My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is epic.

I’d been not so patiently waiting on this book for a while. I absolutely love this series and it feels like every book has been better than the last. The story just seems to build and build and I have to admit I was desperate to know how it would all end.

This book doesn’t disappoint. It feels huge, as all of the threads and characters from the previous books come together to reach a final conclusion which I thought was almost perfect.

A heck of a lot happens in this the final in the lunar chronicles. We have the long awaited visit to Luna, capture, rescue, tragedies, victories, rebellion, huge battles and throughout it all stories of friendship and love.

The standard of writing is consistently good and while the book is a lot bigger than the previous ones in the series it’s so easy to read and the story is so exciting that I flew through it in a couple of days.

My main criticism however and the reason for the loss of a star was that at times I felt there was too much happening. The narrative jumps between different characters so I felt like there wasn’t enough time to connect to one part of the story before you were jumping somewhere else.

While new character Winter gets a decent part of the narrative at the start it wasn’t quite sufficient for me to get a proper sense of her and it wasn’t long before we were off to Cinder and the other characters.

I felt that Cinder got the bulk of the attention which probably makes sense as she is the central character of the series. Her character has developed a lot over the books as she’s started to accept who and what she is and she develops further in this story but it seemed to me that the other characters were side-lined and became a bit less rounded.

My favourite characters are Cress and Thorne. I love them both individually and together and there just wasn’t nearly enough of them. Cress with her social awkwardness and desperate crush on Thorne has always been the one I relate most to and Thorne is the one who has always made me laugh, the flirty, loveable rogue. What there is of them is great, (like when Thorne takes his shirt off and Cress loses all thought) but I wanted more.

I suppose though that with everything that had to be crammed in there just wasn’t room. This story is a lot more serious than some of the previous ones and deals with much bigger issues and themes. The biggest being what are you willing to do and sacrifice to achieve your goal.

As it is the last in the series there is a big finale (which I won’t spoil) and the author wraps everything up nicely. I have the feeling though that there is scope for a spin off. I really, really hope that it does materialise as there are certain characters I want to see more of (no prizes for guessing which ones).

Overall I definitely enjoyed it but didn’t quite love it.

Teaser Tuesday: 24 November 2015

November 24, 2015November 23, 2015 Ali@abookishlife9 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.

TeaserTuesday-ADailyRhythm3 I’m going to be a bit of a cheat this week as I’ve just started Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo and don’t want to flick in case I come across something that gives away the plot so I’m going for first two sentences.

My Teaser

“Joost had two problems: the moon and his moustache.

He was supposed to be making his rounds at the Hoede house, but for the last fifteen minutes, he’d been hovering around the south-east wall of the gardens, trying to think of something romantic to say to Anya”

~ page 3

Have to admit I’m kind of curious about why his moustache is a problem.

Happy reading everyone.

Book Review: Hopeless by Colleen Hoover

November 23, 2015 Ali@abookishlife1 Comment

Hopeless by Colleen Hoover

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

This is actually a really difficult book for me to review as I have very mixed feelings about it. Parts of it I loved, others had me on the edge of the seat and some were a bit dull or frustrating.

Synopsis

The story follows Sky Davis a 17 year old who, having been home schooled is finally getting the chance to go to public school. She’s trying to keep a low profile but is drawn to bad boy and fellow student Dean Holder. There’s something about him she can’t resist but being with him starts to bring back feelings and memories from the past. With his erratic behaviour it seems like Dean may be keeping secrets from her too. Can they both get over their pasts?

Thoughts

So let’s start with the good. I really, really loved the authors writing style. She has that magical ability to draw you in to the story and let you feel what the characters felt in that exact moment whether it is anger, shock, passion or even happiness. I’m someone who reads for feels so her style is perfect for me.

I also liked main characters Sky and Holder. I thought Sky was particularly fantastic. Adopted at a young age by Karen, home schooled and with no access to technology such as a phone, TV or internet she is surprisingly confident, well adjusted (kind of) and self assured. She undeservedly has a bad reputation as a result of her friendship with neighbour Six but doesn’t let it bother her. To her it’s more important to be loyal to her friend than to worry about what others think. I loved how she dealt with the bullies as it gave me a giggle. Throughout the book I was impressed with how she dealt with everything and how she took action and control rather than letting things get to her.

Holder, I have slightly more mixed feelings about. He’s the mysterious stranger that Sky is drawn to even when she hears of his past violent behaviour. His behaviour is downright erratic at times but I did love how protective he was and how funny he could be.

The first half of the book where Sky and Holder meet and gradually form a relationship was the highlight for me. It’s funny, sweet and there are some serious sparks between them. The first half also included Sky starting school, learning to use technology, and meeting new best friend Breckin so there was a lot to love.

So what went wrong? Basically for me it all went wrong when the secrets came out. I’m not sure if it was supposed to be a shock but there were hints throughout the first half of the book which kind of gave it away. Once the truth was revealed I felt like the plot got a little bit ridiculous. There were too many coincidences and it felt like twist after twist was thrown at the reader. There was one part that I was totally shocked by but other than that it was too predictable.

To me the second half felt like a completely different book. Holden’s character seemed to switch completely and all of the other characters I loved disappeared and the focus was only on Sky and Holder. Breckin and Six were such interesting characters it was a shame they weren’t used more.

Overall therefore it was a book of two halves. The first half I loved, the second not so much but possibly it just wasn’t my type of story.

WWW Wednesday – 18th November 2015

November 18, 2015November 17, 2015 Ali@abookishlife13 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.

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

I’ve just started reading Hopeless by Colleen Hoover. This is my first book by this author which is ridiculous as I’ve been hearing great things for a long time. Only a few chapters in but so far so good.

I’m also reading an extended extract of Truthwitch by Susan Dennard which I received from NetGalley. This is a book with a lot of buzz around it and from the few chapters I’ve seen so far this buzz seems well deserved. It’s due for release on 5th January 2016 and I’ve already added to my Amazon wish list.

Recently Finished

It’s been a really good week for books this week. I finished the remaining books in KM Shea’s King Arthur series, Embittered, Embark and Enlighten. I love KM Shea books they are always fun, easy reads, with strong female characters. You can find my review of the series here.

I also finally got to read Winter by Marissa Meyer. It’s safe to say I’d been waiting for this for a while. It is an epic conclusion to the series and I loved it. Only downside, nowhere near enough Cress and Thorne. Haven’t had a chance to post a review yet but it should be coming soon.

Reading Next

I still have a stack of library books lurking around the flat that I really should read before they are due to be returned but realistically I know I won’t get to them this week as I’m participating in a group read of Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. This is another book I’ve been desperate to read for a while but had been hoping the price would come down. It hasn’t but I’m going to cave and get it anyway.

I should also be working my way through some of the ARC’s that are due for publication over the next couple of weeks but I think I’m probably going to be bad and read Northwoods by Bill Schweigart. It’s also an ARC from NetGalley but isn’t due to be published till February 2016. I just can’t resist starting it now as it’s the follow up to The Beast of Barcroft which reignited my love of horror.

If you have any other suggestions or if you’ve read any of these leave a comment below.

Happy Wednesday all.

Teaser Tuesday – 10th November 2015

November 10, 2015November 9, 2015 Ali@abookishlife8 Comments

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of A Daily Rhythm where you grab your current read, flick to a random page and select two sentences (without spoilers).

TeaserTuesday-ADailyRhythm3 At the moment I’m reading What Might Have Been by Matt Dunn. It’s a girl meets boy, boy leaves girl, girl gets engaged to someone else and boy decides he wants her back type story. Reminds me a bit of a soap opera but for the most part I’m enjoying it.

My Teaser

“The moment he’d seen her, he’d known with an absolute clarity that coming home was the right thing to do, and that Sarah was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Although given how the look on her face had changed so quickly from astonishment to what he hoped wasn’t anger, and the way she was gripping a bottle of Chardonnay rather menacingly by the neck, he wondered whether the rest of his life might not actually last that long.”

~ page 79

Happy reading everyone.

Book Review : The Beast of Barcroft by Bill Schweigart

November 4, 2015November 4, 2015 Ali@abookishlife6 Comments

The Beast of Barcroft by Bill Schweigart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A gripping, sometimes scary and enjoyable read about a creature that lurks in the dark. It’s definitely got me looking over my shoulder and staying away from the woods at night. Loved it.

When I was in my late teens I used to love books by Dean Koontz and James Herbert and while I don’t remember them too well this reminds me a lot of some of my favourite James Herbert stories.

It’s set in a quiet and friendly neighbourhood in Barcroft, Arlington where the residents are up in arms about one particular neighbour Madeleine Roux. Madeleine is the local crazy lady, rescuer of raccoons, feeder of pigeons and the reason why the neighbourhood has become infested with rats and other creatures. The county can’t do anything so the residents are understandably frustrated.

For next door neighbour Ben McKelvie it’s more or less the last straw. He moved in with his fiancé about a year ago following the death of his father and what was supposed to be a move up in the world turned into a bit of a nightmare. Struggling to cope with his grief and the crazy lady next door his fiancé Rachel leaves him with only his greyhound Bucky for company and some happy pills to keep him from losing it completely.

When a creature attacks and kills his dog one night however it seems that something much scarier has been drawn to the neighbourhood by the vermin. Other pets disappear and then things start to escalate with the death of one of the neighbours in mysterious circumstances. With none of the police believing him about the creature that killed his dog, Ben and zoologist Lindsay Clark begin tracking it but is it really an animal or something far more sinister?

It was only when I was reading this that I realised how much I missed this kind of book. I love a story that is genuinely creepy and somehow feels like it could be true. The story is partially based on events that happened in that area 40 years ago when 23 pets went missing from the area. They did solve that mystery (and it was less horrifying than in this story) but there always seem to be sightings of big cats or other large animals lurking close to civilisation which is something I find quite scary (especially as there is supposedly one near me).

The story itself is really well written and the author does a great job of getting the pacing just right so that the tension builds throughout. Sometimes with stories such as this it can get a bit slow in the middle or become repetitive but that isn’t the case here. It twists and turns and keeps you guessing till almost the very end.

The characters were well defined and likeable. Ben in particular was very easy to relate to especially in his reaction to the events that occur. He starts out pretty depressed and miserable but somehow seems to find some kind of purpose and determination or possibly realises he hasn’t much left to lose as the story progresses. Zoologist Lindsay Clark and Police Officer Cushing add a bit of romantic interest but more importantly represent strong, intelligent and independent women rather than damsels in distress. They are less than impressed with Ben which results in some very amusing dialogue and was another of my favourite parts of this book.

I get the feeling that this is the first in a series and I think it’s definitely one to watch out for.

Overall a fast paced, well written story which if you’re anything like me will give you the odd chill. There is the odd gory death so maybe avoid if you’re squeamish but otherwise I’d definitely recommend.

I received an advance copy from NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Hydra so big thanks.

WWW Wednesday : 4th November 2015

November 4, 2015November 4, 2015 Ali@abookishlife14 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.

The three W’s are:

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

I’m still working my way through The Beast of Barcroft by Bill Schweigart as part of my Halloween themed reads. I’ve just passed the halfway point and am really enjoying it so far. There’s a large cat (or possibly something else) lurking in the woods and picking off pets in the neighbourhood. Actually finding it a little bit creepy. Reminds me a bit of some of James Herbert’s older stories such as the Rats. Review should be coming soon.

I’ve also started an audio book which is a rare occurrence for me. The only other audio book I’ve listened to was The Girl on the Train which I wasn’t too keen on. This time I’m listening to What Might Have Been by Matt Dunn. It’s a boy meets girl, boy leaves girl and then changes his mind and decides he wants her back type story. There isn’t a huge amount happening and it’s a bit frustrating but I’m still loving it. It makes a pleasant change to find a relationship book written by a man and I think the audio is improving it. I was sitting giggling in a traffic jam yesterday.

Recently Finished

Only managed to finish one book so far this week and that was Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper by J.L. Bryan. This was another of my Halloween themed reads and I was hoping for a creepy ghost story. Unfortunately that isn’t really what I got as it turned into more of a science manual for ghost catching. It’s well written and has some great characters but just not what I was looking for. You can read my full review here

Reading Next

I’m not so patiently waiting on Winter the next in the Lunar Chronicles to be released so I’m struggling to know what to read next. I think I will try to work my way through some of the ARCs I have received from NetGalley. I just received The Masked City by Genevieve Coleman and have realised it’s the follow up to The Invisible Library which has been on my TBR (and kindle) for a while now. I think it’s probably time I read it. It says it’s for fans of The Eyre Affair so should be a good choice for me as that was one of my favourite series.

I also hope to make a start on Meet Me in Manhattan by Claudia Carroll (one of my favourite authors) but I probably need to finish What Might Have Been first as I don’t think I can read more than one romance at a time.

There is a strong possibility that I will wander off and read something else so if you have any suggestions or recommendations let me know.

Happy Wednesday all.

Book Review: Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper by J.L. Bryan

November 1, 2015November 1, 2015 Ali@abookishlife1 Comment

Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper by J.L. Bryan
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Having overdosed on YA dystopian and chick lit over the last few weeks I felt the need for something completely different. I thought as it was Halloween I would go for a nice creepy tale and what could be more creepy than a ghost catcher investigating a haunted house. Apparently a lot of things. This is possibly one of the least scary ghost stories I’ve come across.

It does start quite well, Ellie Jordan (ghost trapper at Eckhart Investigators) and new recruit Stacey are called to investigate a potential haunting in an old mansion in Savannah. New owners Dale, Anna and their daughter Lexa have experienced some strange occurrences in the middle of the night. A locked door which opens on it’s own, creaking on the stairs and a female presence who seems fixated on Lexa.

Anna and Lexa are understandably a bit worried but Dale is in denial and thinks it’s all a lot of nonsense. However as things escalate the house becomes increasingly dangerous for the family and the ghost hunters.

I thought this book was well written. The start is quite creepy as we hear of the scary lady who glares at the little girl, a very disturbing shower incident and the mysterious opening door.

Ellie is a very likeable character. She takes her job seriously, is very professional and knows when to bite her tongue. She also has a sharp wit, a good sense of humour and is pretty ballsy. Stacey is also likeable but in a different way. She’s enthusiastic, bouncy and generally quite excited to be hunting ghosts (at least until she meets one). The relationship between them is probably one of the highlights of the book.

Where it went wrong for me though was that as soon as they began investigating it lost the scare factor. The focus moved to the science of finding and catching ghosts, all of which was explained in detail. After that I just didn’t find it creepy anymore.

It didn’t help that things with the ghost accelerated too quickly. There was no tension building. Ellie turned up and within a few pages saw and followed the ghost before having a chat with it. I would have preferred more build up, creepy noises, not being able to see anything or things suddenly jumping out. Thermal and night vision goggles are obviously great for spotting ghosts but kind of waste the story.

I also felt that the story became a bit too predictable and you knew exactly where it was going.

Possibly the next books in the series will be better but I’m just not sure it’s my kind of ghost story. I’m off to find something scarier.

Overall an ok read but lacking the scare factor.

WWW Wednesday : 28th October 2015

October 28, 2015October 28, 2015 Ali@abookishlife7 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 The three W’s are:

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

I was feeling the need for something a bit spooky so based on a recommendation I started reading Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper by J.L. Bryan this morning. It’s a haunted house story so I’m hoping for lots of creepy goings on. I’ve only read a couple of chapters so no ghosts as yet but I’m liking the writing style. Slightly worryingly it’s the first in a series so there is a fair possibility I’ll end up reading the lot.

Recently Finished

Over the last week I’ve managed to finish a couple of books. The first was The Vintage Guide to Love and Romance by Kirsty Greenwood. For the most part I really enjoyed it. It definitely made me laugh a lot. I have a feeling though that it’s one of those books that is more or less instantly forgettable.

For once I also read one of the books I had planned as my next read, Blonde Eskimo, and posted my review here yesterday. As I predicted it was probably not the right book for me. I don’t know if it’s just one YA fantasy too many or if it was just meant for readers a lot younger than me but didn’t really enjoy it too much.

Reading Next

I’m planning to continue my spooky themed reading over the Halloween weekend and have just received The Beast of Barcroft by Bill Shweigart via NetGalley. Have never read anything by this author but I like the cover and quite fancy a creature feature. I am a little worried as it tells you the beast eats the main character’s dog but I plan to skim that bit.

I’m also still trying to convince myself to read The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. It’s been lurking on my kindle for a while but I keep putting it off based on the mixed reviews it seems to get. If I don’t go for that I may switch back to Love, Death and Tea or try a classic such as Dracula or Frankenstein. Not sure yet.

Does anyone have any recommendations or ideas for Halloween reads?

Book Review: The Blonde Eskimo by Kristen Hunt

October 27, 2015October 27, 2015 Ali@abookishlife1 Comment

Blonde Eskimo by Kristen Hunt
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Maybe I’m too old for this one or maybe I’ve just read too many YA fantasy books recently but this book just didn’t really work for me.

It starts off quite well in a way quite similar to Twilight with main character Neiva packed off by her parents to Spirit Island, Alaska to stay with her Grandmother and finish her final year at school while her parents go travelling.

There are hints from the very beginning that there is something very mysterious about the Island. It’s remote and very insular and no one seems to have heard of it. Those who Neiva tells seem to instantly forget about it. This time however she is determined to get proof that something isn’t right. When she first arrives everything seems fairly normal however you quickly get the sense that everyone is keeping secrets from her.

It’s only on her 17th birthday that the secrets begin to come to light and strange things start happening. Neiva finds out that she has to take part in an ancient and traditional ritual which involves among other things receiving a totem of her spirit guide. She soon discovers however that she and her friends have powers and there is a whole other world around her. A world of spirits and demons and other legends, one of which seems to be determined to kill her. She also meets a mysterious stranger in a mask that she can’t help being drawn to.

There are some great ideas in this book. I loved the idea of the Eskimo legends being real (although I should say I know nothing about Eskimo legends so have no idea if any of them are truly legends). It does give it that slightly different twist on the usual young adult fantasy book.

The problem I had however was that I felt there was too much going on and I found it confusing. Spirits, guardians, demons, spirit guides, vampires, Triton, the Loch Ness monster and various other creatures get a mention at some point or another. I have to admit I gave up trying to follow it. There is a lot of information that’s thrown at you in big chunks and at times it breaks the flow of the story and doesn’t seem relevant. There could have been a bit more subtlety in working it into the text.

There are also some inconsistencies and continuity issues which were a little frustrating. For example one minute a raven was her favourite animal, the next she was terrified of them and then she loved them again. There was a moment she thought she recognised someone then dismissed it as her imagination. Five minutes later she was writing in her diary about how she was positive she’d seen them. Neiva also knew someone’s name even though after the last time they met she commented that she’d forgotten to ask for it. I had an ARC so hopefully these have been fixed.

I found it strange in this book as well how none of the adults seemed overly concerned about the fact someone was trying to kill Neiva. In most YA fantasy books the adults are blissfully ignorant of what’s going on however in this case they all know the legends and could help. Instead they quite happily sent her off camping in a remote location with her friends. She does receive training but that seemed to be mostly dance lessons and riding sea creatures which isn’t much practical use if someone is trying to drown you, eat your soul or send a possessed bear after you. The advice she kept receiving was to stick with her friends. Although her friends didn’t seem to be a huge amount of use in keeping her safe.

The characters were OK. I found Neiva a little annoying in some ways and felt like she was younger than the 17 she was supposed to be. Every boy she met was soooo good looking and she seemed to spend most of her time blushing or crying. I was not a fan of the diary. I did like how she pushed for answers though and that she cared so much about her friends and family. I also liked her friends Nate and Viv and the relationship between the two of them. Viv is fiery in more ways than one whereas Nate is funny and loyal. They fight constantly but I get the feeling it’s a bit of a love/hate thing.

The story does pick up towards the end and I did find that it started to draw me in so that I wanted to know how things would turn out. I don’t think though that I will be rushing to read the next in the series although maybe I just need a break from this genre.

Overall, while I didn’t love it I think a lot of people, particularly younger teens will. It reminded me a bit of the Iron King (which I also wasn’t keen on) so if you like that you would probably like this.

Thanks to NetGalley and SparkPress for the ARC