Reading

Book Review: The Little French Guesthouse by Helen Pollard

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I have made it to book eighteen, and I chose to read Helen Pollard’s The Little French Guesthouse.  As you may be realising, I do love a novel set abroad and I have a soft spot for France.  So that’s my reason for choosing this novel explained! Here’s the synopsis;

‘When Emmy Jamieson arrives at La Cour des Roses, a beautiful guesthouse in the French countryside, she can’t wait to spend two weeks relaxing with boyfriend Nathan. Their relationship needs a little TLC and Emmy is certain this holiday will do the trick. But they’ve barely unpacked before he scarpers with Gloria, the guesthouse owner’s cougar wife.

Rupert, the ailing guesthouse owner, is shell-shocked. Feeling somewhat responsible, and rather generous after a bottle (or so) of wine, heartbroken Emmy offers to help. Changing sheets in the gîtes will help keep her mind off her misery.

Thrust into the heart of the local community, Emmy suddenly finds herself surrounded by new friends. And with sizzling hot gardener Ryan and the infuriating (if gorgeous) accountant Alain providing welcome distractions, Nathan is fast becoming a distant memory.

Fresh coffee and croissants for breakfast, feeding the hens in the warm evening light; Emmy starts to feel quite at home. But it would be madness to walk away from her friends, family, and everything she’s ever worked for, to take a chance on a place she fell for on holiday – wouldn’t it?’ (Thanks Amazon)

For someone who loves to be swept up in the romance of being in France, this is an ideal novel.  There’s sun, wine, croissants and not one, but two love stories! What marks this apart from other love stories is that this novel does not just include a romantic love story.  This one also includes a love story between two friends who help each other in their time of need.  It is that love story that I really enjoyed in this novel.  Emmy and Rupert’s budding relationship, which is formed when their partners run off with each other, is such a lovely story to follow.  They work together to ease each others pain, with their relationship turning from that of strangers to two close friends who truly love one another.  I also like the fact that this is not a story about a woman who has been wronged – Emmy is a strong, independent woman, who, with the help of her friends is able to find her way.  It is not a romantic love that saves her (although there is some romance!) – it is the love of her friends that helps her to follow the path right for her.

If you like romance and friendship set in beautiful surroundings, this is the perfect book for you.  Find yourself a comfy chair in the sunshine, a good glass of wine and enjoy!

Ratings: 3 and a half out of 5 stars

 

Book Review: Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

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For book number seventeen I have finally read Me Before You by Jojo Moyes.  All I can say is – better late than never!  This has been on my ‘to be read’ list for quite some time and i’m sad to say that I saw the film first, which is a pet hate of mine!  Here’s the synopsis for those of you who have not yet read it;

‘Lou Clark knows lots of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in The Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick.

What Lou doesn’t know is she’s about to lose her job or that knowing what’s coming is what keeps her sane.

Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he’s going to put a stop to that.

What Will doesn’t know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they’re going to change the other for all time.’ (Courtesy of Amazon)

I think it is fair to say that in 99% of examples, the book is better than the film.  This is one of those books.  Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed the film and probably more so than if I had read the book first.  The actors chosen were perfect for their roles.  However, it wasn’t until I started reading this novel that I discovered just how much was missing from the film; details that really helped to shape Will and Lou, our main characters.  It is a mistake to believe that this novel is about Will Traynor, a strong man who loses everything in one single moment.  This novel is also about Lou and her journey away from her pain filled past, something she seeks to hide from with her strong (and sometimes questionable ) fashion sense!

This is a beautiful, albeit sometimes gut-wrenching story of how two people from two very different walks of life come together to save each other.  Together, they are able to find some joy once more out of the depths of their own private miseries to change their future paths forever.

There really is very little I can say about this book, except prepare yourself to laugh and cry.  Read this book!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

 

Reading Challenge – Update One!

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As already discussed, I have decided to link my Goodreads Reading Challenge to the Reading Challenge listed below…let’s see how i’m getting on!

  • A book with more than 500 pages
  • A classic romance – Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen
  • A book that became a movie – Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
  • A book published this year
  • A book with a number in the title
  • A book written by someone under 30 – Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen
  • A book with non-human characters – The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman
  • A funny book
  • A book by a female author
  • A mystery or thriller
  • A book with a one-word title
  • A book of short stories
  • A book set in a different country – The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
  • A non-fiction book
  • A popular author’s first book
  • A book from an author you love but haven’t read yet
  • A book a friend recommended
  • A Pulitzer prize-winning book
  • A book based on a true story
  • A book at the bottom of your to-read list
  • A book your mum loves
  • A book that scares you
  • A book more than 100 years old – Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen
  • A book based entirely on its cover
  • A book you were supposed to read at school but didn’t
  • A memoir
  • A book you can finish in a day
  • A book with antonyms in the title
  • A book set somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit
  • A book that came out the year you were born
  • A book with bad reviews
  • A trilogy – The Snow Crystal Trilogy by Sarah Morgan
  • A book from your childhood
  • A book with a love triangle – It Would be Wrong to Steal my Sister’s Boyfriend (Wouldn’t It?) by Sophie Ronald
  • A book set in the future
  • A book set in high school
  • A book with a colour in the title
  • A book that made you cry – Me Before You by JoJo Moyes
  • A book with magic – The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman
  • A graphic novel
  • A book by an author you’ve never read before
  • A book you own but have never read
  • A book that takes place in your home town – A Year of Being Single by Fiona Collins
  • A book that was originally written in a different language – The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
  • A book set during Christmas – Sleigh Bells in the Snow by Sarah Morgan
  • A book written by an author with your same initials
  • A play
  • A banned book
  • A book based on or turned into a tv show
  • A book you started but never finished

So how are you getting on with your Reading Challenges?

Book Review: A Year of Being Single by Fiona Collins

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For my sixteenth book in the Goodreads Reading Challenge, I chose to read Fiona Collins A Year of Being Single.

‘Best friends Imogen, Frankie and Grace decide to test whether the grass really is greener on the single side of the fence…

Imogen is supposed to be on the most romantic weekend of her life and instead she’s quickly realised that her current boyfriend definitely isn’t ‘The One’ and actually One Big Mistake.

Frankie is fed up. Fed up of her good-for-nothing husband and her four, unappreciative children. Well, they hardly notice her anyway, maybe it’s time to shake it up a little…

Grace thought she had the perfect life. Gorgeous little boy and perfect, hardworking husband. Or rather, she did, until she realised her husband was shagging his ‘work’.

It’s time for a change – and to ditch the men who are dragging them down! It’s time for a year of being single. Swearing off men, these single ladies don’t need to put a ring on it…right?’ (Thanks Amazon for that synopsis!)

This is the story of how when you’re not looking for something, it will find you.

Imogen, Frankie and Grace are three women, each of whom have their own problems with men.  Single life draws these already best friends together, as they swear off men for a year to become the independent women they know they can be.  As can be expected however, once they choose not to find men those men come looking for them.  The story follows these three women as they explore their relationships and find out what they want from life.

There are no surprises here – everything you would expect to happen in a novel like this, does.  However the characters are well-rounded and endearing, particularly Grace who finds herself thrown into single life completely against her will.  Frankie is a put upon wife that all wives and mothers will be able to relate to at some point, who just gets fed up of being the family slave.  Finally Imogen is the typical career driven woman, who has been hurt in the past and so has never been able to settle down.  You will laugh and cry along with these women as they fail miserably at remaining single whilst desperately ensuring neither of the others find out about their indiscretions.  Despite the predictability of the story, this is a sweet chick-lit novel that is perfect for the beach or just a cozy Sunday afternoon on the sofa.

Rating: 3 stars out of 5

Reading Challenges

~ ChapterAndCake ~ 2 Comments

As you all know I am attempting the Goodreads Reading Challenge this year, and I hope to read a grand total of 50 books by the 31st December 2016.  I am a self-confessed book addict, but even for me this is a tall ask when I have a job, 2 children, a husband and a cat all vying for my attention.  I am however, giving it my best shot.

Whilst working my way through my rather large reading list, I regularly get distracted by other book challenges – mainly ones I discover on Pinterest (I am easily distracted and I do love Pinterest).  So I have decided to incorporate one of these challenges into my Goodreads Reading Challenge just to see if I can do it.  My chosen challenge is as follows;

  • A book with more than 500 pages
  • A classic romance
  • A book that became a movie
  • A book published this year
  • A book with a number in the title
  • A book written by someone under 30
  • A book with non-human characters
  • A funny book
  • A book by a female author
  • A mystery or thriller
  • A book with a one-word title
  • A book of short stories
  • A book set in a different country
  • A non-fiction book
  • A popular author’s first book
  • A book from an author you love but haven’t read yet
  • A book a friend recommended
  • A Pulitzer prize-winning book
  • A book based on a true story
  • A book at the bottom of your to-read list
  • A book your mum loves
  • A book that scares you
  • A book more than 100 years old
  • A book based entirely on its cover
  • A book you were supposed to read at school but didn’t
  • A memoir
  • A book you can finish in a day
  • A book with antonyms in the title
  • A book set somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit
  • A book that came out the year you were born
  • A book with bad reviews
  • A trilogy
  • A book from your childhood
  • A book with a love triangle
  • A book set in the future
  • A book set in high school
  • A book with a colour in the title
  • A book that made you cry
  • A book with magic
  • A graphic novel
  • A book by an author you’ve never read before
  • A book you own but have never read
  • A book that takes place in your home town
  • A book that was originally written in a different language
  • A book set during Christmas
  • A book written by an author with your same initials
  • A play
  • A banned book
  • A book based on or turned into a tv show
  • A book you started but never finished

This is a fairly scary looking challenge, although I should be able to start ticking some of these off soon – I shall keep you updated on my progress! Have you tried a reading challenge? How did you get on?

Book Review: The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman

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Book number 15 in my Goodreads Reading Challenge is Genevieve Cogman’s The Masked City.  Amazon provides the following synopsis;

‘Librarian-spy Irene is working undercover in an alternative London when her assistant Kai goes missing. She discovers he’s been kidnapped by the fae faction and the repercussions could be fatal. Not just for Kai, but for whole worlds.

Kai’s dragon heritage means he has powerful allies, but also powerful enemies in the form of the fae. With this act of aggression, the fae are determined to trigger a war between their people – and the forces of order and chaos themselves.

Irene’s mission to save Kai and avert Armageddon will take her to a dark, alternate Venice where it’s always Carnival. Here Irene will be forced to blackmail, fast talk, and fight. Or face death.‘

The Masked City is the second book in Cogman’s The Invisible Library series. I read The Invisible Library (follow the link for my review), Cogman’s debut novel last year and loved it so had to read her next novel in the series.  The second novel did not disappoint.  This series is set across a number of realms, all slightly different from the next and all linked by The Library.  Irene is the Librarian in Residence in the alternate London, working alongside her assistant Kai when he disappears.  Kai is a royal dragon who chose to work, in human form, for The Library.  However the Fae are aware of him and kidnap him, hoping to start a war between the Fae and Dragons which would have catastrophic consequences across all the alternative universes.  Irene finds herself in an alternate Venice where she must fight her way through the chaos to save her assistant and stop a war that would change everything.  Due to The Library’s neutrality, Irene must work alone to save her friend from certain death, whilst also saving the universes from war between these two very powerful factions.

Anything that combines fantasy with books is already a winning combination for me.  I really enjoy the premise of this series, as with each novel I learn a little more about the mysterious Library, about those who work for The Library and the inhabitants of the alternate realms.

Irene is a strong female lead character, but not so strong that she refuses assistance from her male colleagues.  Sometimes female lead characters are portrayed as hard and a little too tough, however Irene shows herself to be someone who can certainly hold her own and fight for what is right whilst also accepting help graciously when it is needed.

Whilst Kai does not feature in this book as much as he did in The Invisible Library, he shows himself once again to be a character of great strength.  Despite this, his deep respect for Irene is clear to see throughout the novel even though his royal roots would justify him playing on is superiority.

If you are a fan of Terry Pratchett, I would highly recommend that you try The Invisible Library series.  I look forward to reading The Burning Page, the next book in this series due to be released in December 2016.

Rating: 4 stars out of 5