Tag: reading

WWW Wednesday: 27th January 2016

Ali@abookishlife12 Comments

It’s WWW Wednesday time.

The WWW Wednesdays meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.

WWW Wednesday

To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you’ll read next?

So here’s my W’s for the week.

Monsters of Men (Chaos Walking, #3)Currently Reading

After reading the first couple of chapters I had to put Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness on hold as I needed to read a couple of library books that had to be returned. As it’s a physical book and I can’t really transport it around with me I’ve also decided that I want to wait till this weekend to read the rest when I can properly focus on it. I can’t wait to find out how it all ends.

You And Me, AlwaysIn the meantime I’m currently reading You and Me Always by Jill Mansell. Jill Mansell has always been one of my favourite chick lit authors so I was very excited to get an ARC of her latest book. I’m around the 75% mark at the moment and, while I had my doubts about it at the start (I think mostly due to the book I just finished), I’m enjoying it a lot more now and finding it difficult to put down.

Recently Finished

I’m still going through a mad busy phase at work at the moment so have been slipping a little bit in terms of reading and posting reviews but I did manage to finish a couple of books last week.

After You (Me Before You, #2)The first book which I took my Teaser from yesterday was After You by Jojo Moyes. It’s the follow up to Me Before You which I absolutely loved so I was a little bit worried about reading it. Thankfully though it’s been a while since I read Me Before You so my memory of exactly what happened was a little shaky and I found this a really great book. It’s mostly about grieving and moving on so it’s not a happy story but it was definitely one of those books that my thoughts kept wandering to when I wasn’t reading it (driving to the stables, doing housework, cooking…). I ended up finishing the whole thing in a day so would definitely recommend.

Robyn Hood: Fight for Freedom (Robyn Hood, #2)I also read Robyn Hood: A Girl’s Tale and it sequel Fight for Freedom by KM Shea. I do like K.M. Shea books as they’re based on fairytales or myths and always have strong female characters who don’t spend all of their time obsessing over boys which makes a nice change in YA. This series was along the same lines and did give me a few laughs but I have to admit to getting frustrated with the number of mistakes (words repeated, wrong words, wrong spellings etc). It’s nothing a bit of proof reading wouldn’t fix so began to drive me nuts as it destroyed the flow of the story.

Reading Next

In the unlikely event I finish the books I’m currently reading, my mission is to finish some of the ARCs I’ve had for far too long or which are due for release over the next few weeks. I think the priorities will be The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman (which is way overdue and has been in my reading next for a while), Black Widow by Chris Brookmyre (who I love and haven’t read any of his books in ages) and What Would Lizzy Bennet Do? by Katie Oliver (which I randomly picked because of the Pride and Prejudice connection).

The Masked City (The Invisible Library, #2)Black WidowWhat Would Lizzy Bennet Do? (The Jane Austen Factor, #1)

Again there’s a fair chance I won’t read any of these but something completely different. I’m a bit of a mood reader so find it difficult to plan.

Have you read any of the books above? Do you have any recommendations?

Teaser Tuesday: 26th January 2016

Ali@abookishlife10 Comments

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of A Daily Rhythm. If you want to join in grab your current read, flick to a random page, select two sentences (without spoilers) and share them in a blog post or in the comments of A Daily Rhythm.

meme-TeaserTuesday-dkblue-boxed

I’ve actually finished After You by Jojo Moyes but I just love her writing so much that I couldn’t resist using it for this weeks teaser. It’s the sequel to Me Before You which I absolutely loved, and while I’m not sure I loved this quite as much, I would definitely recommend you give it a read. It’s one of those stories that just sticks with you.

After You (Me Before You, #2)My Teaser

How could I convey the way those short months had changed the way I felt about everything? The way he had skewed my world so totally that it made no sense without him in it?

~ page 51

Happy reading everyone.

WWW Wednesday: 20th January 2016

Ali@abookishlife18 Comments

It’s WWW Wednesday time.

The WWW Wednesdays meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.

WWW Wednesday

To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you’ll read next?

So here’s my W’s for the week.

Monsters of Men (Chaos Walking, #3)Currently Reading

I just started Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness on Monday so haven’t had a chance to read more than the first few chapters. It’s the final part of the Chaos Walking trilogy and I can’t wait to find out how it all ends. I’ve never read any books by Patrick Ness before this series but I get the feeling from what I’ve read so far that anything could happen. I think it will be epic.

As Monsters of Men is a physical book I’m also reading an ebook, Robyn Hood, A Girl’s Tale by K.M. Shea, on my commute. I love K.M. Shea books, they are always nice and easy little reads that make me laugh. I’m around a quarter of the way through so far and I’m loving the reluctant heroine Robyn who has been bossed into becoming an outlaw by BFF Marian.

Recently Finished

The Ask and the Answer (Chaos Walking, #2)The weather hasn’t been particularly great over the last week so that’s given me a great excuse to stay in and read. I suppose I could have cleaned and caught up on all the little jobs needing doing around the house but where’s the fun in that? Anyway, all the extra reading time meant that I managed to finish three books.

The first book was The Ask and The Answer by Patrick Ness, the second book in the Chaos Walking Trilogy. I was a little concerned that it wouldn’t be as good as The Knife of Never Letting Go but I needn’t have worried as it was incredible. I sometimes find it hard to believe that these are children’s books as they deal with so many big themes. I My Kind of Wonderful (Cedar Ridge, #2)haven’t posted a review yet as I’m planning to do a review of the full trilogy once I finish.

The second book I read during the week was My Kind of Wonderful by Jill Shalvis. It was a sweet romance set in a ski resort in the Rockies. First time I’ve read a book by this author and I will probably be reading more as it did make me smile a lot. You can read my full review here.

The final book of the week was Him by Sarina Bowen and Elle Him (Him #1)Kennedy. It’s book of the month in one of my GoodRead’s groups but I probably would have read it at some point regardless as it’s my kind of story. I will hopefully post a review at the weekend but if you like LGBT romances with some seriously steamy scenes I’d definitely recommend. I was supposed to read it over a week and finished it in a day 🙂

Reading Next

After I finish my current reads I’m planning to make a start on After You by Jojo Moyes. I’m a big fan of Jojo Moyes and loved Me Before You. I’ve been a little worried about whether it will live up to expectations but hoping that as it’s been a while since I read Me Before You I’ll enjoy it.

After that I’m hoping to make a dent in some of the ARC’s I’ve received over the last few weeks. I think the priorities will be The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman (which is way overdue) and You and Me Always by Jill Mansell.

The Masked City (The Invisible Library, #2)You And Me, AlwaysAfter You (Me Before You, #2)

Knowing me though I’ll probably wander off and read something completely different. My New Year’s resolution of not buying any new books until I’ve reduced my TBR has been a total flop and I think I’ve bought 5 or 6 books over the last week (oops!) so I have plenty of choices.

Have you read any of the books above? Do you have any recommendations?

Teaser Tuesday: 19th January 2016

Ali@abookishlife14 Comments

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of A Daily Rhythm. If you want to join in grab your current read, flick to a random page, select two sentences (without spoilers) and share them in a blog post or in the comments of A Daily Rhythm.

meme-TeaserTuesday-dkblue-boxed

Having finished The Ask and The Answer at the weekend I’ve just started Monsters of Men, the final part of the Chaos Walking Trilogy, by Patrick Ness. I’m absolutely loving this series and can certainly see why it’s won so many awards. Anyway, here’s this week’s teaser.

Monsters of Men (Chaos Walking, #3)My Teaser

War makes monsters of men.

“Wrong,” says the Mayor. “It’s war that makes us men in the first place. Until there’s war, we are only children.”

~ page 11

Happy reading everyone.

Book Review: My True Love Gave to Me

Ali@abookishlife3 Comments

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Winter RomancesMy True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Winter Romances by Stephanie Perkins

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Yep, it’s safe to say that I’m very, very behind on my Christmas reading. It’s the middle of January and I’m only now getting round to finishing and posting my review of this book.

My True Love Gave to Me is a collection of twelve short stories by YA authors all themed around the holiday period. It’s quite difficult to rate this collection as it’s a bit of a mixed bag. Some stories I absolutely loved, some were ok and some I just wasn’t too keen on.

I have to admit before I start that I’m generally not a fan of short stories. They’re never quite long enough (I know they aren’t supposed to be) to really draw you in and let you connect with the characters. When they do draw you in, the ending always comes too soon. I want more.

Despite my general dislike of short stories I couldn’t resist this book as it included stories from two of my favourite authors, Rainbow Rowell (Fangirl, Carry On) and Stephanie Perkins (Anna and the French Kiss) and I have to admit I love Christmassy themed stories.

For the most part this collection didn’t disappoint. I won’t go through story by story but I will say that Stephanie Perkins and Rainbow Rowell did not let me down. Their stories, It’s a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown and Midnights were most definitely the highlights for me. They had very likeable characters and managed to suck me into the story and the emotion from the start. While I would like more (please) the length actually worked.

As well as discovering unsurprisingly that my favourite authors are fabulous I have to say that I was also impressed with some of the other stories. I particularly enjoyed Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus by Myra McEntyre as it made me laugh quite a lot and What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth? by Gayle Forman. I’ve never read anything by these authors but I’ll definitely be looking out for them.

The remainder were more of the ok level rather than anything particularly special. I felt that in certain stories things were a little bit too complicated and convoluted for a short story which put me off. Slightly worryingly there are also a couple I don’t remember (Jenny Han and Ally Carter) so I guess they weren’t great or terrible.

Regardless, it’s definitely given me a taste of a lot of new authors and my TBR list has grown exponentially.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a review copy and apologies for taking so long to post the thing.

Book Review: My Kind of Wonderful by Jill Shalvis

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My Kind of Wonderful (Cedar Ridge, #2)My Kind of Wonderful by Jill Shalvis

My rating: 4 of 5 Stars

The perfect read to chase away the winter blues.

I’m not a fan of January. It’s cold, miserable, dark from around 4pm and I always end up working completely ridiculous hours to meet unachievable deadlines. Safe to say I’m not a happy bunny.

While this book didn’t really solve anything as far as work or weather it did make me feel a bit better about it and it most definitely put a smile on my face.

My Kind of Wonderful is the second in the cedar ridge series and my first book by Jill Shalvis. I didn’t realise it was the second in a series but to be honest it didn’t matter as it works as a standalone.

Synopsis

The story follows Bailey Moore, a women determined to make the most of her second chance at life by living it to the full. She has a list of things she wants to do and top of that list is to paint a mural. When she’s hired to paint a mural at cedar ridge ski resort in the Rockies she’s determined to do it. What she doesn’t count on though is Hudson Kincaid.

Hudson’s part of the family who own the resort and between working all hours at the resort to keep it afloat, taking shifts at the local police station, looking after his mentally ill mum and trying to track down his missing brother he has a lot on his plate. He’s not looking for any more complications in his life and he’s certainly not looking for a relationship.

They are exactly what the other doesn’t need in their life right now but from their very first encounter there’s an attraction that neither can ignore. A serious relationship is not what either want but once the mural’s finished can they really end it?

My thoughts

It’s a very sweet and romantic read and absolutely perfect for the cold dark winter months. There is the occasional sad moment but most of the time it had me laughing and smiling (unfortunately sometimes when I was on the train which is a bit embarrassing).

The main characters are very likeable. Bailey is so optimistic and determined to live life to the max on her own basis that you can’t help but love her. Hudson is dark and brooding but cares for his family so patiently and lovingly that you really feel for him. There is a lot of chemistry between Bailey and Hudson and the attraction and spark is there from the very beginning making it a very believable relationship.

For me though, one of the highlights of the story was the Kincaid family. I loved the dynamic between the siblings and their partners. Almost every scene made me laugh and smile. There were a lot of pranks and the teasing but you get the feeling that they’re always there for each other no matter what. I come from a small family so I have to admit to being a little bit jealous.

I have to admit to also having a bit of a soft spot for any story set in the snow at winter. They are always so cozy and romantic with rustic lodges and log fires. The author gives a great sense of place in this story and the mountains and resort are almost characters in their own right. From the very first chapter when Hudson is “rescuing” Bailey from a dangerous ski run I fell a little bit in love with the setting. I just want to jump on a plane and head off now.

The story is fairly predictable but that’s kind of what you expect from this type of story. You pretty much know how it will end from the first few pages but it’s nice to join the characters on their journey and the writing is good enough that it’s an engaging and funny read.

I’d definitely recommend it to chase away the January blues.

Many thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

WWW Wednesday: 13th January 2016

Ali@abookishlife21 Comments

It’s WWW Wednesday time.

The WWW Wednesdays meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.

WWW Wednesday

To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you’ll read next?

So here’s my W’s for the week.

Currently Reading

The Ask and the Answer (Chaos Walking, #2)I’m working a lot of hours at the moment (January is always my busy time) so it’s a bit of a struggle to get much reading done at the moment. I did however manage to start The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness at the weekend. It’s the second in the Chaos Walking trilogy and I’m liking it a lot. It doesn’t hurt that you get to hear the thoughts of the horse the main character Todd is riding (seems very true to me).

My Kind of Wonderful (Cedar Ridge, #2)As The Ask and the Answer is a physical book and not particularly light I also have an ebook on the go. I’m trying to catch up on some of my ARC’s so am reading My Kind of Wonderful by Jill Shalvis. Again, the second in the series although have to admit I haven’t read the first. I’m enjoying it a lot more than I thought. It’s a nice light read with quite a few laughs and a lot of romance.

Recently Finished

Playing with FireI finally managed to finish My True Love Gave to Me at the end of last week. It’s a nice collection of holiday themed YA short stories. Don’t know why it took me so long as for the most part I found them great reads (there were a few exceptions). Haven’t had a chance to post a review yet but there should be one up over the next week.

After that I had a bit of a reading blitz over the weekend. I needed to wind down from a horrible week and the first proper snow of the winter had arrived so it seemed like a good excuse to just relax and read. I managed to read Playing with Fire by Tess Gerritsen on Friday night (may possibly have stayed up till 1am to finish). I do like Tess’s writing and it was a quick enough read but I thought genre was a bit confused and there wasn’t enough depth to the characters to make me feel what I should have.

Saturday’s read of Knight and Stay by Kitty French was also a fairly good, light read. It was the second in the trilogy but kind of finished one of the storylines started in Knight and Play. I’m looking forward to reading the final book at some point over the next few weeks.

Reading Next

Monsters of Men (Chaos Walking, #3)I think once I finish The Ask and the Answer I’ll go on to read the final book in the series, Monsters of Men. There is no way I’ll be able to stop until I know how it all ends. I tend to be a little bit obsessive when it comes to a series of books. I can’t stop reading until I finish them all.

After You (Me Before You, #2)After that I’m planning to read After You by Jojo Moyes. I managed to find it in the library but gave it to my Mum to read first. She has finally returned it to me so I’m looking forward to getting stuck in. I loved Me Before You and Jojo Moyes is one of my favourite authors so I have high hopes. I just really hope I’m not disappointed (although my Mum says it’s good).

I’m hoping this will be a good reading month. Have you read any of the books above? Do you have any recommendations?

Teaser Tuesday: 12th January 2015

Ali@abookishlife11 Comments

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of A Daily Rhythm. If you want to join in grab your current read, flick to a random page, select two sentences (without spoilers) and share them in a blog post or in the comments of A Daily Rhythm.

meme-TeaserTuesday-dkblue-boxed

This week I’m reading the second book in Patrick Ness’s Chaos Walking series, The Ask and the Answer. Really enjoying this series, the writing style is so unique and draws you into the world and the story.  It’s a world where you can hear the thoughts of the animals so I was very tempted to go with a couple of those sentences (which do make me laugh) but decided on the following teaser.

My TeaserThe Ask and the Answer (Chaos Walking, #2)

I burn with the stupidity of how easy they trapped me, how easy it was to use her against me. I burn with the shame of crying at the beating (shut up). I burn with the ache of being taken from her again, the ache of her promise to me, the ache of not knowing what’s going to happen to her now.

~ page 203

Happy reading everyone.

Book Review: A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

Ali@abookishlife10 Comments

A Darker Shade of Magic (A Darker Shade of Magic, #1)A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Love, love, love this book and can’t wait for the next in the series.

I had somehow never heard of this until it was voted book of the month in one of my groups. I wasn’t planning on reading it but then I saw some good reviews and couldn’t resist even though it meant breaking my no book buying new years resolution. I am so happy to have broken my resolution for this book. It was totally worth it.

Synopsis (from GoodReads)

Kell is one of the last Travelers—rare magicians who choose a parallel universe to visit.

Grey London is dirty, boring, lacks magic, ruled by mad King George. Red London is where life and magic are revered, and the Maresh Dynasty presides over a flourishing empire. White London is ruled by whoever has murdered their way to the throne. People fight to control magic, and the magic fights back, draining the city to its very bones. Once there was Black London—but no one speaks of that now.

Officially, Kell is the Red Traveler, personal ambassador and adopted Prince of Red London, carrying the monthly correspondences between royals of each London. Unofficially, Kell smuggles for those willing to pay for even a glimpse of a world they’ll never see. This dangerous hobby sets him up for accidental treason. Fleeing into Grey London, Kell runs afoul of Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She robs him, saves him from a dangerous enemy, then forces him to another world for her ‘proper adventure’.

But perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, Kell and Lila will first need to stay alive—trickier than they hoped.

Thoughts

I haven’t been this excited about a series since Throne of Glass. The writing and world building are first class and the author has somehow managed to get the balance between descriptions and action just right.

The characters are very likeable for the most part. Reluctant hero Kell comes across a bit arrogant, bored and aloof at the start but once he is shaken up a bit we get to see a much nicer, funnier and insecure young man trying to do what’s right despite the temptation to just give up. I kind of want to adopt him or even just give him a big hug.

Lila, I thought was hilarious and brilliant. She’s a thief and wannabe pirate who likes to pretend she’s a man. She’ll try to steal pretty much anything that’s not nailed down (and probably things that are) and seems to actively seek out trouble. However although she tries to seem badass and uncaring you see the odd chink in her armour and get the impression that while she’s out for herself she does have morals and there are a few people she cares about despite her best efforts.

When she teams up with Kell their relationship is electric. I absolutely loved the banter between them and how their partnership develops from an uneasy arrangement to a kind of mutual respect and trust. Although it does seem like someone needs to bang their heads together so they can see what’s in front of them.

The other characters in the book are also well executed. The bad guys are truly creepy from their very first scene and always made me feel uneasy and uncomfortable. There are actually quite a few scenes which are quite dark and sinister and even the setting at times is unsettling.

While it should be confusing having four different Londons, they are well described and very distinct so I had a clear picture of each. From Kell’s home in Red London which seems almost too perfect, to Lila’s grey London which feels drab and miserable, to White London where there is an air of desperation, danger and evil lurking at all times, all were unique and you always knew exactly where you were.

The story itself is pretty fast paced and there is a lot of action which I loved. At times I was bouncing on my seat as I was reading, desperate to know what would happen next but afraid to read it. There were a few occasions where I would read a bit, get too wound up and have to stop so I could walk about the room a bit before going back and reading the next bit. Even now writing this review and thinking about it has me a little hyped up. I’m not sure how I’m going to take the wait till the next one is released.

I should say that while this is the first book in a series it does work on it’s own and a lot of the story is concluded. There are no horrible cliffhangers to watch out for. There are however a few things which have only been hinted at and definitely have potential to be expanded on and developed in future books.

It’s a little early to be saying this but I think this could be one of my top reads of 2016.

WWW Wednesday: 6th January 2016

Ali@abookishlife16 Comments

It’s WWW Wednesday time.

The WWW Wednesdays meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.

WWW Wednesday

To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you’ll read next?

So here’s my W’s for the week.

Currently Reading

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Winter RomancesI’m a little bit between books at the moment as I’m suffering from a serious book hangover. To tide me over until I’m ready for a proper book I’m still working my way through My True Love Gave to Me, a series of short stories by YA authors.

I started it a few weeks ago but for some reason it seems to be taking me forever to read. Nothing against the book (a lot of the stories I’ve read have been great) I just struggle a bit with short stories. You’re just getting into a story when it comes to an end and you’re on to the next one. They do tend to be a good way to find new authors so no doubt it will result in an increased TBR pile 🙂

Recently Finished

My younger brother was getting married last week so between that, Christmas and New Year things have been a bit hectic. I kind of missed my WWW Wednesday post (I was too busy burning up the dance floor) but I did manage to squeeze in quite a bit of reading.

First up I read A Christmas Carol to get me in the holiday spirit. Twas my very first Dickens and found I enjoyed it. For some reason I’ve always been a little scared of his writing but found it quite accessible. Someone recommended Great Expectations to me so this has encouraged me to give it a read.The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking, #1)

After A Christmas Carol I moved on to The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness. Haven’t quite gotten around to posting a review but I thought it was a great book. The narrative style is pretty unique and I think puts a lot of people off but I thought it was some of the best world building I’ve come across and I liked the characters (particularly Manchee).

The Perfect MatchUnfortunately my third book, The Perfect Match by Katie Fforde, was less of a success. Katie Fforde is one of my favourite authors but there were just too many things about the main character and plot which wound me up. You can see my full slightly ranty review here.

Things picked up a little with the next story I read, Dangerous Lies by Becca Fitzpatrick. It’s a YA thriller and is an ok read. It’s quite easy going and has an interesting plot. I just didn’t think there was anything to make it stand out.A Darker Shade of Magic (A Darker Shade of Magic, #1)

Last up and the book that’s left me with the most humongous book hangover is A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab. This was a book of the month on GoodReads and I’d seen some great reviews so broke my new year’s resolution to buy it. I’m so glad I did. It’s a bit early to say this but I think it could be one of my favourite reads of the year.

Reading Next

Playing with FireSince breaking my no book buying resolution (on the 2nd January…oops) I’ve had a bit of a splurge so I have quite a few choices for my next reads. I think my plan though is to read Playing with Fire by Tess Gerritsen which I’m due to return to the library next week. I love Tess so looking forward to it although I’m expecting something a bit different from the Rizzoli and Isles series.

After You (Me Before You, #2)After Tess I’m moving on to another of my favourite authors, Jojo Moyes, with the book After You. I loved Me Before You and a lot of Jojo’s other stories so I have high hopes. I just really hope I’m not disappointed.

In the unlikely event I finish those books I’m planning to read the rest of Patrick Ness’s Chaos Walking Series. The Knife of Never Letting Go finished on a bit of a cliffhanger so I can’t wait to find out what happens next in The Ask and the Answer.

I’m hoping this will be a good reading month. Have you read any of the books above? Do you have any recommendations?