tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62662245161003588882024-03-19T12:11:30.143+00:00Luce's BooksLUCE'S BOOKS - Where you will find me lost in a good bookLoobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-74923791715512928992015-05-24T20:30:00.000+01:002015-05-24T20:30:06.263+01:00What I've been watching latelySo I've just come to realize that I haven't made a post in quite a while. I think its because I've been tired a lot recently from work, and that I've been reading a lot and <strike>becoming abnormally obsessed with</strike> catching up on a lot of TV shows. I thought I'd share with you what I've been watching recently if you're interested. The primary focus for this blog is books but I really want to just talk about anything really: books, TV shows, movies, general life stuff. So here goes.
1. The Walking Dead - watched seasons 1 through 4 <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfUBhjmFPCKPbzz7mBi_xhExxDkpZjj1wUzPnA7KxK-_yzeZsZpawAOj6Bnj-XIPDnG0w9fFS4V29xtxFu4Y_RTfW9xwHuwi-UYmHHKrIOFOmn4DyxfxnRWxJhVhFKg-O60BfOCQdek2g/s1600/thewalkingdeadseason1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfUBhjmFPCKPbzz7mBi_xhExxDkpZjj1wUzPnA7KxK-_yzeZsZpawAOj6Bnj-XIPDnG0w9fFS4V29xtxFu4Y_RTfW9xwHuwi-UYmHHKrIOFOmn4DyxfxnRWxJhVhFKg-O60BfOCQdek2g/s320/thewalkingdeadseason1.jpg" /></a></div>
I'm probably <i>way</i> late onto the bandwagon with this one. It is already a hugely popular show worldwide and has a massive following and after watching the firs four seasons I can definitely see why. The storylines are so gripping and you are just dying to know which characters are going to survive until the next episode. The stories of every character is usually so fast-paced that each episode is over barely after it began. I definitely love Glenn, Michonne and Daryl the most, although there are few other not-so-nice characters that definitely make the show tense and entertaining to watch.
2. Poldark - watched episodes 1 through 3 of season 1 <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Py5v-GkeWUW9_CA6Ia2D-2Bx6AvbxRPXEEOjOJbWALCVtlOkFDG2PO0n0ecHlS897HCI9mqAhvtyuYyqRUO_Dw1dRjwkVw_U6BYN_9y6EI5pI6UTCmGgzjj6RnSB_qCU8QQc_kWep6Q/s1600/poldarkbookcover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Py5v-GkeWUW9_CA6Ia2D-2Bx6AvbxRPXEEOjOJbWALCVtlOkFDG2PO0n0ecHlS897HCI9mqAhvtyuYyqRUO_Dw1dRjwkVw_U6BYN_9y6EI5pI6UTCmGgzjj6RnSB_qCU8QQc_kWep6Q/s400/poldarkbookcover.jpg" /></a></div>
I've only seen three episodes of Poldark but already I can see why it is so popular, in the UK at least. And <i>yes</i> it is popular for reasons other than a shirtless Aidan Turner (although I'm not complaining!) The story takes place in Cornwall in the 1700s where Ross Poldark (Aidan Turner) returns from war in America to reconnect with his old family and make new friendships with others, including local girl Demelza (Eleanor Tomlinson) There is definitely a sense of class struggle between families like the Poldark's and other characters such as Jud, Prudie and Demelza who are all of a lower class. Being the book nerd that I am, I am also in the process of reading the first book in the saga, Ross Poldark which I am immensely enjoying. If you enjoy historical dramas then I definitely recommend both picking up the book and seeing the TV show.
3. Once Upon a Time - watched seasons 1 through 4 <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO1KzovTCZQQBC8WhuMd37ZHmX8WVEsBINsnakv958jgL0lan_D0ey1j0f8PE-qinz-8x8IKDSE8CtfsTGLYR6MyFkRzTnm66uc9vnBLC1l4yWAGqYRBJFrZtOaIZxiTYnSTeR-K97i38/s1600/onceuponatimeposter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO1KzovTCZQQBC8WhuMd37ZHmX8WVEsBINsnakv958jgL0lan_D0ey1j0f8PE-qinz-8x8IKDSE8CtfsTGLYR6MyFkRzTnm66uc9vnBLC1l4yWAGqYRBJFrZtOaIZxiTYnSTeR-K97i38/s400/onceuponatimeposter.jpg" /></a></div>
It feels as though I've been watching Once Upon a Time for ages now. I just love how the writers really flesh out the fairytale characters we all know and turn them into "real people". Its perfect for pretty much anyone who writes fanfiction for things like Cinderella and The Little Mermaid and there is no shortage of handsome guys (see Captain Hook and Robin Hood for starters). Everything from The Wizard of Oz to Frozen is covered so if you like all things fantasy and fairy tales, then you should definitely jump on the bandwagon.Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-21626876956037213882015-03-04T19:00:00.000+00:002015-03-05T17:04:24.889+00:00Michelle Moran Winner Giveaway So a couple of weeks ago I hosted a giveaway for two people to win a signed copy of Rebel Queen by Michelle Moran and some Indian bangles. I'm pleased to announce that 2 winners have been chosen and their names are listed on the giveaway widget on the blogs homepage. If you are a winner please send your full name and address plus postal/zip code so I contact the author and your prizes can be sent out. If you have not won you will receive signed bookplates by the lovely author by using this link below! Congratulations to the winners and happy reading! :)
Link for the runners up to win signed bookplates:
http://www.michellemoran.com/books/rebelqueen/bookplate.html
PLEASE NOTE:
If I don't hear back from the winners within a week of posting this, I will select another winner so please send me your contact info as soon as possible if you are a winner. Thank You.Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-77695854215461376742015-02-01T14:03:00.001+00:002015-02-01T16:32:16.334+00:00<a class="rcptr" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/0a0a0a951/" rel="nofollow" data-raflid="0a0a0a951" data-theme="classic" data-template="" id="rcwidget_058zcmy0">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="//widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-59334730473376720382015-01-30T18:55:00.000+00:002015-01-30T18:55:36.436+00:00#FridayReads - 30/01/2015<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi92iYUgxAkgIOrrBzJ5_KbpBfp_yZdeu9Rp3aJbghafhfWhqTNtNbm8JZXzPaU46gig5oGilEuL-ldThxunnkutFOMshlsC8p696vEJZ6vlpB2sv9kxjzwUqxe0VITvWyh4zvZhC2ThE/s1600/003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi92iYUgxAkgIOrrBzJ5_KbpBfp_yZdeu9Rp3aJbghafhfWhqTNtNbm8JZXzPaU46gig5oGilEuL-ldThxunnkutFOMshlsC8p696vEJZ6vlpB2sv9kxjzwUqxe0VITvWyh4zvZhC2ThE/s1600/003.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">So I haven't posted a #FridayReads post on this blog before so I thought I would start doing it so people can see what I'll be reading throughout the weekend. It mainly happens on YouTube but I thought it would be simpler for me to write it down rather than talk about it in front of a camera. Anyway, this week I'm in the middle of two books. The library book I'm currently reading is Splintered by A. G. Howard, and its sort of a retelling of Alice in Wonderland, which is pretty interesting. Also, it has a beautiful cover which is so detailed and imaginative. The other book is All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill, and I'm really enjoying this one. Its about time travel, the writing is really addictive and the storyline is keeping me hooked and turning the pages which is always a good thing. If you do a #FridayReads post on your blog or YouTube channel, then leave it below and I'll be sure to check it out. Happy Reading! =)</span>Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-11843584206812589122014-10-19T16:43:00.000+01:002014-10-19T16:43:49.084+01:00Book Review - Nefertiti by Michelle Moran<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqVbWOwU2NLX9CJ2PoLi1WfHNcS56Y4OnpyVtc2NAKuh_C386PnEfIGl7_afNQ3B8EfwIaN2ipdPTc3H8waq7TNiKHDczCyZcmB3fzo16-jnojVWOLr8DPiwdf8eo-QLRHRl2yXaOc5yQ/s1600/neferitit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqVbWOwU2NLX9CJ2PoLi1WfHNcS56Y4OnpyVtc2NAKuh_C386PnEfIGl7_afNQ3B8EfwIaN2ipdPTc3H8waq7TNiKHDczCyZcmB3fzo16-jnojVWOLr8DPiwdf8eo-QLRHRl2yXaOc5yQ/s1600/neferitit.jpg" height="320" width="214" /></a><u><span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Nefertiti by Michelle Moran</span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Published: 2007</span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Publisher: Quercus</span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Format: e-book</span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Length: 528 pages</span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Summary from Goodreads:</span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Nefertiti is one of the world’s greatest legendary
beauties. Seen through her sister’s eyes, she is vividly brought to life in
this heartbreaking story of celebrity, ambition, love and loss.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At the tender age of fifteen, Nefertiti marries
Akhenaten, the Prince of Egypt, her dreams coming true as she rises to fame and
fortune. Bathed and decorated by a team of body servants, her natural beauty is
enhanced until she becomes mesmerizing. She is soon the darling of the people
and her husband’s closest confidant.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But when her husband breaks with a thousand years of
tradition, defying the priests and the military, it will take all Nefertiti’s
wiles to keep the nation from being torn apart. She’s prepared to sacrifice her
sister to strengthen her power and this act will lock the two women in a feud
that only death can break.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Review: </span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This book was definitely an interesting and intriguing
one for me to read. I had never before read anything to do with Ancient Egypt,
and I had only heard of Cleopatra so it was definitely fascinating to get a
glimpse into what life would have been like for an Egyptian royal. I really
felt Michelle Moran’s vivid descriptions of the Egyptian palace and
surroundings took me back in time to Ancient Egypt, where I was a fly on the
wall, listening to all the conversations and sitting in an Egyptian audience
chamber.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As for the plot, the story is told by Mutnodjmet,
Nefertiti’s younger half-sister who follows her sister to the palace and lives
by her side as she and her husband Akhenaten rise to power and win the people
of Egypt’s love.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Mutnodjmet or Mutny as she is often referred to in the
book was an easy character for me to root for and engage with. She does not
desire a life in the limelight as her sister does, and is easily content with
living the quiet life, tending to her garden and searching for love.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In a way, the contrast between Mutny and the power
hungry Nefertiti, reminded me of sisters Mary and Anne Boleyn, from The Other
Boleyn Girl; especially Akhenaten and King Henry VIII both being powerful kings
who had a short temper.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The book also gave a fascinating insight into the
politics and religion of Ancient Egypt. The people of Egypt are used to
worshipping a god called Amun, and become quickly angry when Nefertiti and
Akhenaten announce they are giving up supporting Amun in favour of worshipping
the sun god, Aten. This aspect of the story gave the book a really dramatic
turn and gave more conflict for the two sisters as they both try and live their
lives and struggle with the conflicts that are increasingly risin.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to
anyone who likes a good story, is interested in learning more about Ancient
Egypt, or to anyone who enjoys an entertaining historical novel.</span></div>
Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-45212429278236910102014-05-10T22:32:00.001+01:002014-05-14T21:30:49.150+01:00Bout of Books 10.0 Readathon So I have decided to take part in the Bout of Books Readathon 10.0 which has been getting a lot of talk on Booktube. I previously tried this readathon but didn't do that well so I'm hoping that this year I can do better and get through some of my TBR books that need to be read. I have decided to set myself the following goals:<br />
<br />
1. To finish or round up a series that I currently own the last book of. For this I have decided to read Outside In by Maria V. Snyder, the last book in her Insiders series that comes after Inside Out. I really enjoyed Inside Out when I borrowed it from the library a few years ago. Seeing as its so long since I read the first book I thought I might as well try and finish the series and see how it ends, especially as it only has 2 books in the series and it is fairly average in size so I should get through it pretty quickly. The edition I own has 326 pages.<br />
<br />
2. To read a dystopian book. I have plenty of unread dystopian books on my shelves, and many of them are firsts in series that I haven't even started yet so I figured I might as well try a new one and see if I want to continue with the series.<br />
<br />
3. To read a classic. For this I have decided to read Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, as I own the majority of her novels and I have only read Pride and Prejudice by her, so I thought I would try a short one of hers and see how it compares to P & P.<br />
<br />
4. To read a standalone novel. For this I have decided to read If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch which is a fairly recent release and something that I've been wanting to read for a while.<br />
<br />
So these are the goals I have set myself. I hope I can read all the books I have mentioned. If you are participating then please let me know in the comments what your goals are and what books you plan to read and good luck! Happy Reading!<br />
<br />
12/05/2014<br />
Book Currently Reading:If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch<br />
Pages Read:<br />
<br />
13/05/2014<br />
Book Currently Reading:If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch<br />
Pages Read:<br />
<br />
14/05/2014<br />
Book Currently Reading:If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch<br />
Pages Read:Read from page 112 to 205<br />
<br />
15/05/2014<br />
Book Currently Reading:<br />
Pages Read:<br />
<br />
16/05/2014<br />
Book Currently Reading:<br />
Pages Read:<br />
<br />
17/05/2014<br />
Book Currently Reading:<br />
Pages Read:<br />
<br />
18/05/2014<br />
Book Currently Reading:<br />
Pages Read:<br />
<br />
<br />
Readathon Wrap Up:<br />
Books Read:<br />
Total Pages Read:Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-85574604999878249712014-04-21T09:52:00.000+01:002014-04-21T09:52:06.528+01:00Book Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell – Book
Review<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBYBDV3dm-tLaUycWQCtgBrWn-dxtkpbT2jmpnIm1veORe-BadXbfs3WNs7-foC5KyFgI5AOZ5hbLs2NaIDYYWYJOfef_VKRvSEY6eHM7mnAwSimp_J8WDz16kKFuimQW9Ci0D6m6l-VY/s1600/fangirl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBYBDV3dm-tLaUycWQCtgBrWn-dxtkpbT2jmpnIm1veORe-BadXbfs3WNs7-foC5KyFgI5AOZ5hbLs2NaIDYYWYJOfef_VKRvSEY6eHM7mnAwSimp_J8WDz16kKFuimQW9Ci0D6m6l-VY/s1600/fangirl.jpg" height="320" width="211" /></a><u><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Author: Rainbow Rowell<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Published: 2014 (UK)<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Publisher: Pan Macmillan<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Format: Paperback<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Length: 459 pages<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Summary
from Goodreads:<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><i><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A
coming-of-age tale of fan fiction, family and first love.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><i><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Cath is a Simon Snow fan.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But for Cath, being a fan is her life – and she’s
really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the
Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their
mother leaving.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow
forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for
every movie premiere.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom,
but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told
Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely out of
her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around
boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the
civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words…And
she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never
really been alone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is
she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And does she even want to move on if it means
leaving Simon Snow behind?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Review:<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I initially picked this book up because of all the
hype surrounding it and I guess I wanted to jump on the Rainbow Rowell
bandwagon as everyone seems to love her books. I also wanted to read more
contemporary novels and this one seemed right up my street.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I really liked Cath,
the main character. I felt I could relate to her as I am quite an unsociable
person and have troubles meeting new people and talking to people that I don’t
know well. I personally haven’t written much fan-fiction in my life but I think
it definitely shows how much love a person can give a certain book or series.
(There are definitely some that I fangirl over – a lot).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I liked the twin
dynamic between Cath and Wren – her full name is Cather and I had never heard
that name before and I thought it cool how their names went together. (You’ll
have to read Fangirl first though to figure it out)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Wren is the opposite of
Cath – being that she likes to flirt, party and drink a lot and pretty much
make the most out of the university experience. Cath even is dismayed that Wren
cut most of her hair off without telling her as opposed to having long hair
like Cath.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">My favourite part of
the book was definitely any scene that had Levi in it. He was definitely my
favourite character; he was just such a sweet, kind and considerate guy and I
just loved how he and Cath fell in love. I just want to find my own Levi in
real life now! Haha. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I also liked the aspect
of Cath and her fan-fiction writing and how each chapter started with an
excerpt from a Simon Snow book – as I said previously Cath really reminded me
of myself and how I am quite a socially awkward person. It was really
refreshing to see how she expressed herself through fan-fiction, but with the
help of Levi learned how to talk to and meet people in the real world. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Reagan was also a cool,
snarky character that was quite outspoken and who wasn’t afraid of letting Cath
know how it was; I really admired her feistiness and how she was different to
Cath; she’s definitely someone I wouldn’t mind being friends with in real life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I really enjoyed
Rainbow Rowell’s writing – the story just flowed and she really has a way of
creating flawed characters that you can’t help but root for and become attached
to – I will be definitely be purchasing all of her other titles, especially
since I haven’t read <i>Eleanor & Park</i>
by her yet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-65065879096893216892014-03-05T20:37:00.002+00:002014-03-05T20:37:23.165+00:00March 2014 To Be Read PileI am going to start doing TBR's and trying to stick to them. I need somethingto motivate my reading so hopefully I'll get through a lot of these this month (at least then I'll be able to a buy a few more :D )<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">March to be read pile – 5 books maximum<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6MTwsqno_M4SDJ7Xw8S1VflbU3Gc4iqTkzmzbKawRMh0JaBuZToq0UsCXnvr-RSXdxGcZts_ZQkFF4Mhhh6ioQlHMDGfbdAuZyZJNQCTkQTk4Hlp06mAbdXilvYmmR__ZNmBA9LZvJgM/s1600/the+kingmaker%2527s+daughter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6MTwsqno_M4SDJ7Xw8S1VflbU3Gc4iqTkzmzbKawRMh0JaBuZToq0UsCXnvr-RSXdxGcZts_ZQkFF4Mhhh6ioQlHMDGfbdAuZyZJNQCTkQTk4Hlp06mAbdXilvYmmR__ZNmBA9LZvJgM/s1600/the+kingmaker%2527s+daughter.jpg" height="320" width="209" /></a><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Kingmaker’s Daughter by Philippa Gregory
(Cousins War series) – I really enjoyed watching the television show The White
Queen which is based on Philippa Gregory’s Cousins War book series. The series
follows key female characters that were a part of the Wars of the Roses in
England in the 1400s. The Kingmaker’s Daughter focuses on Anne Neville, the
daughter of Warwick the ‘Kingmaker’, who put king of England of the time King
Edward III on the throne. I am a really big history geek and love learning about
royal families of the past. Before watching the TV show I hadn’t heard of any
of the historical figures so I like to read historical fiction book based on
these historical figures to try and get a glimpse of what life may have been
like for them in the time period. I’m not even 100 pages into this yet which is
really bad so I need to get a move on before I can move onto another book :P</span></div>
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</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch – The plot of
this book sounds really interesting and intriguing to me. The tagline is “What
happens in the woods stays in the woods” which immediately makes me wonder what
is going to happen in the story. I have skim read the first few pages and the
writing style almost reminds me of Blood Red Road by Moira Young (one of my
favourite books ever check it out :D) so that gives me high hopes. This cover
is quite cool, the way you can see lots of yellow trees and 3 yellow figures
dotted throughout which must represent the characters.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE_y1RAE3rEWmHhiZf-hUpi4s-e_oJ0TT93_mTaguf_rI2pklS5slOHGjSBpxQEbTybkOU5Ly2QmB0OXZjmgN_wJfOipyL1ank8IOaXDDYJneGKb-D1SLWas-h6dTTNBq0_Q-GKTFuidA/s1600/the+beautiful+and+the+cursed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_2PQ0xtGbUHg6mBDEQGcBX48XH9EzoGwlyUwubqmSydvnk1CbMMXn23P1gKHmPe0zjyBHPzVAPcioiZOuQQ0CfwSniu8TjQYYSbB_J1cI4GAU9DyCjHcHFBo25iJHbyJns_mQCdt8_BM/s1600/daughter+of+smoke+and+bone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_2PQ0xtGbUHg6mBDEQGcBX48XH9EzoGwlyUwubqmSydvnk1CbMMXn23P1gKHmPe0zjyBHPzVAPcioiZOuQQ0CfwSniu8TjQYYSbB_J1cI4GAU9DyCjHcHFBo25iJHbyJns_mQCdt8_BM/s1600/daughter+of+smoke+and+bone.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></a><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers – I’m going to be
honest. I’ve tried to read this book before but I just couldn’t get past the
first few chapters – I just think I wasn’t in the mood to read historical
fiction at the time but I’m willing to give it another go as a lot of people
seem to like it. It definitely has an interesting concept – assassin nuns -
that just sounds so funny when I think about it. Anyway I hope I will enjoy it
the next time around.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Beautiful and the Cursed by Page Morgan –
this book sounds pretty good – it is about two sisters and their mother moving
to Paris after learning their brother has gone missing. I’m definitely
interested in any book that’s set in Paris – it looks like an amazing city to
visit and I’m really intrigued by the story. I haven’t heard a whole lot about
it either so I’m going in with not a lot of expectations.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor – I started
reading this book last month but struggled to get through it a bit – I feel a
bit bad because I know the book and its sequel are very hyped up and a lot of
people love them. Parts of it are good for me and other parts are okay; I’m not saying I dislike it but I hope it
picks up as the book goes along as I would really love to become addicted to
the series like everyone else.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfVTvrlgOFcqqq4b2RHzwMc5ntg6DwL4h6IM3judT5TlzO1fyBKUCIG4ZO64K26ARi6K-k8f-4kvS2xfup2TSIRIURnaTKGhHlt-Jx_wxyKlH_utgNJyR-zvHSxJ8gGKGW8v9oMTLsCq0/s1600/a+clash+of+kings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfVTvrlgOFcqqq4b2RHzwMc5ntg6DwL4h6IM3judT5TlzO1fyBKUCIG4ZO64K26ARi6K-k8f-4kvS2xfup2TSIRIURnaTKGhHlt-Jx_wxyKlH_utgNJyR-zvHSxJ8gGKGW8v9oMTLsCq0/s1600/a+clash+of+kings.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></a><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I feel so ashamed to say that I only read a grand total of
ONE book for the whole of February (hangs head in shame). But in fairness it
was 911 pages long so cut me some slack? :P The book I read was A Clash of
Kings by George R. R. Martin which was AMAZING. The man just has such an
addictive writing style, the characters are so vindictive and awful at times,
and you just never know what is coming up around the corner. It didn’t even
feel as though I was reading a 911 page book though; it was so good and action
packed I just flew through it and could hardly stop reading it. As soon as my
book buying ban is over I will definitely be grabbing the rest of the books in
the Song of Ice and Fire series – I need to know what happens in Westeros next –
now </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Garamond; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Garamond; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-34304805274192088922014-01-05T13:39:00.002+00:002014-01-05T13:39:47.709+00:00Bout of Books Read-a-thon 9.0I have decided for the first time in a while to participate in a read-a-thon, and having never done the Bout of Books read-a-thon before I thought I would give it a go this year and see how many books I get read by the end of it. I hope to read and finish The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead which I am currently reading but after that I really don't know what I'll pick up next! I will leave a link to the Bout of Books blog so anyone else can sign up to the read-a-thon. I will most likely post updates and my overall progress on here, Goodreads and my twitter which is @Loobylu91. Good luck to anyone who is participating :)<br />
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Link to the sign up post on the Bout of Books blog: <a href="http://boutofbooks.blogspot.co.uk/">http://boutofbooks.blogspot.co.uk/</a><br />
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<br />Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-86168612015786827182013-12-02T22:31:00.001+00:002013-12-02T22:31:18.715+00:00Book Review: A Bargain Struck by Liz Harris<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqBwIvl-rrEoT26U463A02zP1fkK8bGjuzT4_FhExbTsJROp-oXfXuX1exSW6G5GrYIcINAD-WLfnw7iHlDc01297ClvdmjItgOczRc7NFuhlwZmClRPdknwuD02DjDRWVhhRRdB_HFJQ/s1600/abargainstruck.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqBwIvl-rrEoT26U463A02zP1fkK8bGjuzT4_FhExbTsJROp-oXfXuX1exSW6G5GrYIcINAD-WLfnw7iHlDc01297ClvdmjItgOczRc7NFuhlwZmClRPdknwuD02DjDRWVhhRRdB_HFJQ/s320/abargainstruck.jpg" width="210" /></a><u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Publisher: Choc Lit</span></u><br />
<u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Published: 2013</span></u><br />
<u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Format: Paperback</span></u><br />
<u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Length: 314 pages</span></u><br />
<u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Summary from Goodreads:</span></u><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Widower Connor Maguire advertises for a wife to raise his
young daughter, Bridget, work the homestead and bear him a son.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ellen O’Sullivan longs for a home, a husband and a
family. On paper, she is everything Connor needs in a wife. However, it soon
becomes clear that Ellen has not been entirely truthful.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Will Connor be able to overlook Ellen’s dishonesty and
keep to his side of the bargain? Or will Bridget’s resentment, the attentions
of the beautiful Miss Quinn, and the arrival of an unwelcome visitor, combine
to prevent the couple from starting anew.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As their personal feelings blur the boundaries of their
deal, they begin to wonder if a bargain struck makes a marriage worth keeping. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Set in Wyoming in 1887, a story of a man and a woman
brought together through need, not love.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Review:</span></u></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In a way, reading this book slightly reminded me of the
time I watched the movie <i>Oklahoma!</i>,
which is an old musical film about people living in the late 1800s/early 1900s
America, particularly in the southern regions, hence the title.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The characters in this book lived in a very small,
tight-knit community, the sort of small place where everyone knows everybody
else’s business. Connor Maguire, the main male character of the book owns a
farm deep in the Wyoming countryside, and has a young daughter, Bridget. He is
also a widower who is still mourning the death of his wife and Bridget’s
mother.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ellen O’Sullivan, the other main character, is also a
widow, and bears the scar of an accident that claimed her late husband’s life.
The two characters come together as Connor needs someone to raise his daughter
and help him run his farm, or homestead as the way it is described in the book.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">There are also other characters in the book such as
Oonagh Quinn, who becomes friends with Ellen, and Connor’s brother Niall, who
shakes the farm up when he comes to stay. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Although I’ve read a few books that are set in the 1800s,
I haven’t read anything set deep out in the countryside of America,
particularly somewhere that sounds like it could be the setting of an old
Western movie. The subplot involving Connor’s daughter Bridget was also
intriguing; she and Ellen don’t get on at first and she is quite rude to Ellen
regarding her scar, but I can certainly understand why a recently bereaved
child would act that way towards a strange woman, and nowadays similar
situations arise regarding children and their step-parents, so I applaud the
author for highlighting an issue that still goes on in modern society.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I was intrigued as to how people led their lives back
then, especially people who didn’t live in big cities, and small communities
like the one that the book is set in. I found Connor and Ellen pretty likeable
characters. I’m still not able to get my head around the fact that people could
just advertise for wives in those days and women willingly married people they don’t
know. However, as mentioned above it was very interesting to learn about how
things worked in that part of America in those times and how simple were the lives
that people led.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I would read more books like this as it seems like an
interesting sub-genre to write about.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-41760635480795679912013-09-30T17:04:00.002+01:002013-09-30T17:04:23.657+01:00September 2013 Reading Wrap Up - I will try and avoid spoilers!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCTaj2O6bEaEHWGOVZLaaFNyhFGnNjNG6nV5LxCqjz_KdvAQGPOU5_AWGTWXTVWXBJ4QUJkaw8vPXf2EzTMaH8sOVBYtd8PYQCOC7wt0N2KQYH8pJOgcnNOHNY39JKDEvouD-Es7L-OKI/s1600/sepreadingwrapup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCTaj2O6bEaEHWGOVZLaaFNyhFGnNjNG6nV5LxCqjz_KdvAQGPOU5_AWGTWXTVWXBJ4QUJkaw8vPXf2EzTMaH8sOVBYtd8PYQCOC7wt0N2KQYH8pJOgcnNOHNY39JKDEvouD-Es7L-OKI/s320/sepreadingwrapup.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Hi everyone. So I've decided to start doing wrap up posts on this blog. It has been a little dead recently so I thought I'd start sharing my thoughts on the books I have been reading. So here goes...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Plague (Gone #4) by Michael Grant<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This book was amazing.
Michael Grant clearly has such a vivid imagination. He must sit in a room and
think of all the weird, bad things that could happen to a bunch of teenagers
and kids and apply them all to this series, because I couldn’t believe some of
the stuff that was happening! I definitely liked Diana more in this book. She and
Caine are initially introduced as antagonist’s but I actually felt sorry for
her quite a bit in this book and some of the events regarding her character
surprised me. Toto was also a new character for this book and I found him quite
humorous – he has a power for knowing if people are telling the truth or not
and it was quite funny to see him wind up the other characters with his powers.
Overall, this book was definitely a 5 star book.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">2.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The Madman’s Daughter (Madman’s Daughter
Trilogy #1) by Megan Shepherd<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This book had been on my
wishlist for a few months so when I saw it brand new and really cheap in a
local book shop I knew I had to pick up a copy. I hadn’t read the classic book
that this book is based on – The Island of Dr. Moreau by H. G. Wells so I didn’t
know how I would feel about the book. I thought that the book started off quite
eerie and was impressed by the first couple of chapters, and when Juliet,
Edward and Montgomery arrived on the island. Unfortunately, although there were
some creepy scenes I didn’t feel as scared as I thought I would when initially read
the synopsis. Saying that, there were some twists toward the end that I did not
see coming so I must applaud the author for that. I may pick up the second
book, <i>Her Dark Curiosity</i>, when it comes
out, as I am still intrigued as to what will happen next.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">3.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Fear (Gone #5) by Michael Grant<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This book
picked straight up from where Plague left off, with Perdido Beach still reeling
from the bug attacks. Drake grows even more menacing (if that’s even possible!)
and Astrid also changes. Overall I really enjoyed the story and character
development, especially with Diana towards the end. I gave this book 4 out of 5
stars.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">4.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Light (Gone #6) by Michael Grant<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This was
the final book in the epic Gone series and ever since I ordered it I was almost
climbing the ceilings whilst waiting for it – I had to know how it ended and if
the kids terror would ever be put to an end. All I can say it was a mind-blowing
conclusion and I am still thinking about everything that happened in the book. It’s
definitely the freakiest book yet and I cannot recommend this series enough to every
one of every age. 4 out of 5 stars.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">In conclusion, I feel I have had an extremely good September reading month, and look forward to reading some more horror eque and spooky books for the month of October. I will probably make a separate post about it so stay tuned! Happy reading :)</span></span></div>
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<br />Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-29064967822064777502013-08-26T13:41:00.000+01:002013-08-26T13:41:01.739+01:00Book Review: The Reluctant Bride by Beverley Eikli<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Publisher: Choc Lit<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Published: 2013<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Format: Paperback<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Length: 353 pages<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1RMEwB2g0XTWBE-iWMu8coSw-LK3DOKBUUNvWleMLX73EjirMAJHwDqiYhTSxgFLbyfNA6UPR3F_wNSIQiAPfZ_wqVzwlTZsYW3FQgAnzMMrO8uOJD3_utLEzbQjyTVGUia6CH9ZRzz4/s1600/thereluctantbride.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1RMEwB2g0XTWBE-iWMu8coSw-LK3DOKBUUNvWleMLX73EjirMAJHwDqiYhTSxgFLbyfNA6UPR3F_wNSIQiAPfZ_wqVzwlTZsYW3FQgAnzMMrO8uOJD3_utLEzbQjyTVGUia6CH9ZRzz4/s320/thereluctantbride.jpg" width="211" /></a><u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Summary from Goodreads:<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Can honour and action banish the shadows of old sins?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Emily Micklen has no option after the death of her loving
fiancé, Jack, but to marry the scarred, taciturn, soldier who represents her
only escape from destitution.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Major Angus McCartney is tormented by the reproachful
slate-grey eyes of two strikingly similar women: Jessamine, his dead mistress,
and Emily, the unobtainable beauty who is now his reluctant bride. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Emily’s loyalty to Jack’s memory is matched only by Angus’s
determination to atone for the past and win his wife with honour and action. As
Napoleon cuts a swathe across Europe, Angus is sent to France on a mission of
national security, forcing Emily to confront both her allegiance to Jack and
her traitorous half-French family. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Angus and Emily may find love, but will the secrets they
uncover divide them forever?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Review:<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Aside from Pride and Prejudice, this is my second foray into
regency romance and I thoroughly enjoyed Beverley Eikli’s novel of secrets and
spies. There are quite a few authors who write regency romances, and as I got
sent The Reluctant Bride for review, I was intrigued and excited to how my
first experience with a modern author would be like.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Thankfully, I was engrossed by the story the second Emily
and Angus agree to marry each other. I know I would certainly be a ‘reluctant
bride’ if I were in Emily’s boat; if situations such as these were the norm
back then I wonder how many women actually married for love. Angus was
definitely a sweetie and sounded like the perfect kind of guy a girl could
marry back then.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Emily Micklen comes from a wealthy family and is shocked to
find out her fiancé Jack has been killed in battle. As she is pregnant, she and
Major Angus McCartney, who delivers the news, agree to marry each other, as it
would be the most convenient way of settling the situation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Angus and Emily grow closer as they spend more time
together, and the both uncover secrets about people close to them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I found the writing style really easy to understand,
although at time I was a bit slow to catch up on all the details of Napoleon, I
guess it’s because I don’t know that much about the French Revolution and
everything that followed, but still, I will probably read more books about it
now. Ms Eikli lets you sympathise with the characters and thankfully I liked
both Angus and Emily a lot.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In conclusion, I thoroughly enjoyed my foray into regency
romance, and will definitely check out more books by the author and more works
in the genre in the future.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-29547770936138236232013-08-21T22:16:00.001+01:002013-08-21T22:16:34.565+01:00Book Review: Beneath an Irish Sky by Isabella Connor<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTfL5DKPv-P6C8VqT8sUPp1zrwQia4TeV-1pGrgtXX9HYRceka0y1Py5GfiBP8J76iugc-8i98_Ua1h5q8sbg_HOgfZ9O88qFo_S60IG2Mi2fEGwkdFiLWGtOYY7pGE203gNWHt4F4i-I/s1600/beneathanirishsky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTfL5DKPv-P6C8VqT8sUPp1zrwQia4TeV-1pGrgtXX9HYRceka0y1Py5GfiBP8J76iugc-8i98_Ua1h5q8sbg_HOgfZ9O88qFo_S60IG2Mi2fEGwkdFiLWGtOYY7pGE203gNWHt4F4i-I/s320/beneathanirishsky.jpg" width="208" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>Published:</u> 2013</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>Publisher: </u>Choc Lit</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>Length:</u> 414</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>Format:</u> Paperback</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>Rating:</u> 4/5 stars</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>Summary from Goodreads:</u></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Jack Stewart thought he’d put the past behind him. On the
surface, he has everything success, money, a big house and is never short of an
attractive woman by his side, but a tragic accident shatters Jack’s world.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Raised an Irish Traveller, Luke Kiernan hasn’t had it
easy, and when he wakes up in a Dublin hospital to find the man he’s hated
since childhood at his bedside, he’s hungry for revenge. Two very different
worlds collide, bringing new dangers, exposing past deceits and unearthing dark
family secrets buried long ago. But from tragedy springs the promise of a fresh
start with two women who are intent on helping Jack and Luke mend their lives. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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</div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Can new love heal old wounds, or are some scars there for
good?</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>Review:</u></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Beneath An Irish Sky was quite a different book for me to review. I don’t usually read books that have family secrets and things like that in them so it was definitely a refreshing read. I also hadn’t read anything about Irish travellers; the only knowledge I have of them is from watching Big Fat Gypsy Weddings which was quite a fascinating insight into their community.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I really connected with Luke as one of the protagonist’s; I couldn’t believe Jack’s parents reactions to him. How could anyone behave so vile and insensitive to a young guy who has just lost his mother? They were complete judgmental snobs and I didn’t feel anything for them throughout the entire book.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I can somewhat understand at where the people in the close community of Baronsmere were coming from; travellers in general don’t appear to have the best of reputations, so I was interested in learning more about the community.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Luckily, I really warmed to Luke and Annie, although the latter is dead (this isn’t a spoiler as it is mentioned she died on the back cover), my heart broke whenever I read about Luke reminiscing about he and his mother’s time together, and the bond they shared.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We also get to hear from Jack Stewart, Luke’s father who doesn’t know he has a son until his estranged wife dies, and it’s a struggle for him and Luke to have an easy going father-son relationship, and they have plenty of disputes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Luckily, I quite liked Jack, although I could understand why he acted the way he did with regards to the Luke situation; he just found out he has a 20 year old son and is unsure how to act around him, they most likely weren’t going to bond with each other straight away. I also really warmed to Emer, an Irish counsellor who is a friend to Luke and becomes Jack’s love interest; she just has a warm, caring personality and it was a pleasure reading about her and Jack’s relationship grow as the book went on.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Books that tend to have family secrets don’t tend to draw me in, but this one gradually did and has made me want to read more so I can get a feel for the genre more. I recommend it to anyone who likes reading about family secrets and small communities, as it is really an interesting story in that way, and really delves into culture and class differences well. </span></span></div>
Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-41437786880353503852013-07-22T22:06:00.000+01:002013-07-22T22:06:41.255+01:00New England Rocks by Christina Courtenay - Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXtJTG0kSD6GRCr5ySKFpRqvYI2sYiLaFmh6zQ4HnZkFnWNbLJ1kPte8Ma_gyqWUxQPVxQ1ggbJV-PjRHMaTuLOgjKNHyaZdTsljbXkULncdrADMdJq93UbGnlWNYxL3tFoqGKEopJCU/s1600/newenglandrocks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXtJTG0kSD6GRCr5ySKFpRqvYI2sYiLaFmh6zQ4HnZkFnWNbLJ1kPte8Ma_gyqWUxQPVxQ1ggbJV-PjRHMaTuLOgjKNHyaZdTsljbXkULncdrADMdJq93UbGnlWNYxL3tFoqGKEopJCU/s320/newenglandrocks.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Publisher: Choc Lit</span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Published: 2013<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Length: 202 pages<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Format: paperback<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rating: 4/5 stars<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Summary from Goodreads:<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When Rain Mackenzie is expelled from her British boarding
school, she can’t believe her bad luck. Not only is she forced to move to New
England, USA, she’s also sent to the local high school, as a punishment. Rain
makes it her mission to dislike everything about Northbrooke High, but what she
doesn’t bank on is meeting Jesse Devlin. Jesse is the hottest guy Rain’s ever
seen and he plays guitar in an awesome rock band! There’s just one small
problem, Jesse already has a girlfriend, little miss perfect Amber Lawrence,
who looks set to cause trouble as Rain and Jesse grow closer. But what does it
matter? New England sucks anyway, and Rain doesn’t plan on sticking around.
Does she? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Review:<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is my second time reviewing a book from Choc Lit and
I really enjoyed New England Rocks. This was my first Christina Courtenay book,
but it definitely won’t be my last, as I really found her writing style easy to
read and engaging. At first, I wasn’t sure how I felt about Rain; she was a
little bratty and I wasn’t sure if I would warm to her, but after a few
chapters I really started to like her and her ‘don’t care’ attitude. I certainly
wouldn’t be brave enough to join an all-boys sports team like she did. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It was also really fun watching her and the American
characters bond, especially with the culture clash, her being from the UK, and
the American characters not understanding her British slang most of the time. I
also really loved her and Jesse as a couple. He was just so sweet and perfect
sounding and their relationship was really fun to read about as they grow
closer and begin to fall for each other. I don’t think I can find a single
fault with Jesse; he was just great in every way! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Although I could tell where the story was heading pretty
quickly, I definitely enjoyed the ride and Rain is definitely a fun rebellious
character, other girls in YA need to become more like her!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Overall, I look forward to reading more in this series
and Christina Courtenay’s other novels.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-65607710821842619082013-07-20T20:21:00.002+01:002013-07-20T20:21:26.761+01:00Diantha Jones - Author Interview<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Here I got the chance to interview the lovely Diantha Jones, as part of my stop on the blog tour for her book Prophecy of the Most Beautiful (which is a really great, mythology based book, by the way!) </b></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 0cm; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;">1.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> . </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Hi Diantha, I really enjoyed Prophecy of the
Most Beautiful. Where did you get the idea for the story?<br />
<i>I really wanted to create my series around the Oracle of Delphi because
after months of research, I realized she was very under-represented in
literature. It only seemed natural that each book be about a different
prophecy, which I then connected to a larger prophecy. Sounds like a lot, and
it is. But trying to solve the prophecies is half the fun of the series, I
think.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 0cm; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;">2.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What’s your favourite Greek myth?<br />
<i>I get asked this question so much and my answer is always the same. The love
story of Cupid and Psyche. It's so cute :D</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 0cm; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;">3.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Would you ever consider writing books based
on other mythology?<br />
<i>Who says I'm not already considering it...It's a definite possibility, is
what I'm saying.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 0cm; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;">4.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Have you seen many movies that involve Greek
mythology?<br />
<i>Of course! I loved “The Lightning Thief” which is based off of the Percy
Jackson series. I'm really excited for “Sea of Monsters”. Then I've seen “Clash
of the Titans” and “Wrath of the Titans” which were major disappointments
unfortunately. “Immortals” was total garbage, so overall my mythological
cinematic adventures have not been awesome.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 0cm; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;">5.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If you could spend the day in the life of one
Greek god or goddess, which one would you choose and why?<br />
<i>Probably Aphrodite, or Zeus. Aphrodite because she's the goddess of Love and
I'd love to see how many men I could make bow down in the span of 24 hours.
Zeus because I love being in charge and it would be fun to be king for a day.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 0cm; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;">6.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What are your top hobbies?<br />
<i>Besides writing, reading for sure. But I love to watch movies and
television. Two shows I absolutely adore are Supernatural and Sons of Anarchy.
They're both amazing. Online shopping is also fun, but I have to control myself
because I can get a little crazy sometimes.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 0cm; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;">7.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Who is your favourite character in Prophecy
of the Most Beautiful?<br />
<i>Chloe is my favorite character, though I am Team Strafford :) I feel she's a
lot like me (though some things are different). But we're both protective of
those we love and would do anything for them. Chloe can also get tough when she
needs to, which is the same for me. Though I'm probably tough when I don't need
to be too.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Thanks Luce!</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Visit Diantha at these places: <a href="http://www.diantha-jones.com/">Website</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/DianthaJones">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/dianthajones">Facebook</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/dianthajones">Goodreads</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/entity/-/B008OHIEUY/ref=cm_sw_su_e">Amazon</a> <a href="http://pinterest.com/dianthajones/">Pinterest</a> <a href="http://www.djsbookcorner.com/">DJ's Book Corner</a></span></div>
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Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-62499141216386234422013-07-18T20:52:00.006+01:002013-07-18T22:18:16.855+01:00Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by Diantha Jones Review<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYapTfKfFB9kP_IfwSzn-O_sZWlwavz-9o-TMyEcHux3LI1Yw8qlMtPODmdbcox_gQu2GsT2jmJV0wuCgohkv576bNwyKsZjIwPAE5oi4KHtDPELV6O_H2hBi36RjxOXXUuq28W8e5yFE/s1600/prophecyofthemostbeautiful.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYapTfKfFB9kP_IfwSzn-O_sZWlwavz-9o-TMyEcHux3LI1Yw8qlMtPODmdbcox_gQu2GsT2jmJV0wuCgohkv576bNwyKsZjIwPAE5oi4KHtDPELV6O_H2hBi36RjxOXXUuq28W8e5yFE/s320/prophecyofthemostbeautiful.jpg" width="213" /></a><u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Prophecy of the Most Beautiful (Oracle of
Delphi #1) by Diantha Jones<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Published: 2012<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Publisher: Diantha Jones<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pages: 393 <o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Format: e-book<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Summary from Goodreads:<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">She has a destiny so great
that even the gods fear her.</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">Constant hallucinations and the frequent
conversations with the voices in her head, have earned eighteen-year-old Chloe
Clever the not-so-coveted title of "Whack Job" in her home town of
Adel, Georgia. With the onslaught of prescription medications and therapists
threatening to push her over the edge, she wishes for a life far away from the
one she has, a life where she is destined to be more than the butt of
everyone's jokes and mockery.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">Be careful what you wish for has never rung more
true.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">After living through an attack from her worst
nightmare, she awakens to find herself far from home, surrounded by glorious
riches and servants…and a few demigods who enjoy killing things. Upon learning
that her favorite rockstar is an Olympian god, she is thrust into her new life
as the Oracle of Delphi, the prophesier of the future, and the great Pythia
that the gods have been anxiously awaiting to arrive for centuries. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="background: white;">Setting out
to fulfill the prophecy she has been given and to keep her family safe from a
demigod Princess that wants her dead, Chloe learns of how great she is to
become, all the while fighting mythical monsters, evading divine assassins and
trying to outwit the ever-cunning Greek gods who harbor secrets of their own.
In the hopes of discovering the Most Beautiful and the truth of her destiny,
she strives to uncover the mysteries of the demigod Prince who has sworn to
protect her with his life…and threatens to win her heart in the process.</span></span><i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. I
accepted a stop on the blog tour on a whim, after not hearing about the book
previously and I was sort of worrying about it; what have I let myself in for
if I have not heard of this book before? But thankfully I ended up being taken
on a ride through the magical places that Diantha Jones describes and brings to
life in Prophecy of the Most Beautiful. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There are a lot of characters like Chloe Clever out there
right now – a sort of outsider person
who discovers they have a great destiny, but luckily I warmed straight to Chloe
and was anxious to find out more about her fate as she was. I think I
definitely liked Strafford and Chloe the best; he could be a bit possessive of
her at times but throughout the book they have a really sweet relationship, and
there were tons of ‘aww’ moments between them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The only other books I’ve read that are based on Greek
mythology are the first two books in the Percy Jackson series, and this one was
definitely a great adventure, taking you from modern day Georgia to ancient
Greece, which was really fun to read about. I will definitely be checking out
more books to do with Greek mythology now; the ancient Greeks really seem like
fascinating people, and the book made me feel like I should have studied
Classics at school!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Overall, if you’re looking for an action-packed adventure
with great, likeable characters then this is the book for you. I, for one am
excited to read the sequel, and can’t wait to read more of Chloe and Strafford :) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Arial; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> <a href="http://www.diantha-jones.com/p/oracle-of-delphi-series.html">The Oracle of Delphi Series</a></b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Click the link above to visit the series page for synopsis' and reviews</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <b>Book One</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b>eBook: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Prophecy-Beautiful-Oracle-Delphi-ebook/dp/B007FH32Q0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1373510541&sr=8-1&keywords=diantha+jones">Amazon US</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Prophecy-Beautiful-Oracle-Delphi-ebook/dp/B007FH32Q0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1374176990&sr=8-1&keywords=prophecy+of+the+most+beautiful+oracle+of+delphi+1+kindle+edition">Amazon UK</a> <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/prophecy-of-the-most-beautiful-gabrielle-jones/1109211023?ean=2940013917729">Barnes&Noble</a></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Paperback: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Prophecy-Most-Beautiful-Oracle-Delphi/dp/146817326X/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1373510583&sr=8-5&keywords=diantha+jones">Amazon US</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Prophecy-Most-Beautiful-Oracle-Delphi/dp/146817326X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1374177110&sr=8-2&keywords=prophecy+of+the+most+beautiful">Amazon UK</a></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13598104-prophecy-of-the-most-beautiful">Goodreads</a></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">Diantha Jones was born the day thousands of turkeys sacrificed their lives to fill millions of American bellies on November 22 which also happened to be Thanksgiving Day (Her mother says she owes her a turkey). She is a journalism graduate who wants to be a career novelist (of books, not Facebook posts). When not writing or working, she is reading on her Nook, being hypnotized by Netflix or on a mission to procure french fries.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">The<i> Oracle of Delphi</i> fantasy series is her first series. She is also the author of Mythos: Stories from Olympus, a companion series, and there is another fantasy series in the works. She also writes (new) adult fantasy/paranormal romance under the name A. Star. Invasion (An Alien Romance) is her first title released under this pen name. Future releases under A. Star include, the Love & Steampunk series, the Purr, Inc. stories, and more.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b><a href="http://www.diantha-jones.com/">Website </a> <a href="https://twitter.com/DianthaJones">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/dianthajones">Facebook</a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5815616.Diantha_Jones">Goodreads</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/entity/-/B008OHIEUY/ref=cm_sw_su_e">Amazon</a> <a href="http://pinterest.com/dianthajones/">Pinterest</a> <a href="http://www.djsbookcorner.com/">DJ's Book Corner</a></b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Email Diantha Jones at: theauthor (at) diantha-jones (dot) com</b></span></span><br />
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Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-18038886727726722452013-06-16T20:41:00.002+01:002013-06-16T20:43:21.798+01:0030 Day Book Challenge<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">After vowing not to participate in any book challenges for this year due to university work, I have finally caved and want to participate in one. It is called the 30 Day Book Challenge, in which you attempt to read a book a day. Since I would find this virtually impossible unless all the books I read were super short, various other YouTubers have suggested reading 200 pages a day, over the course of 30 days, which I have decided upon doing, seeing as though the majority of the books I've chosen are longer than 200 pages. The books I am attempting to read are:</span><br />
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">1.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Queen’s Fool by Philippa Gregory –
400 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">2.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Letters From Home by Kristina McMorris
– 384 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">3.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Dare You To by Katie McGarry – 352 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">4.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece by
Annabel Pitcher – 221 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">5.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers – 484 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">6.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Emerald by Karen Wallace – 288 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">7.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk
Kidd – 375 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
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</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ill Wind by Rachel Caine – 414 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">9.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy –
384 pages (e-book)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">10.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Kissed By An Angel by Elizabeth
Chandler – 698 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Vampirates: Demons of the Ocean by
Justin Somper – 298 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by
Diantha Jones – 268 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">13.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Prophecy of the Sisters by
Michelle Zink – 352 pages (hardback)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">14.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter – 293
pages (e-book)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">15.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Immortal City by Scott Speer – 406 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Bookman Old Style"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Bookman Old Style";">16.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Tide Knot by Helen Dunmore – 336 pages<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
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</span></span><!--[endif]--></span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Petals in the Ashes by Mary Hooper –
192 pages</span><span style="font-family: Bookman Old Style, serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Grand total of pages comes to 6145 pages. It will be a miracle if I manage to finish all these books within this time period, but since I have finished university for good, I might as well try it out as it gives me something to do. I will leave a link to the YouTube channel of Nerd in Translation below, who came up with the challenge, and good luck to everyone who's doing it! Happy reading.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Nerd in Translation's YouTube channel: </span></span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/nerdintranslation" style="font-size: 16px; line-height: 18px;">http://www.youtube.com/user/nerdintranslation</a></div>
Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-548157628032904912013-06-16T17:09:00.001+01:002013-06-16T17:09:25.758+01:00Book Haul - 16/06/2013<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I haven't done a proper book haul on the blog in a while, so I thought I would share all the books I have bought and received in the past two months.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH2qAkpIRl1D6UyrwoTVJfejeJ7nGM2xpGKJ1u0whuNv5-7-2-meNSKy1h2X_IRNKel-k2NcZVGpy3-F0lbdzi_45aPmUoFlGU_n7n9ZXEE2U-ur0oP5s4v9gYArd-wgI-jd_QZgJK63k/s1600/001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH2qAkpIRl1D6UyrwoTVJfejeJ7nGM2xpGKJ1u0whuNv5-7-2-meNSKy1h2X_IRNKel-k2NcZVGpy3-F0lbdzi_45aPmUoFlGU_n7n9ZXEE2U-ur0oP5s4v9gYArd-wgI-jd_QZgJK63k/s320/001.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">For review, I received The Elephant Girl by Henriette Gyland</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I bought:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Universe Versus Alex Woods by Gavin Extence</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin #1) by Robin LaFevers</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Dare You To (Pushing the Limits #2) by Katie McGarry</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Touch of Power (Avry of Kazan #1) by Maria V. Snyder</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">From swaps:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Vampirates: Demons of the Ocean (Vampirates #1) by Justin Somper</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Won:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden #2) by Julie Kagawa (From a Facebook competition)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Sea Change by Joanna Rossiter (My first ever win from Goodreads)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I am super excited to read all of these books, and they should keep me busy until my next haul. Feel free to let me know what books you got in the comments below, and have a great week! Happy reading.</span><br />
<br />Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-15335169380127165582013-06-04T20:44:00.002+01:002013-06-04T20:48:11.935+01:00Hubble Bubble by Jane Lovering - Review<u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Published: 2013</span></u><br />
<u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Publisher: Choc Lit</span></u><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ZOnpCZuXniwH9VArlt5rFjhgdM0Wl69G2sA6jVESuoaeQVirbvIr64JOYHbNRFOEuhDpZ9gVbLZpVK_GyRvK084hYG9nMEwcy-TEv5NvyVQQ4nUISnwx9Q8mPZjt38IL2-xrkrYAXIw/s1600/hubble+bubble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ZOnpCZuXniwH9VArlt5rFjhgdM0Wl69G2sA6jVESuoaeQVirbvIr64JOYHbNRFOEuhDpZ9gVbLZpVK_GyRvK084hYG9nMEwcy-TEv5NvyVQQ4nUISnwx9Q8mPZjt38IL2-xrkrYAXIw/s1600/hubble+bubble.jpg" /></a><u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Length: 290 pages</span></u><br />
<u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Rating: 3/5 stars</span></u><br />
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<u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Summary from Goodreads:</span></u><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Be careful what you wish for…Holly Grey only took up
witchery to keep her friend out of trouble – and now she’s knee-deep in hassle,
in the form of apocalyptic weather, armed men, midwifery … and a sarcastic
Welsh journalist.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Kai has been drawn to darkest Yorkshire by his desire to
find out who he really is. What he hadn’t bargained on was getting caught up in
amateur magic and dealing with a bunch of women who are trying really hard to
make their dreams come true.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Together they realise that getting what you wish for is
sometimes just a matter of knowing what it is you want.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>Review:</u></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Hubble Bubble was quite a strange book for me to read and
review. After reading the synopsis, I wasn’t quite sure if it was a paranormal
romance or a chick-lit book, but upon reading the first few chapters I grasped
that it was a sort of mixture of both, but more on the chick-lit side.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Holly is a thirty-something woman from Yorkshire who is
content without a man or children in her life. She goes along with her friend
Megan to a nearby woman’s house who promises to make all the women’s wishes
come true. Eventually, Holly discovers that the wish brings many different
things into her life, including Kai, a Welsh journalist who is looking for his
birth mother who abandoned him.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Holly was an okay character for me; I admired the way she
lived an independent life, and wasn’t desperate for a man to complete it, on
the other hand she could be slightly selfish and inconsiderate to others, such
as Cerys, Kai’s daughter who was expecting twins. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I also enjoyed her and Kai’s romance; it really is a fun
love story when the woman doesn’t want a relationship in the first place, and is
feisty instead of letting the man walk all over her, which thankfully, Holly
does not do.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I think that overall, Megan, Holly’s best friend was my
favourite character of the book. Some of the stuff she came out with was just
so random and quirky, and I loved it when she took in a scruffy little stray
dog. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">It also had a few dark elements to it that I would not normally expect from a chick-lit book, but as it also has some fantasy elements thrown in, I guess it would be fair to say it contained them.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Overall, this was a light, funny book that is great for all the single women out there, and I recommend it.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-29237613116205147762013-05-11T17:03:00.000+01:002013-05-11T17:03:24.577+01:00Pictures of Lily by Paige Toon - Review<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCwC_B8T8zeeg0Uhpnd9Blx99reh4bloMssE-Z_5dMUAt0A59EXiKSnd_eSZiETEwqx9IMqLzCZ5rI-rUtXQJF07k5P0PeVSUSWTz8xux-taQWASiYcf5c6ff70DoS-EKLaRXh8WPUa_Y/s1600/picturesoflily.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCwC_B8T8zeeg0Uhpnd9Blx99reh4bloMssE-Z_5dMUAt0A59EXiKSnd_eSZiETEwqx9IMqLzCZ5rI-rUtXQJF07k5P0PeVSUSWTz8xux-taQWASiYcf5c6ff70DoS-EKLaRXh8WPUa_Y/s1600/picturesoflily.jpg" /></a><u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Published: 2010<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Publisher: Pocket Books<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Length: 413 pages<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rating: 4/5 stars<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Summary from Goodreads:<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">‘Will you marry me?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I think
of you, then. I think of you every day. But usually in the quietest part of the
morning, or the darkest part of the night. Not when my boyfriend of two years
has just proposed. I look up at Richard with his hopeful eyes. ‘Lily?’ he prompts.
It’s been ten years, but it feels like only yesterday that you left. How can I say
yes to Richard with all my heart when most of it has always belonged to you? I take
a deep breath and will myself to speak…<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ten years ago when Lily was just sixteen, she fell in love
with someone she really shouldn’t have fallen in love with. Now, living in
Sydney and engaged to another man, she can’t forget the one that got away. Then
her past comes back to haunt her, and she has to make a decision that will
break her heart – and the heart of at least one of the men who love her.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<u><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Review:<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I didn’t expect to enjoy this book as much as I anticipated.
I don’t read adult chick-lit that often, my main reads are dystopians and YA
fantasy books. However, from time to time I do like to read chick-lit, both YA
and adult because I like the escapism you get with most of them. And Pictures
of Lily was no exception. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At the start, Lily isn’t happy to move from England to
Australia, since her mum has a habit of getting with a new man pretty much all
the time and Lily is pretty fed up of it. However, she ends up meeting Ben at a
wildlife park who is twelve-years older than her, but despite that, she finds herself
falling for him as they spend more time together.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I began falling for Ben pretty much as soon as Lily did; I
thought he was a really sweet guy, and thought it was adorable when they took
in an injured koala pup and nursed it back to health. All the way through the
book I was just dying for Lily to get back with Ben, although she had a pretty decent
boyfriend of her own as the book went on. However, despite their age gap I loved
them as a couple and my heart warmed whenever I read their scenes together. I will
definitely be checking out more of Paige Toon’s books now.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-71967783002647271202013-04-01T18:24:00.001+01:002013-04-01T18:24:40.761+01:00Book HaulThese are the most recent books I have bought this month. They are <br />
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The Host by Stephenie Meyer<br />
Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck<br />
City of Glass by Cassandra Clare<br />
City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare<br />
The Tide Knot by Helen Dunmore <br/><br/><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9v_ycZt6vum8u0UF-ad8qXeMDRdScOcHbmkMhoeRkZQY3TYPO8GEcFjvtxx4_hbecycMhIwAc1dV_J0fKYr3pgxgBW6hCzbiN5-dh0AcqgWET1baYahtt5U68090DlQgCYSHcc1C8Zlo/s640/blogger-image--1430225409.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9v_ycZt6vum8u0UF-ad8qXeMDRdScOcHbmkMhoeRkZQY3TYPO8GEcFjvtxx4_hbecycMhIwAc1dV_J0fKYr3pgxgBW6hCzbiN5-dh0AcqgWET1baYahtt5U68090DlQgCYSHcc1C8Zlo/s640/blogger-image--1430225409.jpg" /></a></div> <br/><br/><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHhnMjqXdJxhh6mzceLBmu6AEAjNa4U54pCxKy3yGk8vg241JSTFCGvpKrmBMzgMy-F8cF4WoEb67aYO8lSJPGPkLQXnqUtlWW4YORG87nAqo-VYrt8z5p7yJc4HltIYdgLfCckyzygjY/s640/blogger-image--1366880118.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHhnMjqXdJxhh6mzceLBmu6AEAjNa4U54pCxKy3yGk8vg241JSTFCGvpKrmBMzgMy-F8cF4WoEb67aYO8lSJPGPkLQXnqUtlWW4YORG87nAqo-VYrt8z5p7yJc4HltIYdgLfCckyzygjY/s640/blogger-image--1366880118.jpg" /></a></div>Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-44239533630465013872013-04-01T17:30:00.003+01:002013-04-01T18:13:51.607+01:00Blood Red Road by Moira Young - spoilers <span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Published: 2011</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Publisher: Marion Lloyd Books</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Pages: 417</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhgDp8RzTPhVfroI46wc-USiVJ41SQgbch41tWsXk1UT3Z7-AxrW5JVEBMEXLH2b0x4HZCDDOP-qdUgoDgInLLeez-dytg2Be2NChtNF04QrvFAavv1A6jiuH6d8V_XgsTUyf4RwM-yAM/s1600/bloodredroad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhgDp8RzTPhVfroI46wc-USiVJ41SQgbch41tWsXk1UT3Z7-AxrW5JVEBMEXLH2b0x4HZCDDOP-qdUgoDgInLLeez-dytg2Be2NChtNF04QrvFAavv1A6jiuH6d8V_XgsTUyf4RwM-yAM/s320/bloodredroad.jpg" width="209" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Format: Paperback</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Rating: 5/5</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
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<b><u><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Summary
from Goodreads:<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Saba
has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by
constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving
only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That’s fine by her, as
long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives,
along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba’s world is shattered. Lugh is captured,
and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Suddenly
thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate
Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most
surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she’s a fierce
fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power
to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome
daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks,
Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Blood
Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent
action, and an epic love story. Moira Young is one of the most promising and
startling new voices in teen fiction.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Review
<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">First of all, I just want to say that I was a
little put off at first by the writing style of this book. It is written the
way Saba and the other characters are supposed to speak, and as a result a lot
of words are misspelled on purpose, such as ‘afeared’ meaning afraid. Also when
characters talk, there are no speech marks for when they start speaking so it
takes a little bit of getting used to.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">At first, I found myself adjusting my reading
style to the style of the book and after about fifty pages I hardly noticed the no
speech marks as I was so engrossed in the story by that point. I really liked
that the story was a dystopian tale that took place in the middle of a desert
in the beginning; this gave the reader a chance to form their own imagining of
where Saba lived, and you never knew what she’d encounter in the desert. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">After reading The Scorch Trials by James
Dashner, which also largely takes place in a desert I was a little apprehensive
as to where Blood Red Road would go with the story, since I was a little bit disappointed
with The Scorch Trials, but thankfully, Moira Young plunges straight into the
story straight away as we follow Saba on her quest to find and retrieve her
brother, Lugh.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I really loved the characters of Jack and Emmi
the most, especially as Saba is quite mean to her little sister in the
beginning but gradually begins to appreciate her and care for her properly. As for
Jack, I loved the way he and Saba spoke to each other; he was a great bad-boy
character and even though it took a while for her to admit her feelings, it was
well worth the wait as they finally reconcile. He is definitely one of the best
book boyfriends I’ve ever encountered.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Finally, I loved the way the plot just took you
in so many different twists and directions, and how you never know what trials
and dangers Saba and the other characters will meet on their journey
(especially when some of them were truly evil people who deserved what was coming
to them), but overall, along with the good characters, they made the story worthwhile,
especially when the majority of the book takes place in a desert.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I loved this book and can’t wait to get my hands
on Rebel Heart. A fully deserved 5/5/ stars.</span><span style="font-family: Century Gothic, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-80016588140240416082013-02-06T19:15:00.000+00:002013-02-06T19:15:00.677+00:002013 New ReleasesI've recently realized that I've forgotten to make a post all about the new year releases I am looking forward to and am dying to get my hands on. So in no particular order!<br />
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1. Level 2 - Lenore Appelhans<br />
I haven't heard that much about this book: only that its a dystopian and that cover is just beyond awesome. Plus, I haven't read a lot of books that have limbo/purgatory etc as the main theme so I'm definitely excited to see what the story has in store.<br />
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2. The Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden #2) - Julie Kagawa<br />
I am sooo excited for this book, especially since I loved the author's first book. I just loved the blend of dystopia and vampires, they are like two of my favourite genres so I loved the story. Allie is a great kick-ass heroine, just what the YA genre needs. Cannot wait.<br />
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3. Spintered - A. G. Howard<br />
I'm really excited for this book as the concept sounds really unique. To be honest after having read the first Alice in Wonderland book I can't say that I loved it, but I'm interested in this one because the story sounds really cool and imaginative. Plus, it has pretty purple designs on each chapter header and the cover is just stunning.<br />
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6. Fractured (Slated #2) - Teri Terry<br />
I can't wait to read this book because I loved the first book Slated. It was full of twists and turns and just leaves you wanting to uncover the mystery. Also, you don't find that many dystopian books that aren't set in the USA, so its always refreshing to read some set in places like the UK, like this one is.<br />
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7. The Madman's Daughter - Megan Shepherd<br />
I haven't heard that much about this book, only that its a retelling of a H. G. Wells story and that its sort of gruesome, which is always exciting to read about. I really love the USA cover, much more than the UK edition so I'm definitely looking forward to checking it out.<br />
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8. Dance of Shadows (Dance of Shadows #1) - Yelena Black<br />
I'm really looking forward to this one, firstly because I've read the first three chapters and they were pretty gripping and exciting so I'm definitely excited to see where the story leads to. The other reason is that it seems to be marketed as a Black Swan type of story; I really loved that movie so I'm definitely interested in reading more books set in the ballet world. And that cover just blows me away!<br />
<br />Loobylu72http://www.blogger.com/profile/17728878985822655895noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6266224516100358888.post-91384515838615981362012-11-22T15:29:00.000+00:002012-11-22T15:29:15.299+00:00Review - Pantomime by Laura LamTitle: Pantomime
Length: 320 pages
Format: ebook
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
Rating: 4/5 stars
Review:
I was really happy when I got accepted for this from NetGalley; it was my first time I’d requested something and the story sounded pretty awesome so I was excited to read it. First off, I really loved that it was set in a circus; I’ve never read anything that’s been set in a circus before so it was really fun imagining the magical world of the circus of magic. I especially loved reading the beginning when Micah is at the circus, just going from place to place and everywhere is described; it really sets the atmosphere and makes you feel like you’re really in the circus yourself.
I also liked the characters of Gene and Micah, and was quite confused at the beginning, but as you read on, you gradually realise why the author has written the alternating chapters that way (no spoilers ;). I also really enjoyed reading about Gene’s past life, and connected with her as a character as she struggles to grow up in her privileged world.
Finally, I really loved the romance between Micah and one of the other aerialist’s at the circus; she was a really fun character to read about and was probably my favourite character in the book. Overall, this was a magical, atmospheric adventure and I will definitely read any sequels that Laura Lam writes that are set in this world.
4/5 stars
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