26 Apr 2016

Book Review / Burning Embers by Hannah Fielding

An unforgettable passion ignited in the heart of Africa. A fragile love tormented by secrets and betrayal.

Coral Sinclair, a beautiful but naïve young photographer, learns within days of calling off her wedding that she has also lost her father. Leaving her life in England, she sails to Kenya to take up her inheritance – Mpingo, the plantation that was her childhood home.

On the voyage, Coral meets a charismatic stranger and their mystifying attraction shakes her to the core. Later she finds out his identity and is warned that the man is not to be trusted. Rafe de Monfort, owner of a nightclub and the neighbouring plantation, is not only a notorious womanizer, but also his affair with Coral’s stepmother may have contributed to her father’s death. Or so the rumours go.

As Coral is swept up in the undeniable chemistry between her and Rafe, a tentative romance blossoms in the exotic, dangerous wilderness of Africa. But when Coral delves into his past, she questions his true motives. Is the infamous lothario just after her inheritance? Or does Rafe’s secret anguish colour his every move, making him more vulnerable than Coral could ever imagine? 


Published:     23rd December 2014
Publisher:  London Wall
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Review Copy from Author



MY REVIEW

Words cannot truly describe how amazingly beautiful this book is!  Honestly, from reading the description I initially thought that this would be a nice fun easy romatic read.  This book was so much more than that.  For starters, you have an African backstop for most of this story.  The descriptions of people and places were so beautifully written I could imagine myself standing right there in the middle of the story.  Also, what great characters with such depth and great character progression.  If I had to pick favourites they would have to be Coral and Rafe.  Coral is the main character in this story who returns home to Africa after learning of her father's death to take up her inheritance, a plantation that she lived on as a child.  Rafe is a mysterious character at the beginning of the story but one that Coral takes a shine to and cannot seem to resist.

Along with the above, you have other characters who come and go throughout the story, each adding more depth to the story and you also have secrets that Coral needs to discover about what really happened at the planation after she left and before she returned.

This is a truly beautiful story that I would highly recommend to everyone! 



21 Apr 2016

Blog Tour Author Interview - Eliza Wass

Castley Cresswell is sixteen. She lives with her three brothers and two sisters in a big house in the woods. Her mom doesn't speak and her dad keeps telling her that God hates the world.
Castley can't bring herself to hate the world. She likes the woods, for one thing. School can be fun, sometimes. And then there's boys. God definitely hates fun and boys.
Castley loves her brothers and sisters, too. Even if they annoy her. Even if they are scared to death of Father. Even if they're too scared to run.
Father wants Castley and her siblings to stay in the family forever. And he'll do whatever it takes to keep them there, even if it means the Cresswell kids never get to grow up at all . . .
What if survival means Castley must leave her brothers and sisters behind?



AUTHOR INTERVIEW
If you could work with any other author, who would it be and why?
God. I reckon he’d be pretty good and he’s got the best sense of humour in the universe.
What would be a typical working day for you? When and where do you write?

Since my husband Alan died last year I’ve been travelling a lot because I don’t really know where to go—it’s a tough thing to figure out when the place you want to be doesn’t exist anymore. So I’ve been to New York City, Charleston, Asheville, Phoenix, Livermore, Los Angeles, San Diego and now I’m on my way back to London. Wherever I go, I check there’s a desk in the room with me and I write every morning. Sometimes the words come easy but more often it’s a struggle and I’m romancing the story—I take it on walks and into the shower, feed it tea, read it books, play it music and if it’s just not working, I throw it’s underwear out onto the street and write I hate you in lipstick on all the mirrors.
What is the hardest part of the writing for you?
Ugh, plotting, by which I mean having a plot. I would much rather just write and see where I end up. I have to work very hard to keep myself from getting lost, rather as I do in life.
When and why did you first start writing?
First I started wronging and then to fix it I had to start writing.
How did you come up with the idea for your book?
The thing about books is they’re more of a layering of ideas and failed stories, so it’s hard to define a single source, but the very, very first scene I ever wrote for The Cresswell Plot was from Caspar’s perspective and was about him shovelling snow from driveways after dark as a way of reaching out to people outside of his cult-like family.
Are you a big reader? If so, what are you reading now?
Yes, of course. I’m reading The Secret History as a comp title for an adult book I’m drafting. I actually DNF’d the novel last year and now that I am F-ing it, I am like, how did I miss that this is MAGIC?
Do you have any advice for other aspiring writers?
On a practical level, write every day, research writing and the industry on the Internet, but the number one thing is YOU ALREADY ARE A WRITER. Don’t let anyone tell you different and DONT GIVE UP. Write everyday knowing that you will get there, because you will if you keep going.


20 Apr 2016

Book Review / The Farm at the Edge of the World by Sarah Vaughan

1939, and Will and Alice are evacuated to a granite farm in north Cornwall, perched on a windswept cliff. There they meet the farmer's daughter, Maggie, and against fields of shimmering barley and a sky that stretches forever, enjoy a childhood largely protected from the ravages of war.

But in the sweltering summer of 1943 something happens that will have tragic consequences. A small lie escalates. Over 70 years on Alice is determined to atone for her behaviour - but has she left it too late?

2014, and Maggie's granddaughter Lucy flees to the childhood home she couldn't wait to leave thirteen years earlier, marriage over; career apparently ended thanks to one terrible mistake. Can she rebuild herself and the family farm? And can she help her grandmother, plagued by a secret, to find some lasting peace?

This is a novel about identity and belonging; guilt, regret and atonement; the unrealistic expectations placed on children and the pain of coming of age. It's about small lies and dark secrets. But above all it's about a beautiful, desolate, complex place.


Published:     30th June 2016
Publisher:  Hodder & Stoughton
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher



MY REVIEW

What I liked about this story...  On first look at this book, it looks like a very easy read, maybe chicklit?  Definitely not chicklit.  What this story has is history and a lot of drama - and I loved it!!  You have the past where you see Will, Alice and Maggie.  Will and Alice arrive at Maggie's home farm escaping the war.  They build a friendship between them.  Something happens one summer which separates them.  You then have the present day where you see Maggie as a grandmother living at her farm with her family.  The farm is not doing so good and her grandaughter Lucy returns to the farm having discovered that her husband was having an affair which led to mistakes nearly being made at work.  We follow Lucy as she tries to rebuild herself and help rebuild the farm.  You have two separate stories, one in the past and one in the present, that are both unfinished.  I loved trying to figure out how each one of those ends.  

What I didn't like about this story...  There was only one part that really bugged me about this story and that was what happened to Will after that summer in 1943 when things went wrong.  I was so disappointed after learning what really happened and felt that if something else had happened instead of what really happened the ending would have been a lot more enjoyable.   

19 Apr 2016

Book Review / The Hope Family Calender by Mike Gayle


Tom Hope is broken. Ever since his wife Laura died he hasn't been the same man, and definitely not the same father. Luckily for Tom his mother-in-law Linda is around to pick up the pieces and look after his two struggling daughters, Evie and Lola.

But Tom getting arrested on the first anniversary of his wife's death is the last straw for Linda.

In a last bid attempt to make Tom reconnect with his daughters she takes drastic action and leaves for Australia.

With two fast-maturing daughters Tom has to learn how to accept his responsibilities and navigate the newly dicovered world of single fatherhood - starting immediately.

With only himself to rely on, will Tom fall back into grief or finally step up and be the father his girls need?

Published:     16th June 2016
Publisher:  Hodder & Stoughton
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone: Stand-Alone
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher


MY REVIEW

First of all, it's a new book written by Mike Gayle.  It's going to be good...  Mike Gayle is one of my favourite authors; I always look forward to anything new that comes out written by him.  Mike Gayle mainly writes chicklit type stories but the main character is usually always male.  Sometimes it has a comedic element and sometimes has a more dramatic realistic feel to it.

This book simply put made me cry and laugh, sometimes at the same time.  Such a beautiful story written to such perfection it felt like I was right there in the story, like a fly on the wall, watching it all unfold moment by moment.  You have Tom Hope whose wife dies in a car accident.  We fast forward a year and see what has happened since that fateful day.  Everything turns on its head when Linda (Tom's wife's mother) leaves Tom to look after his children (trying to force him to face up to his responsibilities rather than just escaping to work) and goes to visit her best friend in Australia.  I absolutely loved following Tom's journey of discovery through trying to be the Dad he should have been a long time ago.  Of course, he hits a few stumbling blocks along the way.

What I also liked was that Linda had had own story too.  I won't go too much into that because it is far better going into this story not knowing too much and discovering things as they go along but I really enjoyed Linda's story and how she goes about resolving her 'difficulties'.

Along with Tom, Linda and Tom's two daughters, you have a few other characters that pop up along the way.  One of my favourites there would have to be an older man that Tom needs at a grief counselling session who becomes a friend.

Although this has a sad tone to the story, this is definitely one not to be missed.  I simply cannot recommend this book enough!!!









18 Apr 2016

Author Interview / David Meredith

What happens when "happily ever after" has come and gone?

On the eve of her only daughter, Princess Raven's wedding, an
aging Snow White finds it impossible to share in the joyous spirit of the occasion. The ceremony itself promises to be the most glamorous social event of the decade. Snow White’s castle has been meticulously scrubbed, polished and opulently decorated for the celebration. It is already nearly bursting with jubilant guests and merry well-wishers. Prince Edel, Raven's fiancé, is a fine man from a neighboring kingdom and Snow White's own domain is prosperous and at peace. Things could not be better, in fact, except for one thing:

The king is dead.

The queen has been in a moribund state of hopeless depression for over a year with no end in sight. It is only when, in a fit of bitter despair, she seeks solitude in the vastness of her own sprawling castle and climbs a long disused and forgotten tower stair that she comes face to face with herself in the very same magic mirror used by her stepmother of old.

It promises her respite in its shimmering depths, but can Snow White trust a device that was so precious to a woman who sought to cause her such irreparable harm? Can she confront the demons of her own difficult past to discover a better future for herself and her family? And finally, can she release her soul-crushing grief and suffocating loneliness to once again discover what "happily ever after" really means?

Only time will tell as she wrestles with her past and is forced to confront The Reflections of Queen Snow White.


AUTHOR INTERVIEW



1. If you could work with any other author, who would it be and why?

Probably Neil Gaiman or Tad Williams - Williams because he’s probably my favorite author and Gaiman because he is just incredibly creative. There is something about the quality of his writing where if you pick up a piece of Neil Gaiman writing, you know that’s exactly who wrote it. His is a very distinctive style and I admire that.

2. What would be a typical working day for you? When and where do you write?

As far as my writing goes, I still have a day job (and a night job as well, as a matter of fact) so I just have to squeeze it in whenever and wherever I have a little time. The most important thing to me though is to work on my writing and promotion at least a little every day, even if I only get 5-10 minutes, just to keep my momentum going and avoid stagnation and writer’s block.

3. What is the hardest part of the writing for you?

I suppose it’s not responding to negative reviews. I’m not by nature a vitriolic or overly reactive person, and I make it a point to NEVER respond to negative reviews (I think it’s grossly unprofessional), but it is maddening when you read a review and it’s obvious that the reviewer either totally didn’t get the point you were trying to make at all or complains about something that was specifically spelled out in the initial query (the sex and violence content of a story for example). Still, as with any artistic medium, there will always be people who do not care for your work and their opinions on how it affected or failed to affect them are perfectly valid, so you just have to shrug and move on.

4. When and why did you first start writing?

I’ve always written. Going all the way back to when I was about nine years old writing stories on notebook paper and binding them with old shirt-boards decorated with Crayola marker I wanted to create stories, but it took quite a bit longer for me to feel confident what I wrote was good enough to show other people. I don’t think that happened until well into my adulthood – when I’d finally had enough literary experience as well as life experience to make my writing feel authentic and real.

5. How did you come up with the idea for your book?

The original version of most fairy tales where pretty brutal, (especially compared to the highly sterilized Disney versions that most people are used to). However, in spite of the fantastical elements they invariably contain, they are at their root, very real. They speak to our deepest desires, darkest fears, and greatest flaws, but they are also aspirational. They provide us with examples, regardless how improbable, of how we might overcome desperate circumstances to achieve greatness and contentment in a world where such things often seem rarified and elusive. They give us hope that everything really will work out in the end. The best of them leave you with a sense, on some level, the story really could have happened.

In the case of Snow White, I think most people can relate to depression. Most have either experienced it themselves or know someone dear to them who has. However, I noticed that fairy tale princesses, particularly of the Disney variety, in spite of horrible trauma and tragedy just simply don’t appear to have the same weaknesses and failings as regular people by suffering the long term effects of those traumatic experiences. I felt like this actually served to distance the character from the reader. I think my approach more accurately examines the likely effects that a life of neglect and abuse (like the one Snow White was forced to endure) would have in real life. It’s the sort of thing that really has the potential to break a person and I wanted to explore that struggle more thoroughly.

Now, the other part of the inspiration, the real world part, was rather personal. In the space of about three or four months back in 2006, both of my grandfathers died unexpectedly. As I observed how hard my grandmothers took their deaths, it led me to wonder on their behalf – “So… Now what?”

They had both had wonderful, loving relationships – many long, happy years together (over 60). Now it was over. It made me wonder, “When your life has been so closely tied up with and centered upon one other person for so long, what do you do when they are no longer a part of your life? How do you pick up the pieces and move forward?” That was the original kernel of the idea for The Reflections of Queen Snow White.

6. Are you a big reader? If so, what are you reading now?

I would say “usually” in answer to that question. I am currently working on my doctorate degree so I don’t have a whole lot of time for pleasure reading these days. At present I am mostly pouring over a fat, heavy textbook on research statistics. When I do have time to read something for fun, it is generally fantasy genre literature. The most recent title I read was George Martin’s first volume of Game of Thrones. I also tend to read a lot of work themed on Japan, (I lived there for nearly a decade). I think James Clavell’s Shogun and Liza Dolby’s The Tale of Murasaki are particularly good, but I try to read lots of different types of writing to expand my literary tool box.

7. Do you have any advice for other aspiring writers?

-Be confident in your craft, but open to criticism.
-Read lots of different writing styles to expand your writing tool-box.
-Be pleased with your work but never satisfied – Always strive to be better on your next piece of writing.
-Enjoy the process – Writing should be about process first and product second. If you fail to enjoy or attempt to rush the process, your work will likely suffer for it.




17 Apr 2016

Book Review / The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella



Workaholic attorney Samantha Sweeting has just done the unthinkable. She’s made a mistake so huge, it’ll wreck any chance of a partnership.

Going into utter meltdown, she walks out of her London office, gets on a train, and ends up in the middle of nowhere. Asking for directions at a big, beautiful house, she’s mistaken for an interviewee and finds herself being offered a job as housekeeper. Her employers have no idea they’ve hired a lawyer–and Samantha has no idea how to work the oven. She can’t sew on a button, bake a potato, or get the #@%# ironing board to open. How she takes a deep breath and begins to cope–and finds love–is a story as delicious as the bread she learns to bake.

But will her old life ever catch up with her? And if it does…will she want it back?



Published:     19th July 2005
Publisher:  The Dial Press
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Owned Copy

MY REVIEW

Out of all the books written by Sophie Kinsella, The Undomestic Goddess is by far my favourite.  It was my favourite the first time I read this many years ago and is still standing firm as my favourite after reading it for the second time (although I do have to say that there are two books that I have yet to read for the first time so things may change but I will find this one hard to beat!).  

What I loved the most about this story was the comedy aspect.  You have Samantha who at the beginning of the story is a complete workaholic attorney who thinks of nothing else but work and is the most unorganised person I have ever known.  Something bad happens which means that she leaves her work, catches a train and ends up in the middle of nowhere.  She stumbles upon a house where she is mistaken for someone who wants a job as a cleaner.  Being in the middle of an emotional meltdown Samantha doesn't realise that she is being interviewed.  By the time the morning comes she is the new housekeeper.  Samantha being someone who knows nothing about housekeeping or being organised she takes on this challenge not wanting to be beaten and thinking that she can't return to the life she had known being a lawyer, she thinks she has no other choice.  With a few disasters along the way and a few friendly helpful characters, she settles into this life.  

With a few twists and turns in this story, I found myself laughing out loud many times and really hoping the best for Samantha.  Even with the ending being predictable, I just loved it.

This is a perfect read for the Spring and Summer seasons, perfect for taking down the beach or reading on a bench down the park.  







 

13 Apr 2016

Book Review / The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Three ordinary women are about to take one extraordinary step....

Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but it is 1962, Mississippi, and her mother will not be happy till Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid Constantine, the woman who raised her, but Constantine has disappeared and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone.

Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her seventeenth white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son, who died while his bosses looked the other way. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both their hearts may be broken.

Minny, Aibileen's best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobody's business, but she can't mind her tongue, so she's lost yet another job. Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town to know her reputation. But her new boss has secrets of her own.

Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. And why? Because they are suffocating within the lines that define their town and their times. And sometimes lines are made to be crossed.

In pitch-perfect voices, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women--mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends--view one another. A deeply moving novel filled with poignancy, humor, and hope, The Help is a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don't.


Published:     10th February 2009
Publisher:  Amy Einhorn Books
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Owned



MY REVIEW

Words cannot really express how much I loved this book, but I'll try!  As an unusual move for me, I actually watched the movie before reading the book and in some ways I am glad that I did and in some ways I am sad that I didn't read the book first.  I loved the movie, having watched it a couple of years back and when I found this edition at a charity shop I just had to buy it, just look at the cover.  It's so pretty!  I had remembered watching the movie and loved it so I just had to read the book too!  

The story in the book is pretty much the same as the movie, from my recollection but I would have to re-watch the movie to confirm that which I have yet to do but definitely will do soon!  This story was split into the different perspectives of Miss Skeeter, who is white and wants to be a writer.  She has a great set of morals and believes that the racial split in their town is unjust.  You then have Aibileen who is a black maid who has had been doing that style of job for many years and excels at it.  You see her excel at looking after a little girl in the family that she works for but also see her being treated very badly by that same family.  You then have Minny who is also a black maid but has a lot of bad luck at the beginning.  Minny is a very feisty but loveable character that I could not help but hope that all works out for her in this story. 

This book was so engrossing and so real that every time I picked up this book to read I felt that I was there right in the middle of what was happening at the time.  Seeing how mean some people can be made me mad.  Seeing how some people rise up and be better made me happy.  This is such an amazing read, if you haven't read it yet you need to!!! 



12 Apr 2016

Author Interview / Sarah Ladipo Manyika

Morayo Da Silva, a cosmopolitan Nigerian woman, lives in hip San Francisco. On the cusp of seventy-five, she is in good health and makes the most of it, enjoying road trips in her vintage Porsche, chatting to strangers, and recollecting characters from her favourite novels. Then she has a fall and her independence crumbles. Without the support of family, she relies on friends and chance encounters. As Morayo recounts her story, moving seamlessly between past and present, we meet Dawud, a charming Palestinian shopkeeper, Sage, a feisty, homeless Grateful Dead devotee, and Antonio, the poet whom Morayo desired more than her ambassador husband.

A subtle story about ageing, friendship and loss, this is also a nuanced study of the erotic yearnings of an older woman.

“Dr. Morayo Da Silva is one of the most memorable characters you are likely to encounter on the page – intelligent, indomitable, author and survivor of a large life. In dreamlike prose, Manyika dips in and out of her present, her past, in a story that argues always for generosity, for connection, for a vigorous and joyful endurance." - Karen Joy Fowler, author of We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves

“Manyika's story about an elderly Nigerian woman is quiet, sophisticated and it expands the canon of contemporary African literature into welcome new territory.”
- Bernardine Evaristo, author of Mr Loverman

“If aging be a lamp, then Morayo, the protagonist in Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun is a mesmerizing glow. Astute, sensual, funny, and moving.” - NoViolet Bulawayo, author of We Need New Names

“A wonderfully constructed novel, always surprising and wrong-footing the reader at every turn and challenging one's assumptions about the Other. Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun is a delightful multi-helical reading experience that speaks to our times in insightful and pleasantly understated ways." - Brian Chikwava, author of Harare North


AUTHOR INTERVIEW





1.  If you could work with any other author, who would it be and why?

This week it would be John Berger for his powers of observation and Shonda Rhimes for tips on plotting.

2.  What would be a typical working day for you? When and where do you write?

My ideal working day would include several hours of writing and reading (anywhere that’s quiet) and some time outside (preferably with sunshine and ice cream ... but not a mule).

3.  What is the hardest part of the writing for you?

Writing the first draft can often be challenging.

4.  When and why did you first start writing?

I started writing in my teens for two reasons  - one was to better understand things in life that perplexed or troubled me, the other was to write stories that I was longing to read, but couldn’t find. These are the same reasons that drive me to write today. 

5.  How did you come up with the idea for your book?

I was longing to find really good books about older women and so …

6.  Are you a big reader? If so, what are you reading now?

I just finished Ruth Ozeki’s The Face and Jhump Lahiri’s, In Other Words, both of which I loved. Currently reading Helen Oyeyemi’s Boy, Snow, Bird  - and what a fabulous writer she is.

7.  Do you have any advice for other aspiring writers?

Write and read as much as you can and have fun while you’re doing it.

5 Apr 2016

Book Review / The Night that Changed Everything by Laura Tait and Jimmy Rice


Rebecca is the only girl she knows who didn't cry at the end of Titanic. Ben is the only man he knows who did. Rebecca’s untidy but Ben doesn’t mind picking up her pieces. Ben is laid back by Rebecca keeps him on his toes. They're a perfect match.

Nothing can come between them. Or so they think.

When a throwaway comment reveals a secret from the past, their love story is rewritten.

Can they recover from the night that changed everything? And how do you forgive when you can’t forget?

The Night That Changed Everything is a funny, feel-good and bittersweet story, told in alternate chapters by Laura Tait and Jimmy Rice




Published:     24th March 2016
Publisher:  Corgi
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher

MY REVIEW

What I liked about this story...  Usually when I pick up a book like this I expect to read something fun and easy to read but even from the front cover it looked like maybe this was not going to be one of those types of stories.  Usually chicklit books are bright and happy but this one is the complete opposite.  My favourite part of this story has to be the characters,  how they develop and how you find out more about them as the story goes on.  You obviously have the two main characters, Rebecca and Ben.  Rebecca is not an easy person to get to know but once you do she is your best friend.  Ben is quite a secretive character at the beginning, not really learning a lot about him until the story goes on.  You then have Jamie, the bartender best friend of both of them, although at the beginning neither of them realised that.  Jamie is a womaniser and proud of it.  You then have Danielle who is Rebecca's best friend and certainly plays a very big part in this story.  Along with those characters you have several others which just made the story so much more fuller than it would have been had it only had Rebecca and Ben in it.  


What I didn't like about this story...  This part of my review will probably say more about me than the story itself but the part that I didn't like was the actual break up.  The secret revealed and reason for the break up at the beginning I felt was far too dramatic but not in terms of storyline but in terms of one particular character's reaction to something that I found very blown out of proportion.  It was not until something else was found out that I was completely on board with the rest of the story but in that first moment, that first part when something was revealed, it didn't make sense that it was an 'all or nothing' situation.  But that says more about my personal preference for acting a certain way rather than a criticism of the story.  


In summary...  Easy to read and more complicated than first seems to be the case.  If you are looking for nothing complicated but a good story, this is definitely one to pick up.