jan 2015

Book Review / Kissed by An Angel Books 1-3 by Elizabeth Chandler

IF THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE DIED, WHAT WOULD YOU MISS THE MOST?

HIS VOICE?
 

HIS TOUCH?
 

HIS HEART BEATING AGAINST YOURS?

When Ivy's boyfriend Tristan dies, she's desolate without him, until she discovers Tristan hasn't abandoned her - he's her guardian angel, watching over her, close enough to hear, to see, to touch...

But Ivy's life is in danger. If Tristan rescues her, his mission on earth will be over and he'll have to leave her behind.
Will Ivy lose Tristan forever?



Published:     1st January 1999
Publisher:  Macmillan
Author Website:  Click here
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Books 1 to 3, Kissed by an Angel
Source:  Bought, from my TBR
Review:   2 out of 5





My Review

This book has been on my bookshelf for absolutely ages, not because I wasn't particularly interested in reading it but more that I just hadn't got around to reading it yet so in the spirit of my new book challenge #projecttbr I picked it up. 

What I loved about this story...
I really enjoyed the suspense/thriller type aspect of these stories where you have Ivy whose life is in danger and you are trying to figure out why she is in danger and who is out to get her.  I can tell you that nearly everyone in these stories was a potential suspect in my head.

What I was not fond of with this story... 
I had a really hard time getting into this story and remembering characters and situations after putting the book down and coming back to it later on.  Unfortunately, I big part of this book is remembering characters and situations so you can figure out what is going on.  I also felt that these three books were very slow paced and maybe could have been better as one book rather than 3.  


About the Author
(from Author Website, for more details check out the link above)

One of the great things about being a writer is that every time you start a new series or book you get to be—to live inside the heart of—a different person. Even in real life I get to be two people, Mary Claire Helldorfer, the name I was born with and use on my books for children, and Elizabeth Chandler, the pseudonym I use for YA novels. Friends call me Mary Claire or M.C., but I’m getting used to responding to Elizabeth, the name that fans of Kissed by an Angel and Dark Secrets use when contacting me.

Like many writers, I’ve earned a living doing various jobs. My happiest work has been teaching high school and college. But teaching is an all-consuming passion, just like writing; and often I have felt as if I couldn’t do both well, so I’ve tried other things. Have you ever wondered how some series authors can publish a pile of books so quickly? People like me ghost write under their names. Ever wonder who’s scripting those passages and sentences on school tests and exercises? Yup, that’s another way of paying bills if you’re good at words. I’ve also worked in the office world. Some jobs I’ve liked more than others, but the great thing about being a writer is that everything—even the worst job or most embarrassing moment of your life—is material. Are you a young writer wanting to meet characters who act in ways you’ve never even dreamed of? Try working, as I did, for a temp agency in New York City.

Every writer needs good teachers and I’ve had an abundance of them, many of them editors, others teaching at the schools I attended. Shout-outs go to the fierce nuns who graced my elementary school, St. Mary’s, to Ms. Walsh who taught me at Mercy High School, and to Philip McCaffrey who gave me so much encouragement at Loyola College, Baltimore. An interesting fact: over a two-year period I applied to ten graduate schools in creative writing and was rejected by all them. I bawled my eyes out and believed it was the end of the world. Then I got over it. As a result, an additional shout-out goes to the University of Rochester where I earned my Ph.D., determined to learn from “the dead guys” since I couldn’t make it in a seminar with the living ones. Thirty-six books later. . . .

If you’ve visited my website before now, you may have noticed that I allowed twelve years to elapse before updating it and just as long to post an official Facebook page. There’s a reason: I’d much rather spend precious time describing someone else, putting words in her mouth and letting her go through all the trauma of impossible love and murder. I’m just not as brave as my characters.
 So here are some undramatic facts to finish off this bio. I love sports, most especially my hometown Orioles and Ravens. I need to be outside, but it looks strange for someone my age to be climbing a jungle gym and swinging, so I dig in the garden a lot, and in the winter I shovel snow—other people’s when I run out of my own. My favorite authors are Jane Austen and P.D. James. My faith is extremely important to me. I am the lucky middle child with two amazing sisters. I take great joy in my nieces, nephews, and godchildren. I’m living happily in a rowhouse at the edge of Baltimore with the love of my life, my husband Bob, and our two kitties, Scooter and Birdie.




Continue reading Book Review / Kissed by An Angel Books 1-3 by Elizabeth Chandler

11 Jan 2015

Book Review / The Ice Twins by S K Tremeyne

A year after one of their identical twin daughters, Lydia, dies in an accident, Angus and Sarah Moorcraft move to the tiny Scottish island Angus inherited from his grandmother, hoping to put together the pieces of their shattered lives.

But when their surviving daughter, Kirstie, claims they have mistaken her identity – that she, in fact, is Lydia – their world comes crashing down once again.

As winter encroaches, Angus is forced to travel away from the island for work, Sarah is feeling isolated, and Kirstie (or is it Lydia?) is growing more disturbed. When a violent storm leaves Sarah and her daughter stranded, Sarah finds herself tortured by the past – what really happened on that fateful day one of her daughters died?



Published:     29th January 2015
Publisher:  Harper Collins
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher
Review:   5 out of 5
 

My Review

What I loved about this story...
I really cannot explain to you how much I enjoyed this story.  What I loved the most was the suspense in this book.  At the start you have Angus and Sarah Moorcraft who are the parents of twins, one of whom died and one lived.  As the story progresses, you see each of the mum, dad and surviving twin trying to come to terms with the loss of the other twin and when the surviving twin makes a claim that she is not in fact the twin they thought she was, things get turned upside down.  There are a lot of what ifs in this story and I think every thought imaginable came into my head when trying to figure out what on earth was going on.  Along with the suspense, there is also a creepy aspect of it which I won't explain too much as I don't want to spoil the story. 

This is such a great first novel by this author and I am definitely looking forward to more books by this author.






Continue reading Book Review / The Ice Twins by S K Tremeyne

10 Jan 2015

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Reading Challenges for 2015



It's that time again, for the New Year reading challenges to begin.  I can't wait.  Reading challenges are one of the main motivatins when reading and keeps me going throughout the year even when you are either in a reading slump or are just not getting into the books you are reading at the time.  

This year I decided that I would not have too many challenges but just keep to three but make them big ones...  So here we go, these are my challenges for this year:


This is a pretty standard challenge that I set myself each year.  For the past couple of years I have only got to about 80 books but I like to set myself a high target which gives me more motivation to pick up the next book and next book etc.  I find that 100 is a good number to aim to.  I'm ok with the fact that I may not get there but its the journey to getting there is the fun part for me.  




This is the third year I have hosted the Big Book Challenge on Goodreads and particiated.  In the past, I have found that in a hurry to get to my 100 book challenge I forget to pick up the bigger books of 400+ pages as they obviously take longer to read.  Taking part in this challenge reminds me that I need to not only pick up the shorter books but the bigger ones also.  




For the past couple of years I have tried to set myself the 'read my own books' challenge but didn't really read as many as I wanted to.  When I heard that BenjaminofTomes had set a challenge called #ProjectTBR I decided that I would join in with this and make this the year of the TBR!  Check out Ben's video below:






Fingers crossed for the New Year!  I can't wait to get started!

I wish you all well with your reading this year and well with any challenges you may have set yourself!

Best wishes

Debs :-)







Continue reading Reading Challenges for 2015

7 Jan 2015

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My Top Books of 2014 - Young Adult Fiction



What a great year!  I have read so many great books I thought it would be a good idea to share the books that really stood out for me this year.  I am the type of reader that reads from all reading genres, I thought it would be good to split this into two posts; one concentrating on my favourite adult fiction books and one concentrating on my favourite young adult fiction.  With this post, I am concentrating on the young adult fiction books that I have thoroughly enjoyed in 2014 (you can find the adult fiction post here). So here we go.....

 A snow angel etched in blood. An elite society. A secret dying to get out.

The second Poppy Sinclair Thriller.

When Poppy Sinclair and her boyfriend visit snowy Cambridge, she doesn't expect to discover the body of a student - arms outstretched in the act of smearing bloody angel wings on the chapel's floor.

Suddenly, Poppy is faced with the possibility that the one closest to her heart might be the one committing the most malicious of crimes.

Dodging porters and police, dreading what she might find, Poppy follows the clues left by a murderer bent on revenge...

Long-hidden secrets are chillingly revealed, an avenging angel seeks forgiveness and red-hot vengeance must be quelled in the amazing new Poppy Sinclair thriller.
 



I have only added the first book in the series here, but I loved the entire trilogy...

A Victorian boarding school story, a Gothic mansion mystery, a gossipy romp about a clique of girlfriends, and a dark other-worldly fantasy--jumble them all together and you have this complicated and unusual first novel. 

Sixteen-year-old Gemma has had an unconventional upbringing in India, until the day she foresees her mother's death in a black, swirling vision that turns out to be true. Sent back to England, she is enrolled at Spence, a girls' academy with a mysterious burned-out East Wing.

There Gemma is snubbed by powerful Felicity, beautiful Pippa, and even her own dumpy roommate Ann, until she blackmails herself and Ann into the treacherous clique. Gemma is distressed to find that she has been followed from India by Kartik, a beautiful young man who warns her to fight off the visions. Nevertheless, they continue, and one night she is led by a child-spirit to find a diary that reveals the secrets of a mystical Order.

The clique soon finds a way to accompany Gemma to the other-world realms of her visions "for a bit of fun" and to taste the power they will never have as Victorian wives, but they discover that the delights of the realms are overwhelmed by a menace they cannot control. Gemma is left with the knowledge that her role as the link between worlds leaves her with a mission to seek out the "others" and rebuild the Order. A Great and Terrible Beauty is an impressive first book in what should prove to be a fascinating trilogy.



 For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. 

One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without.

Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. 


In summer, a few precious months of being human… until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human—or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.




 Most high school sports teams have rivalries with other schools. At Hamilton High, it's a civil war: the football team versus the soccer team. And for her part, Lissa is sick of it. Her quarterback boyfriend, Randy, is always ditching her to go pick a fight with the soccer team or to prank their locker room. And on three separate occasions Randy's car has been egged while he and Lissa were inside, making out. She is done competing with a bunch of sweaty boys for her own boyfriend's attention.

Lissa decides to end the rivalry once and for all: She and the other players' girlfriends go on a hookup strike. The boys won't get any action from them until the football and soccer teams make peace. What they don't count on is a new sort of rivalry: an impossible girls-against-boys showdown that hinges on who will cave to their libidos first. And Lissa never sees her own sexual tension with the leader of the boys, Cash Sterling, coming.



 ""Romeo + Juliet "gets an update in this story of forbidden love. Shakespeare's never been so hip." -- Jenny B. Jones, author of The Charmed Life Series

As the popular darling of the junior class and heiress to the five-star Monrovi Inn empire, Kate has both everything and nothing. She's bored with school and life...until she locks eyes with Caleb at a school dance.

Caleb is new to Kate's exclusive prep school, and it's clear he doesn't fit in. In fact, he and his dad work in maintenance for Kate's father. And while Caleb knows better than to spend time with the boss's daughter, it seems that every time he tries to back away, something pulls him right back in.

When their parents demand that they are to stay away from each other, they learn of a fight between their families that occurred more than fifty years ago. It's a mystery Kate doesn't understand...but a legacy Caleb has endured his entire life.

With the world stacked against them, Caleb and Kate will have to walk by faith to find the path that God has planned for them.





 Get this, I'm supposed to be starting a journal about "my journey." Please. I can see it now: Dear Diary, As I'm set adrift on this crazy sea called "life" . . . I don't think so.

It's been seventy-five days. Amy's sick of her parents suddenly taking an interest in her.

And she's really sick of people asking her about Julia. Julia's gone now, and she doesn't want to talk about it. They wouldn't get it, anyway. They wouldn't understand what it feels like to have your best friend ripped away from you.

They wouldn't understand what it feels like to know it's your fault.

Amy's shrink thinks it would help to start a diary. Instead, Amy starts writing letters to Julia.

But as she writes letter after letter, she begins to realize that the past wasn't as perfect as she thought it was—and the present deserves a chance too.





 Mary expected her seventeenth birthday to be a blowout to remember, courtesy of her best friends, fellow New York City prepsters Amy and Joon, and her doting boyfriend, Trick.

Instead, the day starts badly and gets worse. After waking up in a mortifying place with a massive, unexplainable hangover, Mary soon discovers that nobody at school is even aware that it's her birthday. As evening approaches, paranoia sets in. Mary just can't shake the feeling that someone is out to get her—and, as it turns out, she's right. Before the night is over, she's been killed in cold blood.
 
But murder is just the beginning of Mary's ordeal. Her soul gets trapped in a strange limbo, and she must relive the day of her death through the eyes of seven people—each of whom, she finds, had plenty of reasons to hate her. As Mary explores the mysteries of her world, discovering secrets that were hidden in plain sight while she was alive, she clings desperately to the hope that she can solve her own murder, change the past, and—just maybe—save her own life.
 
With its blend of suspense, horror, fantasy, and realism, 7 Souls is an adrenaline rush of a thriller.


Continue reading My Top Books of 2014 - Young Adult Fiction

6 Jan 2015

Waiting on Wednesday / A Corut of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas



Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly memo that is hosted by Breaking the Spine Blog.

Expected Release Date: 5th May 2015
(Release date obtained from Goodreads)

Goodreads link is here.


A thrilling, seductive new series from New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas, blending Beauty and the Beast with faerie lore.

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.

As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

Perfect for fans of Kristin Cashore and George R. R. Martin, this first book in a sexy and action-packed new series is impossible to put down!
Continue reading Waiting on Wednesday / A Corut of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas

4 Jan 2015

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My Top Books of 2014 - Adult Fiction


What a great year!  I have read so many great books I thought it would be a good idea to share the books that really stood out for me this year.  I am the type of reader that reads from all reading genres, I thought it would be good to split this into two posts; one concentrating on my favourite adult fiction books and one concentrating on my favourite young adult fiction.  With this post, I am concentrating on the adult fiction books that I have thoroughly enjoyed in 2014 (the young adult post will follow soon). So here we go.....

Love hurts. There is nothing as painful as heartbreak. But in order to learn to love again, you must learn to trust again.

When a mysterious young woman named Katie appears in the small North Carolina town of Southport, her sudden arrival raises questions about her past. Beautiful yet self-effacing, Katie seems determined to avoid forming personal ties until a series of events draws her into two reluctant relationships: one with Alex, a widowed store owner with a kind heart and two young children; and another with her plainspoken single neighbor, Jo. Despite her reservations, Katie slowly begins to let down her guard, putting down roots in the close-knit community and becoming increasingly attached to Alex and his family.

But even as Katie begins to fall in love, she struggles with the dark secret that still haunts and terrifies her . . . a past that set her on a fearful, shattering journey across the country, to the sheltered oasis of Southport. With Jo’s empathic and stubborn support, Katie eventually realizes that she must choose between a life of transient safety and one of riskier rewards . . . and that in the darkest hour, love is the only true safe haven.

 

She has just two weeks. Two weeks to teach him how to fall in love – with his own life.

Adam Basil and Christine Rose are thrown together late one night, when Christine is crossing the Halfpenny Bridge in Dublin. Adam is there, poised, threatening to jump. Adam is desperate – but Christine makes a crazy deal with him. His 35th birthday is looming and she bets him she can show him that life is worth living before then.

Despite her determination, Christine knows what a dangerous promise she’s made. Against the ticking of the clock, the two of them embark on wild escapades, grand romantic gestures and some unlikely late-night outings. Slowly, Christine thinks Adam is starting to fall back in love with his life.

But has she done enough to change his mind for good? And is that all that’s starting to happen?

It is 1910 and Maria, a talented young girl from the East end of London, is employed to work as a seamstress for the royal family. 

As an attractive girl, she soon catches the eye of the Prince of Wales and she in turn is captivated by his glamour and intensity.

But careless talk causes trouble and soon Maria’s life takes a far darker turn. 

Disbelieved and dismissed she is thrown into a mental asylum, shut away from the real world with only her needlework for company.

Can a beautiful quilt, discovered many years later, reveal the truth behind what happened to Maria?




Edward Warren, twenty-four, has been living in Thailand for five years, a prodigal son who left his family after an irreparable fight with his father, Luke. But he gets a frantic phone call: His dad lies comatose, gravely injured in the same accident that has also injured his younger sister Cara.

With her father’s chances for recovery dwindling, Cara wants to wait for a miracle. But Edward wants to terminate life support and donate his father’s organs. Is he motivated by altruism, or revenge? And to what lengths will his sister go to stop him from making an irrevocable decision?

Lone Wolf explores the notion of family, and the love, protection and strength it’s meant to offer. But what if the hope that should sustain it, is the very thing that pulls it apart? Another tour de force from Jodi Picoult, Lone Wolf examines the wild and lonely terrain upon which love battles reason.

 
Opening on the eve of the First World War, this is a dramatic novel set around the stately home of Cavendon Hall, its owners the aristocratic Ingham family and the Swann family who serves them.

Two entwined families: the aristocratic Inghams and the Swanns who serve them. The Earl and Countess have relied on their faithful retainers Alice and Walter Swann as their young family grows up.

One stately home: Cavendon Hall, a grand imposing house nestled in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales

A society beauty: Lady Daphne Ingham is the most beautiful of the Earl’s four daughters. Being presented at Court and making a glittering marriage is her destiny.

But in the summer of 1913, a devastating event changes her future forever, and threatens the Ingham name. Yet life as the families of Cavendon Hall know it – Royal Ascot, supper dances, grouse season feasts and a full servants’ hall – is about to alter beyond recognition as the storm clouds of war gather.
 

The deeper the water, the darker the secrets

There were so many times I thought about telling you the truth, Eva. What stopped me was always the same thing…

When Eva’s husband Jackson tragically drowns, she longs to meet his estranged family. The journey takes her to Jackson’s brother’s doorstep on a remote Tasmanian island. As strange details about her husband’s past begin to emerge, memories of the man she married start slipping through her fingers like sand, as everything she ever knew and loved about him is thrown into question. Now she’s no longer sure whether it was Jackson she fell in love with – or someone else entirely…

The truth is, it was all a lie . . .


 
Disfigured by the blow of an abusive husband, and suffering her entire life with severe social anxiety disorder, the widow Mary McAllister spends almost sixty years secluded in a white marble mansion overlooking the town of Mill River, Vermont.

Her links to the outside world are few: the mail, the media, an elderly priest with a guilty habit of pilfering spoons, and a bedroom window with a view of the town below.

Most longtime residents of Mill River consider the marble house and its occupant peculiar, though insignificant, fixtures. An arsonist, a covetous nurse, and the endearing village idiot are among the few who have ever seen Mary.

Newcomers to Mill River -- a police officer and his daughter and a new fourth grade teacher -- are also curious about the reclusive old woman. But only Father Michael O’Brien knows Mary and the secret she keeps -- one that, once revealed, will change all of their lives forever.
 


There is no story of me without the story of you
 
I want to explain it all to you. How this happened. How that summer – the summer I was 16 – made me the person I am today.

I want to share my memories with you: the happy memories are like sunbursts, sparkling on the sea. 

But then, like a current dragging me under, there's that summer of 1997.

The summer my life exploded.
The summer I had to grow up.
The summer you came into my life.

And so this is the story of you.



 Every bookshop has a story.

We’re not talking about rooms that are just full of books. We’re talking about bookshops in barns, disused factories, converted churches and underground car parks. Bookshops on boats, on buses, and in old run-down train stations. Fold-out bookshops, undercover bookshops, this-is-the-best-place-I’ve-ever-been-to-bookshops.

Meet Sarah and her Book Barge sailing across the sea to France; meet Sebastien, in Mongolia, who sells books to herders of the Altai mountains; meet the bookshop in Canada that’s invented the world’s first antiquarian book vending machine.

And that’s just the beginning.

From the oldest bookshop in the world, to the smallest you could imagine, The Bookshop Book examines the history of books, talks to authors about their favourite places, and looks at over three hundred weirdly wonderful bookshops across six continents (sadly, we’ve yet to build a bookshop down in the South Pole).

The Bookshop Book is a love letter to bookshops all around the world.


 A hooker. A mistress. A murder. This town was built on sin.
The town of Trinidad, Colorado was a tough place to be a woman in 1913. But it was the best place in the West to find one, if you had the cash.

Honeyville, they used to call it.

A murder throws Inez and Dora together – two women from opposite sides of town, in a town built for men. Against all odds, the well born girl and the high class hooker are drawn together in friendship…

But this is a town that is rotten to the core, and beyond the rustling of silk skirts, the dancing and laughter, deadly unrest is building…

Welcome to Honeyville – a town living by its own rules, where nothing is quite as it seems

A STORY INSPIRED BY A LOST CHAPTER IN AMERICAN HISTORY


 The author of the Sunday Times bestselling Take a Look at Me Now, returns to New York with her most heart-warming, romantic story yet.

Have you ever given up on love?

When her boyfriend lets her down for the last time, Brooklyn bookshop owner Bea James makes a decision – no more. No more men, no more heartbreak, and no more pain.

Psychiatrist Jake Steinmann is making a new start too, leaving his broken marriage behind in San Francisco. From now on there'll just be one love in his life: New York.

At a party where they seem to be the only two singletons, Bea and Jake meet, and decide there’s just one thing for it. They will make a pact: no more relationships.

But the city has other plans . . .
Continue reading My Top Books of 2014 - Adult Fiction