Dracula - October Spooky Reads

A lot of what we know about the mythical vampire/vampyre comes from classics such as Dracula (Stoker) and The Vampyre (Polidori).  For all the love that I have for Gothic fiction I must admit most of the books that I have read fall in to the female Gothic genre.  I am part of an online book club where we vote for a few books each month and discuss them.  One such book for this month was Dracula and I have to say I was reluctant to start with.  I wasn't sure how I would get along with the style of writing - this is something I need to address because I usually end up really enjoying this

writing style more.

With a train trip to London and a week off work this book club choice could not have come at a better time.  The first thing that really stood out to me was the characterisation - I feel like the circle of characters welcomed the reader in to their adventures and allowed us to become invested in them.  In my opinion this is largely due to the narrative style Stoker uses.  The novel comprises of journal entries and letters between the characters.  This gives a real personal feel to the relationships we build with each character.  I can't think of many novels I have read where I have felt more welcome amongst the characters.

Having said all of this I did resent the portrayal of women.  I know that this was very much a standard, stereotypical and widely accepted portrayal of women from the era but it still doesn't sit well with me.  Mina has the potential to be a kick ass female (and definitely has moments where she is) but is let down by how emotionally sensitive she is in comparison to the male characters of the group.

This was a 4 star read for me because I did think there were a lot of plot points that needed a little bit more attention than what they got. Particularly towards the end of the story everything just felt too rushed and glossed over.

It was really clear to me that the tropes that we see in modern Gothic literature were all present but I think isolation was the one that really stood out for me.  The characters were all at their most vulnerable whenever they were left by themselves.  The isolation caused by perceived madness at the start had a really profound effect on my interpretation of the novel and the character of Jonathan.  As a reader I felt as though I was being taken on the journey of discovery along with each of the characters despite having more knowledge owing to the omniscient role played by the reader.

To me this was a masterpiece in writing for the maximum impact when it comes to this genre - the characters, plot and themes were so intricately built through a clever narrative with a subtle lacing of Gothic tropes all the way throughout.

Having read Rebecca at the beginning of the month I was really worried about whether there would be any book that could follow on from it.  The dread for me was that I would have a huge book hangover.  Luckily for me Dracula did not disappoint and gave me a fantastic avenue to continue with my Gothic reading list for the Halloween build up.

Next: Individual review of Rebecca and a reading wrap up for October.

Meg x

Super Late September Book Haul (Sorry!)

It is pretty clear that I have a book buying problem.  One that I have to admit I am not ashamed of - I could spend money on much worse things.  September was no different to any other month.  I ended up buying a grand total of 11 new books.  As a result I am going to keep each summary super short because I will be discussing each book in a lot more depth after I read them.

The first book that I purchased this month was "I See You" by Clare Mackintosh which is a thriller about women who all take the same route to work every day without knowing that they are being stalked.  One such woman notices her picture appears in the newspaper one day under an advert called findtheone.com.  Several women's pictures appear under the advert and Zoe discovers that terrible crimes are happening to the women.   She then works with a cop to help her uncover who the stalker is.







Amazon had a 3 for £10 deal on so it would have been rude to not get a few..."One of Us is Lying" by Karen M. McManus is a book that I have heard a lot about through Instagram and Booktube.  5 students enter detention but only 4 walk out alive.  The person killed is the school's notorious gossip blogger.  Each of the other 4 students have the perfect motive to kill Simon.  This looks at the investigation which aims to find out who the killer really is.

"American Gods" by Neil Gaiman is a book that was made into a TV series I have heard a lot about recently.  All of my knowledge on this book basically comes from Goodreads.  The main character, Shadow, is faced with tragedy when his wife and best friend are killed in an accident just days before he is released from jail.  He takes a job as a bodyguard for a mysterious man, Mr. Wednesday, where he learns that life can be more intriguing and dangerous than he could have imagined.

The final book in my "3 for £10" was "The Girl of Ink and Stars" by Kiran Millwood Hargrave is about a cartographer's daughter named Isabella.  She lives in a society forbidden to leave the island they inhabit.  When her friend disappears Isabella offers to lead the search using all the maps that she has to help.  When she starts on her journey she does not realise that she will uncover the many myths surrounding the island and end up faced with the challenge of saving the whole island.

The next book was a must buy after reading the first book in the series.  "Crooked Kingdom" by Leigh Bardugo was the final part of the series and it definitely did not disappoint.  This is another book which has received lots of (well deserved) hype. The story picks up directly from "Six of Crows" so I don't want to give away too much.  It concludes the story well.  I have already included a series review on this one so I won't go into too much more detail.

"Gravity" by A.B. Bloom is one that came up as a book recommendation on Bookbub for me.  It is about a time that everyone believes is the end of the world.  Bronte is the main character who has problems of her own.  She is experiencing severe physical weakness following her last birthday.  Her bones are breaking and her hair is falling out and nobody knows why.  One day a strange boy appears and turns her life upside down.  He explains that everything is not as it seems and that she is not actually who she believed she was.



I absolutely love books about magic and witchcraft so when I heard about "The Graces" by Laure Eve I knew I absolutely had to give it a go.  The Graces are a group of people who are believed to be magic weavers by those who live in their town.  This is a thriller that explores the glamorous Graces and looks to discover whether they are more dangerous than what they seem.



"Anna Karenina" by Tolstoy is a book that I have never read and must admit find pretty intimidating.  Anna is isolated as a result of her passionate affair with Count Vronsky.  Her failing marriage pushes her into a tragically doomed affair which gives society cause to scorn and judge her.  Meanwhile, everyone around her is experiencing love and happiness which highlights the contrast between Anna and everyone else.

Every since signing up to Bookbub I have to admit I have bought lots more books for my Kindle.  I had heard of Affinity Konar's "Mischling" before but didn't know much about it.  When my Bookbub daily recommendation came through I saw this was on offer.  I haven't read it and don't want to know too much about it.  It is about twins who end up in Aushwitz during WWII and their quest to survive. 


This next book I had a real difficulty finding.  I heard about it on an American Booktube channel and did not realise it was primarily available in the States. "The Child Finder" is by Rene Denfeld and follows the story of a missing girl.  Three years after her disappearance the family turn to an investigator called Naomi who is known as The Child Finder. Naomi has her own secrets to uncover and does so as she goes on a journey to find the truth about what happened to the missing girl.



Finally in September I bought the e-book of "Genuine Fraud" by E. Lockheart.  I know nothing about this one and don't want to find out.  I read "We Were Liars" last year by the same author and had a real mixture of feelings about it.  I also think her books are best read blind because they are so mysterious. 

Is there such a thing as Book Addicts Anonymous? If so where should I sign up?

Meg x

September 2017 Wrap Up

September was a super busy month for me so I definitely did not get as much reading done as I would have liked but 7 (and a half) books is not too bad!

The first two books that I finished reading were Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom which I have already posted a full series review of.  I won't go back over my thoughts on this series but I will say that it is a 5 star series.

I started off reading Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman as a hardback but swiftly transferred to audiobook and I must say I am very glad that I did.  The narrator fitted the character of Eleanor absolutely perfectly.  In the novel we follow the socially inept Eleanor who fails to fit into the social norms of society.  She has a dark past which has left her scarred physically, mentally and emotionally.  Her life is a series of routines that must not be broken.  She is unintentionally hilarious throughout - this is particularly clear through the audiobook verion. When an old man falls in the street Eleanor is forced to work together with a colleague to help the man.  Raymond, her colleague, is a big hearted, kind and genuine guy who has a huge impact on Eleanor and the way she lives her life.  I laughed and cried at this book.  The characterisation was phenomenal throughout.  Eleanor never slips out of character and the mysterious plot kept me wanting to read on. This was a 5 star read for me.  I am amazed that this was a debut novel for the author and will be keeping an eye out for future reads by Gail Honeyman.

The Tempest by William Shakespeare was my next read in September. I must admit that this is defintely not my favourite play by Shakespeare.  I gave it 4 stars on Goodreads but, on reflection, I feel like I may have been too generous with that.  There are some real interesting characters in this play including the magician, Prospero, his daughter, Miranda, and her prince, Ferdinand.  Prospero uses his magic to set the world to rights.  He was previously the Duke of Milan but was usurped by his brother and ended up living his life alone on an island except for his daughter and the monster Caliban.  Prospero traps his brother and the King of Naples on his island and manipulates a situation where the King's son, Ferdinand, ends up marrying Prospero's daughter, Miranda.  This is very much a character driven play as the plot is very sporadic.  This is definitely not one of my favourite Skakespearean plays but the characters were well developed throughout.

Stay With Me by Adebayo Ayobami was the easiest 5 star rating I gave all month.  I had heard a lot of rave reviews about this novel on Booktube and could not wait to get started with it.  This tells the story of Yejide and Akin - a Nigerian couple who have fertility issues.  Whilst they had agreed to a monogamous relationship Akin's family had other ideas and introduce a second wife to him.  The development of the relationship between Akin and Yejide is complex and revealed slowly throughout the plot.  The concept of arranged marriage is explored along with the political turmoil of the 1980s in Nigeria.  The narrative flows freely and, at times, appears to merge the voice of Yejide and Akin through the strength of love they have for each other.  This is an important read and one that definitely deserves all of the praise and 5 star reviews it is receiving currently.


The next novel I read was The Sellout by Paul Beatty which I listened to on Audible.  This was mega weird. I had heard a lot about it since it won the Man Booker 2016 but I really wasn't clear on the actual story until I started to read it. It definitely is not for the faint hearted! This is a satirical take on the issues of racism and equality which poses absurdist "solutions" to the disadvantages faced by black Americans.  The narrator is facing the Supreme Court on several charges which include reinstating slavery and introducing segregation to the local secondary school.  One view that particularly stood out for me was the "pro-slavery" perspective of Hominy (previously a child tv star) who wanted nothing more than to become a slave.  The heartbreaking perspective he has on slavery is based on the fact that this at least gives him a sense of certainty of what to expect from life - it takes away the guess work of how he, as a representative of his race, will be treated by society.  Another character attempts to re-write history by including views of racial equality and pretending that racism and slavery was never a thing.  Whichever perspective you look at it is heartbreaking to consider and be made to face the truth that actually racial inequality is very much alive and kicking in modern society.  The book poses the question - what makes modern treatment of black Americans any different to the slavers of times gone by?

A Kiss Before Dying by Ira Levin was my final full read this month.  I gave this 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads and can't believe how good this was for a debut novel.  I already am totally in love with Ira Levin's writing style having read Rosemary's Baby a few years ago and I was a little bit worried that this would not be of the same standard.  I need not have worried though - this was absolutely super.  I can't say too much without spoiling the plot.  It follows a young, ambitious man who believes he is destined for greatness.  He is smart, handsome and charming and has big plans for his life.  The mysterious build up of his character starts when he goes unnamed for the whole first section of the novel.  We are intrigued to know more about him.  A sticking point arises in his plans when the young woman he is dating falls pregnant and is determined to marry him regardless of the fact she will be disinherited from a small fortune if she does so.  His only solution: kill her.  Everything from the characterisation to the pace of the plot in this novel was super.  I was desperately turning the pages to get to the end and find out what would happen to each of the characters.  It has made me really keen to read the rest of Levin's works.

There was one book that I regret spending so much time on this month - I feel like if it was not for this book I would have made it to by 8 book target.  Confessions of a Sociopath by M.E. Thomas was a non-fiction novel based on her own life as a non-criminal sociopath.  I have seen many disregarding this book because it was too "self-involved" but I feel that this is something that should be expected given the title.  My reason for disregarding it was that I just did not find the subject interesting.  The narrative was clumsy and too repetitive.  Perhaps this would have been better as a series of short stories rather than a jarred attempt to combine all of the events in her life that showed her lack of emotional connection.   I won't be going back to this one and I doubt I would even give it to anyone to read to be honest.


Finally I read half of the short story collection The Blue Lenses by Daphne DuMaurier.  I will definitely go back to this one and finish it off before I write a full review.  They were getting a little bit much for me to read all at once.











A very positive reading month overall.  I think in October I may try to include a mid-month wrap up if I have time - I always regret leaving all of the typing to the very last minute!

Meg x

Hacienda Moon by Kassondra Leigh (Release Date: 31/10/17)

Hacienda Moon
KaSonndra Leigh
(Path Seekers #1)
Publication date: October 31st 2017
Genres: Adult, Paranormal, Suspense

Centuries ago, his ancestor fell in love with a woman cursed by a jealous witch. No one believed him until it was too late. Eric Fontalvo was determined to prove one thing… that a family curse didn’t cause his father’s death.

The plan was working until the day he found her…again. Suddenly his life changes forever, and he is forced to question everything he believes.

Moving into an old plantation house was just what Tandie Harrison needed to recover from tragedy. So she writes a book, a story based on a man in her dreams. There’s only one problem though… the characters from her novel keep showing up on her doorstep.

And then she finds a diary written hundreds of years ago.

As if that isn’t strange enough, she meets him…the man from her dream, someone who reawakens her psychic power along with something else from long ago.

Can Eric and Tandie’s love destroy the force keeping them apart? Or will darkness win again?

Hacienda Moon is a new classic tale of two lovers crossing time. A seductive tale of one woman’s journey to confront the demons of her past and to find the courage to face her future. It is a mesmerizing novel that explores the deepest depths of human nature, and the characters will hold and haunt you long after you have read the final chapter.

Goodreads

Author Bio:

Meet your word sculptress...

Author of the Bestelling Lost Immortals Saga, Musical Interlude Series, and the PathSeekers Novels, KaSonndra is also a mother, blogazine owner, reader, gardener, home renovator, and a slayer of undead Egyptian mummies in Tomb Raider. She believes in karma, coffee, and seriously wish that the producers of Xena would bring her favorite show ever back.

Strange things about KaSonndra: Everything. She's weird, odd, unusual, and generally tends to make people think she swooped down from another planet. Maybe she did. Who knows? She's also a member of the #zombiesurvivalcrew on twitter. So if you need protection from the upcoming apocalypse, don’t hesitate to call on KayLeigh and crew!

KaSonndra was born in the race-car city of Charlotte, NC, and now live in the City of Alchemy and Medicine, NC, when she's not hanging out in Bardonia (Lost Immortals Saga setting). Most of her characters are based on people that she has met throughout her travels and adventures. People tend to stop and start conversations with KaSonndra as if she has known them her entire life. Does this freak her out? Not really. Her mom says that one day she’ll get kidnapped by one of these folks. KaSonndra's response? She told her mom that if it weren’t for these lovely people, then she wouldn’t be able to create such fabulously romantic stories.

A few other tidbits about KaSonndra... She has watched the movie Under the Tuscan Sun almost 200 times. This is her explanation regarding her obsession. She figures that if she keeps watching the film enough times, then suddenly the house that Diane Lane lives in will magically appear in her backyard. Yes! KaSonndra has a huge imagination!

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom - Series Review

Before this month it was a while since I read any YA fiction novels other than those I read to teach.  I was intrigued by the sound of Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows after hearing all about it on Booktube and so I picked it up on Audible with the idea that I would possible have to return it after listening to the first hour. Contrary to what I thought, however, I absolutely loved it almost immediately.

Characters

Kaz Brekker is tasked with putting together a notorious crew for, what seems like, mission impossible.  He is promised millions if he can break into the Ice Court - a military stronghold. From the beginning of the series Kaz presents as a troubled young man with a multitude of skeletons in his closet.  His brutal honesty, intelligence and brooding nature poses an intriguing read.  In the face of every difficulty that is put in his path Kaz shows himself fearless and smart enough to overcome anything.  It is through Kaz that we eventually are introduced to the rest of the main characters.

The Wraith - also known as Inej - is Kaz' main weakness.  She is a trained acrobat as well as a skilled fighter.  She gains the secrets of the city to provide Kaz with the information he needs to stay on top of his enemies.  From the beginning it is very clear that Inej is in love with Kaz but as to whether those feelings are reciprocated we do not find out until much later.  Inej is a character who comes to life through her dry sarcastic humour and her emotional capacity. As a reader, I loved Inej and felt like I was routing for her all the way through the series.

Jesper is a gambling addict with a knack for shooting exactly on target.  He is extremely lovable but it is clear that he has done some very questionable acts to get through a tough life.

Nina is my absolute favourite character.  She is a charming young woman with the power to turn people's internal organs to mush.  She is a Grisha Heartrender who was saved from a life in a brothel (The Menagerie) by Kaz when he brought her into a life in the Dregs.  Nina is hilarious - she is a character who can simultaneously make light of a situation while kicking ass at the same time. My favourite quotation from Nina is: “Fear is a phoenix. You can watch it burn a thousand times and still it will return.” Nina goes through one of the toughest journeys of all the characters.  It is depicted in a realistic representation of the hardship she faces as well as a believable portrayal of the human responses to such situations.

Other main characters include Matthias Halvar, a Fjerdan Druskelle, who is grudgingly in love with Nina.  He is very much stuck in a mindset that has been drummed into him by his peers.  This mindset almost stops him from making the right decisions on so many occasions.  He is a character that I feel real sympathy for.  I think everyone, at some point, is guided by the wrong people to believe in things that are not necessarily true.  Matthias is a particular example of this who really goes on a journey of discovery to make up his own mind on his beliefs.


Plot

Six of Crows has a real page turning quality to the plot.  It is, on the surface, an impossible quest but one that we get behind straight away because we are so invested in the characters.  Leigh Bardugo is very good at showing the events of the story rather than just telling us what is happening.  I really enjoyed her portrayal of the plot (more of that in the narrative style section).  The seamless transition between Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom was excellent.  I actually don't read a lot of series, particularly fantasy, because they can get caught up in the time gaps between each release which really turns me off as a reading experience.  The plot of the series is eloquent, fast-moving and engaging from the very start to the last word.


Narrative Technique

As with most YA fantasy novels the story is told through multiple narrative perspectives.  Each character's story is closely intertwined.  At first it can be a little bit confusing because you are trying to follow the plot as well as getting to know all of the different characters.  There are lots of strands of stories that are started but then cut to start someone else's story.  I was very worried that I would lose the place with the plot and end up missing out on the story but actually came to appreciate Bardugo's writing style even more.  She ensured that the plot was paced appropriately at the beginning to allow us to keep up with what was happening at the same time as getting to know everyone.

Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom have definitely opened my eyes up to a new genre that I would not normally have given a second look at. I feel like my reading horizons have definitely broadened as a result of reading this series.  My only flaw with the series is the characters are very young in age but not in attitude or actions.  It is clear that the characters are written from an older perspective.  I feel like that does not actually take anything away from the plot.

There are a few posts on the way...September Wrap Up, October Reads, September Book Haul which will all be up in the next few weeks.

Meg x

A New Venture...Inspired

Sometimes inspiration just happens.  Not when you are looking or necessarily want to be inspired.  For me it has been one of those inspiring weeks.

I took a trip to a creative writing convention with some young people and I will be honest and say that I had solely looked at this as an opportunity for the young people I was supervising.  Never did I expect to walk away totally inspired to kick start my own writing creative writing back up again. I was so fortunate to meet some wonderful Scottish writers and hear their own stories of how they write, what made them write and where they draw their creative musings from. 

The whole day is run by the Scottish Book Trust and offers pupils the chance to meet poets, novelists, playwrights and short story writers with Scottish backgrounds.  The pupils are divided into groups and each group experiences the workshops of two writers.  My group first met an ex-English teacher named Martin Stewart who recently released his debut novel, Riverkeep.  This workshop was a lot about choosing the right words to express what you are trying to say.  Not over-writing and falling into cliched habits.  I particularly enjoyed the editing techniques that he suggested. This has to be one of the most practical advice sessions I have ever had when it comes to writing.  I will definitely be putting his advice to good use.

The second workshop I attended was by poet Liz Niven.  Her workshop was less about the practicalities of writing and more about actually getting us to put pen to paper and to look for inspiration all around us.  Liz was super keen to get us all involved and we took inspiration from some poems she had selected in order to start writing our own poetry.  The first exercise was that we were given the colour blue then given one of the senses. Mine was sound. I had to write down what the colour blue sounds like.  We wrote a series of short poems using different exercises and were encouraged to write both in standard English as well as in Scots.  The outcome of this surprised me - what I ended up with written on the paper left me feeling really inspired to start writing again.

After I got home from the conference I felt like I had been away from writing for too long.  I always said that I would write a novel one day.  That I would be a published author.  When I left the feeling I had was that I want to start slightly smaller and go with writing short stories and maybe even poetry.  This week I have finally put my pen to paper and jotted out my ideas that I have had for a while.  Hopefully I will be posting some snippets of writing very soon.

Meg x

September TBR

Already I feel like I have been side tracked from my original TBR for September because of how much I enjoyed "Six of Crows" at the start of the month.  I got an Audible credit and just felt like I had to spend it on the sequel.  I have no regrets!

The first book on my TBR is "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo.  I got this from Audible to keep me company on a long car journey after hearing so much about it on Booktube.  I was pretty intrigued and had gotten about halfway through it in August.  It was my priority to finish this one first (which I have) and get on to reading the rest of my September TBR.  I will put a full review in my September wrap up but it was a superb read.










The next book is one that I am totally unsure about, even a bit wary, if I am honest.  There are so many mixed reviews about it that it took me a while to convince myself to put it on my list.  "Confessions of a Sociopath" by M.E. Thomas is one that should be right up my street - I love anything remotely psychological and especially books that look at things from a different perspective.  As M.E. Thomas is a diagnosed non-violent sociopath I figured that it would be an interesting way to learn a bit more about the condition.  I have started this one already and I can totally see where the negative reviews are coming from.






"Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine" by Gail Honeyman is book 3 on my to be read list this month.  The title caught me straight away - who is Eleanor Oliphant!? Why wouldn't she be fine? Is she really fine?  All questions that have popped into my head when I look at the title of the book.  To me this sounded like a book of balance - it has a serious side but a bit of humour injected too.  I am saving this one for the middle of the month when I need something to cheer me up a little bit amongst my other dark, gloomy reads. 


This next book is one I picked up for a few reasons: the nomination for the Women's Prize for Fiction and the hype that surrounds it.  "Stay With Me" by Ayobami Adebayo is set in a community where polygamy is normal and the idea of staying faithful to one person is absurd.  It follows the journey of a couple who are trying (unsuccessfully) for a baby and the devastation they face when they don't get what they want.  The couple's devastation is deepened when the family arrives with another wife to join the family and provide children to Akin.  I am so keen to read this beautiful book - the yellow edged pages are stunning!





I fell in love with Ira Levin when I read "Rosemary's Baby" at university and I have always been meaning to come back and read more of his work but never quite found the time.  This month I have added "A Kiss Before Dying" to my list to ensure I finally get around to this one.  I don't know very much about the actual plot other than it is about a young man who will do anything to get to where he wants to be.  I know that Ira Levin's writing style is one that I previously enjoyed and I know that this book gets rave reviews so I have high hopes for this one.






"The Sellout" by Paul Beattie which won the Man Booker prize is another book on my list this month. This is about a man brought up by a racist father who has shaped his view of the world.  To try to make a point he re-introduces segregation and slavery in modern day America.  This is a shocking story but one that I am genuinely scared of becoming a reality in the future.  The way that the world is heading seems to be further and further from what is morally acceptable.  I think this may well end up an important lesson that should be heeded by many world leaders today.






For years I have been meaning to work my way through the works of Shakespeare that I (shame-faced) admit that I have not actually read yet.  I feel this list is WAY longer than it should be!  I also feel that I have added "The Tempest" to this month's list because I really want to read Margaret Atwood's "Hag-Seed" which is a re-telling of the original story.  I figured it is definitely some sort of sacrilegious act if I was to read "Hag-Seed" before the real deal.








Having read my first Daphne DuMaurier novel in August I was intrigued to compare the quality of her short stories to the novel.  I have picked "The Blue Lenses" as a short story collection to start reading this month.  My aim is to get this finished pretty quickly - especially since it is actually a book borrowed from the library. I know nothing about the stories but I am intrigued to find out more.

Finally, as mentioned earlier, I want to listen to "Crooked Kingdom" by Leigh Bardugo.  I was so impressed with "Six of Crows" that I just don't want there to be a huge time gap before I get the chance to binge on this one too.  The cliffhanger in "Six of Crows" left me glad that I came late to the party and could move straight on to the next book in the series!









I am going to do a mid month reading review in September I think so that will be up in the next week or so.  I also want to do a proper individual review of a few books I have loved recently.

Meg x

August Reading Wrap Up

Compared to July I was a little bit disappointed by August's reading but towards the last week it definitely picked up a bit.  I loved every book that I read except for one.  This was the first month in a very long time that I DNF'd a book but I will get to that later.

The first book that I read in August was "My Cousin Rachel" by Daphne DuMaurier.  It really kickstarted my month of reading well because I ended up totally hooked.  I listened to this one on Audible but it is one I definitely want to go back to read it in book format.  This is my first ever DuMaurier read and it certainly will be far from my last.  The characters were so rich in personality that I felt like I got to know them personally.   This is very much a character driven novel - not very much happens by way of plot until the denouement.  I felt like the characters were so well developed that there really wasn't a necessity for lots of plot points.  The character of Rachel was by far one of the most intriguing, mysterious and well written characters that I have ever read. All throughout the novel I really could not grasp my feelings towards Rachel - I went from hating her to feeling intense sympathy for her as a character. This was honestly the most certain 5 star read I had read to this point in the year.

Having finished my first ever DuMaurier novel I was really concerned that whatever I read next would end up being a disappointment.  Whenever I read a really good book I worry that whatever comes next doesn't really get a fair chance because I know whatever is next will disappoint me in comparison.  This month was totally not the case because my next read was "The Essex Serpent" by Sarah Perry - I feel like I came late to the party with this one but I am super glad I saved it for this occasion.   I won't ramble on too much because I have already put up a full review already but this was amazing.






"A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue" by Mackenzi Lee was my next read this month.  I really enjoyed this one because of the witty writing style.  It took serious plot points and injected them with humour whilst still dealing with the issues at hand.  The unintentionally hilarious "Monty" has to be one of the funniest characters I have come across.  The way that Mackenzi Lee has made him so funny when he doesn't mean to be or even realise that he is being funny is so clever.  There were points in this Audiobook that I was laughing out loud which is pretty rare in a book for me.  I liked that it was set years ago but deals with issues that are still so relevant today.  The prejudice Monty faces as a bisexual man was relevant then and is still relevant now.  I think this is a novel that really deserves the hype that it has gotten.  The plot is developed at an appropriate pace which meant that the characters could be thoroughly developed as the events unfolded throughout.   

The next book I was super skeptical of - I just didn't really fancy it and I had heard a lot of mixed reviews so I approached with caution along with a good few hours of reading time.  "His Bloody Project" by Graeme Macrae Burnet is a novel based on the life of a young, Scottish murderer.  Roderick Macrae was convicted of a brutal killing spree in 1869 after admitting the whole thing.  The narrative styles within the story are intriguing in their variety: witness statements, character statements, the story as told by Roddy Macrae and finally a journalistic type view of the court case as it unravelled.  I really enjoyed the story although I believe it has been more embellished than what is made out in the introductory notes.  The characters are interesting and the setting is beautiful - it is easy to become immersed in the history of the Highlands of Scotland and the way the characters lived.  I really felt like the author created a connection to that particular setting.

"See What I Have Done" by Sarah Schmidt was another re-imagining of an historical murder scene - I know cheery reading this month was! - this time of the Borden murders in Massachusetts.  The story is told from the perspectives of Lizzie Borden - the victims' youngest daughter, her sister, Emma, the house maid and the mysterious Benjamin.  When Lizzie finds her father brutally murdered by an axe a murder enquiry begins.  The different view points of the story all point to different views of who the murderer could be.  I was kept guessing right until the very end as to who it really was.  Schmidt's beautiful use of language is intriguing and stunning - every description seems poetic.  I didn't know who to sympathise with, who to pity and who to dislike - my opinion constantly changed.  The craftsmanship demonstrated within the words was absolutely outstanding.  A clear 5 star read for me and I must say a very nice step on my reading journey this month. 

I was extremely fortunate to be able to go to a small gathering with the author Patrick Ness in August.  There he spoke about his newest book, "Release".  Having heard all that Ness had to say about the novel I was very keen to start reading it as soon as I got home from meeting him.  The story intertwines the tales of Adam Thorn - who is having quite frankly a terrible day - and a young girl murdered by her boyfriend.  If I am honest I appreciated what he was trying to do with the dual narrative but I really didn't like the dead girl parts - they stretched outwith my limits of imagination.  Adam's story was one that I'm sure a lot of young people could relate to.  The exploration of relationships and love in the novel is one that is important for all of us to consider.  Adam does not have a lot of love at home since he is faced with the religious prejudice of his father, a minister, who knows deep down that Adam is gay but refuses to accept it.  Adam's real family are his friends and boyfriend.  I definitely think we all need a friend like Angela in our lives - I fell in love with her character and her way of dealing with anything she faced.  The story is packed full of action despite the fact it only takes place over one day.  This would have been a 5 star read had it not been for the dead girl with the magical faun. 

My final read in August was "Nutshell" by Ian McEwan.  This was a short read but it had such an impact on me.  This was my first Ian McEwan read and I must admit I am desperate to read more of his novels.  This was a fantastic, contemporary take on the story of Hamlet which is written in beautiful prose from the perspective of an unborn baby who has been resident in Trudy's womb for 8 months.  He overhears her and his uncle (who is also her lover) plotting the death of his father (his uncle's brother).  The narration is beautifully elegant throughout.  The baby's stream of consciousness is laugh out loud hilarious in parts and heartbreaking at others.  The incredible intelligence of the baby stems from his understanding of the world as heard through the podcasts and news articles his mother listens to regularly.  He learns of the terrible attrocities of the world he is about to be born into. An intriguingly stunning read which was, without doubt, a 5 star read.

So 7 books in August - a little less than July - which I am overall very pleased with.  I definitely need to up my game in September and have planned for this accordingly.  I DNF (did not finish) Stephanie Garber's "Caraval" because, quite frankly, it was boring.  I couldn't get into it and found myself drifting off whenever I started to read it.  I learned the important lesson that sometimes you just have to say no to a book - even if you have started it already. 

My next post will be my September TBR - I have tried to vary the reading to something a little bit cheerier next month but I do love a dark, murderous thriller read so no promises there!!

Meg x

August Book Haul - Part 2!

So when I wrote part one of the book haul for August I had divided the books I bought this month nice and evenly between the two parts.  I bought more between then and the end of the month so this one is even longer. I have a serious book buying problem!!

I am going to start off with the two books that I have received kindle copies of for review.

"A Prophet Without Honor" by Joseph Wurtenbaugh

What if Hitler had won the war?  What if a clever bluff meant that the French and British soldiers lost to Hitler's untrained army? What if Hitler had taken over the world? I requested this advanced reader copy because I was so excited by the plot outline.  I really love reading authors I have never read before so I was keen to review this one - I can't wait to read it this month.  This book was released in June 2017 and is available on Amazon.






"The Lost Season of Love and Snow" by Jennifer Laam

This is based on the story of Alexander Pushkin's wife.  Natalya has a lot of admirers within the court and soon strikes up a loving relationship with the poet.  Their intense love for each other as well as their jealous tendencies spells disaster for the couple.  Natalya is vilified in St. Petersburg the story tells of her tale to defend her honour and to broadcast the truth about what she is really like.   I LOVE Russian based stories.  Among my favourite ever reads are books like "Sashenka" so I truly hope that this lives up to my expectations - I am predicting this one as a 5 star read.  The book is an advanced reader copy for review and will be published January 2nd 2018.


"The Book of Magic: From Antiquity to Enlightenment" Edited by Brian P. Copenhaver

Ok so this is a total guilty pleasure for my.  I love all things witch - anything with a Wiccan stamp and I am all over it.  There really is not a lot to say about this book other than it is basically a book full of spells, incantations, charms and curses.  The book features a variety of entries from ancient and medieval times through to Thomas Aquinas, Milton, John Dee and much more.  I think this will be a book that will be more of a casual flip through and reading bits and pieces than a cover to cover read.

"Antigone" by Sophocles

This is the third of Sophocles' Theban plays.  It tells the story of the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, Antigone.  Antigone is basically a kick-ass female character - she is strong willed and intelligent and is not scared to show it.  Antigone wants to bury her brother but the king has forbidden it.  She goes up against him in a bid to get him to back down.  She is strong and determined throughout which makes her a typically fantastic Greek character.


"The Empathetic Store" by Jackie Kay

Currently the Scottish makar, Jackie Kay is a larger than life personality who makes me laugh out loud.  I got this when I went to see her at the Edinburgh International Book Festival in August.  This is a collection of her poetry which generally makes honest and down-to-earth observations about life, childhood and relationships.  I can't wait to dig through this collection.




"Letters of Note" by Shaun Usher

This is exactly what it says on the tin: a collection of interesting letters from throughout history.  Such gems included are: letters from Queen Elizabeth II, Virginia Woolf and Jack the Ripper.  This is a beautiful "coffee table book" that will be another book that I pick up and flick through every so often.  I kind of enjoy the idea of a non-committal reading tool actually - sometimes you just need a break from trekking through 400 page tomes!





"How to Stop Time" by Matt Haig

Tom is centuries old.  He has a rare condition that keeps him alive.  Over the years he has changed his identity several times to keep him from being discovered.  When we find him he is teaching History at his local high school telling stories that he must pretend that he never really witnessed.  The one thing Tom is not allowed to do though is to fall in love. OK I will hold my hands up - the beautiful cover of this book definitely played an important role in my choice to buy it however I have also heard wonderful things about this book so it definitely is not just me being shallow!  I don't know what I will make of this as it will be my first book by Matt Haig.



"Only Ever Yours" by Louise O'Neill

The reason I picked this one up was it has real similarities to "The Handmaid's Tale" (which I LOVE) and I am intrigued at whether this one will pull off the emotional response Atwood created for me.  This tells of a version of the world where women are bred in specialist centres where they are trained in the art of pleasing men.  At the graduation ceremony the most highly rated become "companions" who live with their husbands for the sole purpose of breeding sons until they no longer can.  Those who are not highly rated become concubines or teachers.  A story of two girls brought up as best friends which ultimately tests their friendship and loyalty to each other.




"The Language of Flowers" by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

I received this book in a mystery package from "Blind Date With A Book" - I have no idea who ordered it but I totally love it.  Victoria has spent her life in foster care.  She feels a real sense of detachment to those around her because of her childhood experiences.  Victoria is an expert in flowers.  She knows the symbolism of Victorian times which is associated with each flower and sets about planting her own garden beside the park bench that she sleeps on.  Victoria is soon discovered by a florist who notices her talent and passion for flowers.  Victoria has to decide whether she is ready to let go of her past for a second chance at being happy.



Finally...
"The Underground Railroad" by Colson Whitehead

A story of slavery set in Georgia we follow the story of Cora - an African slave who is outcast by her fellow slaves.  When Caesar comes onto the scene he offers Cora a sense of hope she has never had before.  He explains of the existence of an underground railroad which will take them out of the plantation to a life where they can be free.  They take the risk but it does not quite go to plan.  They end up running for their lives being chased all the while.  I knew nothing about this book when I picked it up but I have seen it on so many review sites and it has much hype surrounding it.  I am eager to read it but I don't think I will get to it any time soon.  It does sound very interesting though.




My August wrap up of what I read will be up this weekend as well as my reading outlook for September - I need to up my game to get back on track with the number of books I want to have read in 2017!!

Meg x

August Book Haul Part 1 (Oops...)

Every month I promise myself that I won't get carried away with buying books and every month I break that promise. This month has been no different!  One super exciting development is that I have actually received two ebooks for review from authors - these are not out yet so I have very limited knowledge as to what they are all about so far. I am only going to give very brief summaries again this month as I will post full reviews on each book once I read it!

"Once Upon a Dream" by Liz Braswell
This is a re-telling of Sleeping Beauty and, similarly to the other two books in the series (see July haul), it is told with a dark twist to the tale.  I adore the cover of this book - it is beautifully designed and mysterious looking.  The book questions what would happen if true love's kiss did not actually solve everything? What if there was more to be done to get passed Maleficent's evil curse?  Sleeping Beauty is one of my all time favourites and so I am SUPER keen to read this twisted tale!







"The One Memory of Flora Banks" by Emily Barr

A devastating brain tumour has left Flora with no short term memory retention.  Every day the things she does she almost immediately forgets until the day she kisses her best friend's boyfriend (Drake) and remembers.  Flora convinces herself that this boy must be the key to unlocking her memory retention. Flora travels across the world to meet Drake in Norway but with the problem of her memory this proves a lot more difficult than it would for other people. I got this one after seeing it for cheapsies in a supermarket.  I have heard mixed reviews about it so I thought I would give it a go and see for myself.



"Nutshell" by Ian McEwan

To say I am excited about this one is an understatement.  I first heard about this from Booktuber Sophie Carlon and from her description I just HAD to read it. This is a re-telling of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" (hooked already?!) told from the perspective of an unborn baby in the womb. I don't really think I need to explain any further why this book sounds so blooming fabulous do I? I mean what more can you want?







"Confessions of a Sociopath" by M.E. Thomas

Having bought this one at a service station on one of my many trips down south I now feel a little bit of regret.  I always have a snoop on Goodreads when I buy something I haven't heard of and this is among the lowest rated books I actually own.  This is an autobiographical tale of the author's life as she identifies as being a non-criminal sociopath.  Anyone who knows me knows I love a good book with a socio/pyschopath in there.  I find the dynamics and relationships of sociopathic characters absolutely fascinating.  I think there is a huge gap in the modern market when it comes to identifying female socio/psychopaths and with this being based on real life experiences I feel like this has the potential to educate us all about living life with conditions of mind different to the average person.I am definitely going to read it and hope Goodreads reviews were maybe wrong on this one.



"The Sellout" by Paul Beatty

Having been brought up witness to a variety of racial psychological experiments the main character is forced to look at life differently.  He ends up in the Supreme court having reinstated slavery as well as enforcing segregation at the local high school.  He does all of this to please his father and to help him to finish a manuscript based on his experiments in the hope that the script will help the family out of financial trouble.  When his father is killed in a police shoot out, he must confront all that he was brought up with as well as facing the lies and deceit left behind by his father.  It's a satire. It sounds AMAZING.  Let's all have a think about what the world is like now...this could not be more relevant.



"Love & Gelato" by Jenna Evans Welch

Lina's mum has one last wish before she dies: Lina must go to Tuscany, Italy and get to know her father - a father who hasn't been around for 14 years.  Lina is hesitant until she is given her mother's journal from the time she lived in Italy. She ends up on a journey of discovery that leads her to uncover a secret that means everything will change. This was a 99p ebook.  Every day I get an email from "BookBub" which outlines free or very cheap ebooks that I might like based on the interests I put into their website.  It is brilliant and there is often a little gem in amongst the recommendations too.


"The Time Traveller's Wife" by Audrey Niffenegger

Unfortunately I just have not gotten around to this month's book club reads.  This was one of them and I will definitely read it but I have been so busy this month getting organised to go back to work that I just have not had a minute to read this.  I will be honest I know very little about this other than Henry is married to Clare.  Henry has a rare disorder which makes his genetic clock reset periodically to a time which has had or will have an emotional impact on his life in some way.  Every so often he finds himself out of sync with time and not in the place he is meant to be.  Together Henry and Clare attempt to keep life as normal as possible but are faced with an uphill struggle against something completely outwith their control.  I have wanted to read this for ages and just never managed to get around to it.  Now that I actually have the ebook it seems there is no excuse!


"The Girl With All The Gifts" by M.R. Carey

This was the second book club read this month and again I just never made it to this one on my list.  It is one that a few of my colleagues have read and loved which makes me interested straight away.  Melanie's life is far from normal.  She is escorted only to school every day strapped into a wheelchair and with two armed guards.  They say she is a special little girl.  She talks about her life in the future - all that she hopes and dreams of.  This makes everyone around her look sad but she is not sure why.  All I am going to say is zombies.  Again, anyone who knows me and what I like to read would not straight away jump to recommend this one.  I am not, have never and will never be one that is into zombie fiction (one day I will be able to face the experience of reading "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" but it is not today).  I am nervous about this one.  Very nervous.


I have a few posts that I want to put up in the next few days.  Obviously part 2 of the book haul is my priority but I also met Patrick Ness this month (EEK) and I have a special review of "See What I Have Done" in the pipeline.  Finally my monthly reading wrap up - which is not actually too shabby!  I will be working on those this week.

Have you read any of these? If so what were they like?

Meg x