Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

Pages - 328

Challenges - 100+

Published by Harper Collins in 2007

I know Wicked Lovely has probably been reviewed to death throughout the Book Blogging world, but when do I miss an opportunity to rave about a book and as it is my blog, you will have to suffer too. Or scroll down, or perhaps just bypass this altogether! I am not really moaning, I just think the excessive heat that has suddenly landed at our feet has got the better of me.

Wicked Lovely is the story of Aislinn who has always been able to see faeries. It is a flaw in her family's genes and they can all see them, but they pretend that they can't, as faeries who find out you can see them will probably take great enjoyment in killing you. So Aislinn, lives her life with blinkers on, ignoring the wickedness the fairies get up to around her. Until one of those faeries decides that Aislinn should belong to him. Enter Keenan, the Summer King, who has spent eternity looking for his Summer Queen. Many girls have failed the challenge and the Winter Queen continues to cause havoc in the world, as the Summer King just does not have the power to defeat her without his Summer Queen. Keenan is convinced that Aislinn is the one and the Winter Queen is worried.

There is definitely a lot of mixed reviews over this book throughout the blogging world, so I think you will either love it or hate it. I had the same experience with Tithe, where many people didn't enjoy it and I loved it, so if you followed my advice to read Tithe and didn't like it, then I would say Wicked Lovely is not for you.

I absolutely loved this book. For me, it was a slightly lighter version of Holly Black's Tithe and Valiant, but every bit as good.

If you have not read the book, I would not read on as I can't help but give spoiler alerts!

You jump into the story very quickly and stand back helplessly as Aislinn tries to fight her inevitable destiny. From the beginning you are aware that Aislinn is in love with her friend Seth and has no wish to change her life completely. Seth loves her just as much and the difficulties they need to overcome as a couple would drive most people apart.

The faeries in the book take on a very sinister role and if they truly existed, I would be a little nervous, so really glad it is all fantasy.

The characters are well written and show both sides of their characters. You understand that what Keenan puts Aislinn through is completely wrong, yet you can understand his reasons for doing it, as he has bigger issues to solve than just Aislinn's feelings.

The ending took me by surprise, as it definitely wasn't the one I thought it would be. I have to say I liked the way it ended though.

The book gives lots of details about faery folklore, which I have found had common information to other books about faeries. All the books, mention the fey, the Seelie Courts and the sidhe, but how did this common ground of information become known to everyone else. I find this really strange as I always was under the impression that faeries really don't exist, so where does all these written rules about faeries come from. If I am wrong and their really are faeries in the world and a book on how to be a good faery, then I stand corrected, otherwise who made up all these faery rules and beliefs? Anyone know?

Anyway this is a fabulous book, well worth reading and I am looking forward to moving onto Ink Exchange which I understand to be even darker than Wicked Lovely!

Here are some other reviews of the book, to give a rounded opinion of it.

Escape in a Book

Alaine - Queen of Happy Endings

Melissa's Bookshelf

Thanks for stopping by. Come back tomorrow for a giveaway connected to this post!

Wanna take a little walk with me?

There is no Mailbox Monday from me today, as for the first week ever, I did not receive any books. I didn't buy any or win any as prizes, which is not a bad thing as I have so many to read already?

So today, I thought I would take you on a little walk, hope you don't mind. Are you ready to go, do you have sensible walking shoes as it is a five mile walk? Do you have water to drink and sunscreen on as it is going to be hot? Are we ready then let's go.
Our walk starts by setting off from Chichester Quay, I just dropped the girls of at a science course for the day, so we can take our time. They went off to learn about Harbour Habitats, armed with buckets and wellies. So we can walk along the pathway and head to Chichester Marina.

As you can see, the tide is out and it is really peaceful. There is hardly a soul around. I never realised how much the tide affected areas. When the tides comes in later, this little peacehaven will be full of people out in their boats.

We have reached the Marina and I am sorry I just had to stop and take a picture of this customised VW camper van, with it's very own Dulux dog. I love VW camper vans and beetles. I have my own VW beetle, which is my pride and joy.

As we walk on, let me show the house I dream of. Everytime, I pass it I sigh heavily. It is gated and this photo does not do it justice as it is huge! Can you not just imagine the library above those garages. I will keep entering that lottery and maybe one day this will be mine. It has been empty since it was built, so I like to think they are saving it for me!

Lets continue around the marina and enjoy the scenery. I love to look at the houseboats, jealous of the easy life they seem to convey.

Sorry , I just love this sign, I think the word 'the' was a late addition.

We are nearly there now, walking round the marina, watching people taking suitcases on in order to spend the weekend on their boats. We walk all the way back to the quay. I have just looked at my nifty pedometer and noticed we have clocked up five miles. Are you feeling tired? Thirsty?

Lets hit the pub.

I found us a nice table by the open window, looking out over the quay. A cool breeze blows through to cool us down. A coke and a good book, what better way to spend the rest of the afternoon.

This is the view from the table out towards the quay.

I hope you enjoyed your walk, now you can go eat that tempting chocolate cake as you have earned it after all that hearty exercise.

Thanks for joining me.

Sunday Salon - A long weekend

This weekend has become a bit of an unofficial long weekend as the children's school is closed for inset day on Monday. For my American and Canadian readers, inset days are when the schools carry out training for the teachers and the schools normally have about 5 or 6 a year. As my previous job was teaching, I never really enjoyed these days as I was always uncomfortably aware that everyone else with children would be taking advantage of this impromptu day off and I would have to find childminders for the day as I would have to be in school. Though this year, as I am no longer teaching, the shoe is on the other foot and I get to take my children out to places which are normally far to busy to visit during the holidays. Though in saying that, I haven't a clue how we are going to spend the day off.

Today is planned as a calm day at home, as both my girls attended a science course yesterday down by the harbour. Hubby is out fishing, so the kids and I are just going to take it easy. I am hoping they will be keen to visit the park, so I can take my book and read.

This week I finished three books.

1) Voodoo Season by Jewell Parker Rhodes - to be reviewed later this week.
2) The Funny Thing Is.. by Ellen Degeneres -reviewed here.
3) Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr - also to be reviewed later this week followed by a giveaway.

I am presently reading two books.

1) Getting to Manana by Miranda Innes
2) Housekeeping by Marilynn Robinson

I also hope to start reading.

1)A Kiss of Shadows by Laurell K. Hamilton
2) Angels in My Hair by Lorna Fitzgerald Byrne.

So that is my week of reading planned. Not sure how I am going to fit it in, as this really is a busy week, but I shall give it a go.

Happy Sunday Salon!

My friends

I know, I know it is Saturday and I am supposed to have produced some lovely scrap pages for you to look at. Sorry guys, it is just not happening, my life seems to be spiralling out of control, leaving my scrapbooking evaporating in the sidelines. There just seems to be so much going on at the moment, that I am struggling to find time to scrap - how I ever had time to work I really don't know. I think it is where the school term is coming to an end, there seems to be many things that need to be completed before the kids break up, so I am running around like headless chicken. I do feel like I have over committed myself this year, which has resulted in me not achieving what I had set out to do at the beginning of the year. I aim to make a lot of changes before the new school year starts, so that my focus is back where it is supposed to be and wear blinkers and ear plugs to avoid taking on any extra activities. Famous last words, eh!

Anyway, my nearest attempt at scrapbooking this week is making this little chocolate bar holder for my friend Yvette. Another lovely friend of mine, Fiona, gave me a template to make this holder as well as copies of the little owls. So I made this for Yvette and put her favourite chocolate in there - Wholenut Dairy Milk, as well as a Waterstones voucher for books. I am really pleased with my first attempt at this holder.
On Tuesday, Yvette and I went out to lunch to celebrate her birthday. We went to my favourite cafe down by the beach, where I often go for breakfast. I had my favourite, smoke salmon sandwiches -yum, yum. We followed lunch with a very delicious and very fattening Raspberry Cheesecake, which we shared. I don't even want to think how many calories were in it.

Talking about my lovely friends, I am now going to really big up my friend Anne, who is officially famous now. If you are a scrapper, you may subscribe to Scrapbook Inspirations, one of the very few magazines available. Well my friend Anne features in the July edition.

Her wonderful blog called Pretty, which you can find here, is featured in the Blog Love section. The magazine love her blog and so do I. Do go over and have a look for yourself.

Well done Anne!

Well that is it for today, hope your having a fabulous weekend and catch you tomorrow for Sunday Salon.

Friday Finds

Ooh you book blogging people are really bad. I have seen so many books on your sites that I want to read this week, but I have had to narrow it down to five.

Fairytale by Cyn Balog

I found this one over at Books Love Jessica Marie. It isn't released until 23rd of June in England but is already out in America - you lucky people!

It is a book that will appeal to Twilight and Wicked Lovely fans.

Here is the blurb for it from Amazon.

Morgan Sparks has always known that she and her boyfriend, Cam, are made for each other. But when Cam’s cousin Pip comes to stay with the family, Cam seems depressed. Finally Cam confesses to Morgan what’s going on: Cam is a fairy. The night he was born, fairies came down and switched him with a healthy human boy. Nobody expected Cam to live, and nobody expected his biological brother, heir to the fairy throne, to die. But both things happened, and now the fairies want Cam back to take his rightful place as Fairy King.Even as Cam physically changes, becoming more miserable each day, he and Morgan pledge to fool the fairies and stay together forever. But by the time Cam has to decide once and for all what to do, Morgan’s no longer sure what’s best for everyone, or whether her and Cam’s love can weather an uncertain future.

Now hasn't that whetted your appetite.


Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

I found this one over at Bermudaonions blog. There has been a lot of hype about this book, even though it has been out a few years, and it is believed to be an ideal read for teenagers as it deals with real teenage issues at secondary school. I do believe some schools are actually putting it on their curriculums.

Here is the blurb from Laurie Halse Anderson's site.


Melinda Sordino busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops. Now her old friends won't talk to her, and people she doesn't even know hate her from a distance. The safest place to be is alone, inside her own head. But even that's not safe. Because there's something she's trying not to think about, something about the night of the party that, if she let it in, would blow her carefully constructed disguise to smithereens. And then she would have to speak the truth. This extraordinary first novel has captured the imaginations of teenagers and adults across the country.

Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCulloI found this book over at Carrie's YA Bookshelf blog.

Here is what Carrie had to say about the book.

Tamsin Greene comes from a long line of witches, and she was supposed to be one of the most Talented among them. But Tamsin's magic never showed up. Now seventeen, Tamsin attends boarding school in Manhattan, far from her family. But when a handsome young professor mistakes her for her very Talented sister, Tamsin agrees to find a lost family heirloom for him. The search—and the stranger—will prove to be more sinister than they first appeared, ultimately sending Tamsin on a treasure hunt through time that will unlock the secret of her true identity, unearth the sins of her family, and unleash a power so vengeful that it could destroy them all. This is a spellbinding display of storytelling that will exhilarate, enthrall, and thoroughly enchant.

There are just so many good witch books out there at the moment.

Nothing but Ghosts by Beth Kephart

I found this one on Books Love Jessica Marie too.

Here is the blurb from Amazon.

Ever since her mother passed away, Katie's been alone in her too-big house with her genius dad, who restores old paintings for a living. Katie takes a summer job at a garden estate, where, with the help of two brothers and a glamorous librarian, she soon becomes embroiled in decoding a mystery. There are secrets and shadows at the heart of Nothing but Ghosts: symbols hidden in a time-darkened painting, and surprises behind a locked bedroom door. But most of all, this is a love story—the story of a girl who learns about love while also learning to live with her own ghosts.
This is a heartfelt, lyrical tale from the National Book Award-nominated author of Undercover and House of Dance.


The Walking People by Mary Beth Keane.

I found this one over at Dar's blog Peeking Between the Pages. If you haven't visited Dar's site you really should. She has fantastic book reviews and lots of competitions to enter. At the moment, she has a competition to win five copies of this book. the competition is here. Alas it is only open to American and Canadian residents, but Dar often has worldwide competitions too, so do go over and check out her blog.

Here is the blurb from Amazon.

Greta Cahill never believed she would leave her village in the west of Ireland until she found herself on a ship bound for New York, along with her sister Johanna and a boy named Michael Ward. Labeled a "softheaded goose" by her family, Greta discovers that in America she can fall in love, raise her own family, and earn a living. Though she longs to return and show her family what she has made of herself, her decision to spare her children knowledge of a secret in her past forces her to keep her life in New York separate from the life she once loved in Ireland, and tears her apart from the people she is closest to. Even fifty years later, when the Ireland of her memory bears little resemblance to that of present day, she fears that it is still possible to lose all when she discovers that her children—with the best of intentions— have conspired to unite the worlds she’s so carefully kept separate for decades. A beautifully old-fashioned novel, The Walking People is a debut of remarkable range and power.

So they are my Friday Finds this week, what books did you find?

The Funny Thing Is by Ellen Degeneres

Pages 177

Challenges - Non Fiction Five, 100+ Books.

I was intrigued to read this book after reading about it on Rebecca's site Lost in Books.

I really like Ellen Degeneres, I used to love watching her TV comedy show 'Ellen', many years ago. Do you remember the show when she used to own a book store with a coffee shop in it. How popular did that idea become. Can't visit a bookstore now without a strong smell of coffee making me gag! ( Sorry to all those coffee lovers, but the smell just makes me nauseous.)

Anyway back to the book. This really wasn't what I was expecting, which doesn't make it bad. In fact, it is a fabulous book that is really funny. The essays are hilarious and very entertaining. However, I was expecting a little insight into the life of Ellen Degeneres, a sneaky peek into Ellen's world. Alas, there is not even a tiny bit of truth in the book. It is full of stories that Ellen could easily tell on stage. I would have to be verging on the side of stupid to believe even one of her stories, even the one about Eminem bringing gazpacho to her weekly Sunday brunch.

Here is one of my favourite paragraphs.

The key to having confidence about your appearance is all in the
details.

Take your nails. Nothing builds self-esteem like a beautiful set of
nails. Haven't had a manicure in a while or ever? Do it yourself by
opening the car door and dragging your nails along the pavement whenever you
slow down for a stop sign. Why spend money on emery boards when you can save
dollars a year my way.

Rebecca over at Lost in Books mentioned that you should probably try and read this book as if Ellen was actually talking to you and telling these tales and I have to agree with her. If you like to watch Ellen on stage, then this is the book for you. A funny selection of essay looking at the daft things we all do in our everyday lives. Definitely a light and easy read to lighten up your day and have you giggling to yourself, which will concern your family into thinking hysteria has set in. Enjoy!

Other reviews of this book.

Lost in Books

How our little family spent Fathers Day.

We like to go out on Mothers Day and Fathers Day to celebrate. Unfortunately our parents live quite a distance away, so we usually spend it these days as just the four of us. So for Fathers Day this year we went off to Arundel for a lovely lunch.

These two pictures were the views from my seat. Aren't they beautiful. I loved just sitting there watching the world go by. The River Arun gently flowed behind the plants.

It was one of those restaurants where you order your food at the bar and then it is brought to you. We had Chicken Wings in Hot Sauce to start. Followed by Roast Turkey with all the trimmings. I was very bad and followed that with a mini Eton Mess - my favourite - strawberries, meringue and cream.

It was just nice to sit, chill out and just talk to each other, without rushing around to sort everything for school and normal routine life.

Hubby and me ( I am proud to announce that I am nearly two stone lighter than I was when I started this blog - Yay me!)

There were tables outside on either side of the road where many people were dining and enjoying the Sunday sunshine.

Here is the view of the River Arun. Can you see the castle behind.

There you go - a better view of Arundel Castle for you.

So we had a lovely lunch, then headed off into Arundel and had a walk around the quaint old town.

High Fidelity by Nick Hornby

Pages 245

First published in 1995, this copy published by Penguin in 2000

Challenges - 100+, A to Z Titles

Nick Hornby's name kept reaching out to me across the book blogging world as I know a lot of people are really big fans of his, so I had to satisfy my curiosity and pick one of his books up and read it.

High Fidelity attracted my attention, purely because of the title - taking me back to fond memories of hearing Doris singing it on Fame - the days of leg warmers and cassette players.

I picked it up, started reading it and could not put the book down. I absolutely loved every word of it.

This is the story of Rob Fleming a man drifting through his life and heading nowhere. He is in his 30's, he owns a little record shop that barely sells anything and his girlfriend has just walked out on him for the man who lives upstairs.

Rob and his two shop assistants, Barry and Dick, spend all their time making up top five lists of basically everything. After Laura leaves Rob, he makes a list of the top five breakups he has endured and goes about contacting all five of them to discover what went wrong with their relationships.

After meeting up with each ex girlfriend and the unfortunate death of' Laura's father, Laura and Rob do reunite and Rob learns from his fear of commitment and makes a promise to Laura.

Rob has just drifted all the way through his life, he ended up owning his shop after a breakup sent him down the wrong road of life. You just get the impression he just exists. His life has not moved forward since he left school. He is not married, has no children, lives in a rented apartment, still goes to gigs and still collects records. This book is definitely about him finally coming of age and doing what grownups do.

I know feel I have better insight as to what goes on in the male brain after reading this. It was just brilliant. Nick Hornby is very good at observing people in his life, he can discover their hidden quirks and turn them into hilarious actions.

As this book, is very listed based, I thought I would write a list of the five reasons why I like this book.

1) It is funny, the characters end up doing such daft things. You just can't help but giggle at their eccentricities.

2) The characters are well written. You will read about them and visually see these people existing in your life in different forms. Barry is played by Jack Black in the film version of the book, and I could see him fitting the part perfectly. He is loud, brash and full of crap!

3) The lists - I loved the lists about different things, such as best records after someone has died. Five best conversations after getting back with Laura is one of my favourites.

4) It took me back to the eighties, when I was just a teenager. I loved reading about the old record players and cassette players. I remember making up tape compositions of songs for friends to listen to.

5)The fact that it is a modern real life love story. This is how it really happens - no hearts and flowers, no swooning. Just real life relationships.

I am looking forward to my next adventure into Nick Hornby land. I have purchased About a Boy, which I hope to get to soon. Can anyone recommend any other good Nick Hornby books?

Monday Mailbox and in need of some help!

Mailbox Monday is hosted by Marcia at the Printed Page and you will find her blog here.

Only one book this week in my mailbox.
Cutting Loose by Nadine Dajani. I won this book over at Natalie's site Book, Line and Sinker.
I am really looking forward to reading it, so thank you for my book. I have been good and not bought any books this week, as I have so many to read already, as well as a large collection of library books which I reserved and they all came in at once.

I have a little dilemma and I wondered if fellow book bloggers might be able to help me find some books to fit in with a challenge. I had a good look over my A to Z challenges and came up with a list of books that I own that I can read to fill in the spaces. However, I am stuck on a a couple of letters for both author and title, so I wondered if anyone could suggest any books that could fill these spaces.

Here are the letters that I cannot find titles for. They need to begin with the following letters.


Q - Quentins - suggested by Mary - Quartet in Autumn - suggested by Kristen
X - Xingu - suggested by Kristen
Y- Year of Wonders ( which I actually own!!) and Your Oasis on Flame Lake - suggested by Kristen
Z - Zabell and Zorba the Greek suggested by Kristen


Here are the letters that I can not find authors for. Their surname has to begin with this letter.


Q - Julia Quinn and Amanda Quick - suggested by Alice Teh
U- Anne Ursa - suggested by Debi - John Updike - suggested by Alice Teh

If you can think of any titles or authors to match these letters then let me know in the comments and I will add them into the post.

I hope to get round to seeing what everyone had in their mailbox this week.

Sunday Salon - Once Upon a Time Challenge

I am really bad at participating in this lately, but I would definitely say it isn't my fault. With summer heading this way, quicker than I can get the cobwebs off the suntan lotion and get the ill fitting clothes out of the suitcase, my family have become the 'lets fill every minute of the weekend until we pass out with exhaustion' type of family. I end up needing the rest of the week to recover.

We had the local carnival yesterday, which involved a 2 and half hour walk around the town. Good for me in helping to get rid of the last few pounds, bad for the children as it just made them tired and grumpy. Community spirit leads the way in June and July in our little area of the world.

My girls were in the carnival representing the sea and I went along for support. I ended up collecting money on the way round and really got into the spirit of things. I am considering a new career as a carnival supporter, as I liked all the attention!

Today is Father's Day, which means I have to pamper my hubby all day long! So not much in the way of reading will be occurring this weekend.

The Once Upon A Time challenge comes to an end today and I am pleased to have read 12 books for this challenge, which you will find listed in my sidebar. I think my favourites would have to be the Spook's books which I hope to continue reading and definitely Valiant by Holly Black. I have really enjoyed taking part in the challenge, but now have quite a few other challenges to finish and a new one just for July, which you will find detailed here.

This week I have finished reading 3 books, and I am half way through 2 others, which is absolutely fabulous for me. They are:

1)The Shop At Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber.

2)Sanction by Jim Magwood

3)High Fidelity by Nick Hornby

4)Voodoo Season by Jewell Parker Rhodes - half way through.

5)The Funny Thing Is by Ellen Degeneres - half way through.

Next week I hope to read the following books.

1)Waiting on Manana by Miranda Innes

2)A Kiss of Shadows by Laurell K. Hamilton

3)Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr - there will be a giveaway with this review.

What have you been reading this week? What books have you got lined up for next week?

And the Winner Is!

I spend ages putting all the names into the randomiser last night and winning name at the top of the list was

Jen @ Mommablogsalot

So well done Jen on winning my copy of Garden Spells. I hope you enjoy it. Please send me your home address to

vivienne_dacostaathotmaildotcom.


Sorry to everyone else who entered. I was so impressed to see my little comp appearing on so many blogs. I wish I had a copy for each and everyone one of you. I may see if I can get my hands on another copy.

There will be another giveaway next week. So do pop back and have a look.

Thanks again for visiting my blog.

Gardens Spells Competition Now Closed

Just to let you know the Gardens Spells Competition is now closed. I shall be drawing the winner using randomizer later today and will announce the winner in tomorrow's post. Good luck everyone who entered.

Friday Finds and Library Loot

Friday Finds is hosted by MizB at You Should Be Reading and you can find it here.

I have two books that I would really like to read this week.
The Painter From Shanghai by Jennifer Cody Epstein. I found this on Dar's site Peeking Between the Pages and she has a competition on her site to win it too. You will find the competition here.
Here is the synopsis from Waterstones books.

In 1913, an orphan girl boards a steamship bound for Wuhu in South East China. Left in the hands of her soft-hearted but opium-addicted uncle she is delivered to The Hall of Eternal Splendour which, with its painted faces and troubling cries in the night, seems destined to break her spirit. And yet the girl survives and one day hope appears in the unlikely form of a customs inspector, a modest man resistant to the charms of the corrupt world that surrounds him but not to the innocent girl who stands before him. From the crowded rooms of a small-town brothel, heavy with the smoke of opium pipes and the breath of drunken merchants, to the Bohemian hedonism of Paris and the 1930s studios of Shanghai, Jennifer Epstein's first novel, based on a true story, is an exquisite evocation of a fascinating time and place, with a breathtaking heroine at its heart.

s Angels in My Hair by Lorna Byrne was a book I happened to see one of my friends reading. This book really intrigues me as it is the memoirs of a woman who has grown up seeing other people's guardian angels. She was under the impression that everyone could see them. This book is meant to be one of those books that changes your outlook on life.

Here is the synopsis from Waterstones.
Angels In My Hair" is the autobiography of a modern day mystic, an Irish woman with powers of the saints of old. When she was a child, people thought Lorna was 'retarded' because she did not seem to be focusing on the world around her, instead Lorna was seeing angels and spirits. As Lorna tells the story of her life, the reader meets, as she did, the creatures from the spirit worlds who also inhabit our own - mostly angels of an astonishing beauty and variety - including the prophet Elijah and an Archangel - but also the spirits of people who have died. This remarkable document is the testimony of a woman who sees things, beyond the range of our everyday experience.

Library Loot is hosted by Eva and Alessandra and you will find them here.

I picked up four books from the library.

Getting to Manana by Miranda Innes - this is the book she wrote before Cinnamon City which I reviewed here. This is about her adventure into buying her Spanish villa.

The Funny Thing is by Ellen Degeneres - I saw this on Rebecca's blog Lost In Books and really wanted to read it. I used to watch Ellen when she had her sitcom years ago. I used love the book shop/ coffee shop she owned. I always found her funny, so I knew I wanted to read this.

Girls in Trucks by Katie Crouch - this has had a lot of airplay in the blogging world and as it is set in the south of America, it will help me with my Southern challenge.

The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry. I have wanted to read this one since I saw it in January. I just wasn't going to buy it in hardback - far too expensive! I would have waited until the paperback version came out but once I saw it in the library, I just couldn't resist.

What books did you find this week?

General ramblings of the day

Whilst at school this week, I was given this lovely set of ribbons from my friend Jo. Jo is the leader of a team of scrappers on UK Scrappers, of which I am supposed to be a member. Unfortunately since I started book blogging, my time on UK Scrappers has come to a halt. Though I did join in for the ribbon round robin, where I had to provide 9 metres of red ribbons and in exchange I received 9 metres of different coloured ribbons as seen below, which will look fab on my scrap pages.
Jo has worked really hard at trying to organise our dysfunctional team of scrappers and has now decided to take a rest from it and I really can't blame her. At least she can shout at me in person, when I don't respond by email.

With these lovely ribbons, Jo also made us a book mark each, which to me is like giving me chocolate! It is really lovely and I can't wait to use it in one of my books. Jo has just reached her 100th post this week and to commemorate this event, she is having a bit of a scrap giveaway. So if you are interested in winning some scrap goodies please visit Jo's site here and enter her competition. Jo is willing to post worldwide, so anyone can enter.

As

As I am on the subject of contests, I just want to tell you about the one Melissa is hosting over at Melissa's Bookshelf which you can find here. She is giving away seven Sukie Stackhouse books to one lucky winner and the competition is open worldwide, so do go over and enter her comp.

I thought I would share with you a couple of gardening photos as well today. I recently spent the weekend making pots and baskets for my garden and since then I seemed to have developed a bit of a gardening bug. I decided to buy some fruit and vegetable plants to grow in grow bags.

They are mainly for the girls as they seem to enjoy growing plants, but I did pick up a chilli pepper plant for myself. In the picture, you can see strawberry, courgette, cucumber, tomato and red pepper plants which I hope to transfer to grow bags this weekend. If they grow well this year and the rabbit doesn't eat everything in sight ( he hasn't definitely taken a liking to my chilli plant!) then I hope to build a vegetable patch down the side of my garden. At the moment, it is basically a place where hubby tries to hide broken things,so I am looking forward to transforming it.

Just wanted to share a picture of the trough in my front garden which is blooming beautifully at the moment.

That is all my gossip this week? What have you been up to?

Do pop back tomorrow for the winner of the Garden Spells competition, which you still have time to enter as it does not close until midnight tonight. I will also be showing my Friday Finds.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sanction by Jim Magwood

Pages 309

Published by Tate in 2008

Challenges - 100+

This is one of the books I received to review for You Gotta Read Reviews which you can find here. This is completely different from any of the other books that I have read for them and has quite a chilling outlook on what could really happen in our world.

First let me give you an outline of what the story is about.

Around the world, there are many violent events occurring that do not seem to be connected. Universities being blown up, naval ships disappearing, government files being hacked, missile launches, and innocent people being killed for no reason. These events are every day occurrences, I hear you say, but what if they seemed to be happening more often. What if a group of individuals who would not normally be connected were controlling these events in order to implement the Plan. These individuals are powerful people within their own countries and are grouping together quietly to eventually control the world. This book covers the lives of the most powerful men in the world on both sides of this silent war as they both try to bring the outcome they want. This book follows the progress of the governments trying to stop the Plan coming into fruition and the fate of the world is in there hands. Can they stop these people from taking over the world and changing the way we live forever?

Firstly, I found this choice of story very compelling once I got into it. The story line was a little scary, as you could actually see how this could happen in real life and wonder whether the governments of the world would actually be able to stop it quickly enough. I definitely think the topic of this book is something I would like to read more about.

Once I had got about 50 pages in, I actually couldn't put the book down, as snippets of information were given to me as the book went on, I would actually sit there and say 'Oh my god!' I could actually see this happening! All I can say is Nostradamus - move over, there is a new prophet in town.

I hate to say anything less than complementary about this book, because it is a good story, unfortunately I found a couple of things that let the book down.

I found the first 50 pages had just too many different chapters writing about some characters who I didn't feel played a big part in the final part of the book. There was even a couple of characters who never made another appearance and I just could not see the relevance of them. It made the beginning of the story really confusing, especially as each chapter was only about two pages long. It took me a while to realise who the book was actually about. I would definitely consider having less characters in those first chapters. It would make the book a lot sharper and more defined and aid this books climb into the bestsellers list.

I also found that with so many different characters in the book, none of them had any real dimension. I felt nothing for the characters in it at all, because I didn't feel I knew them at all.

The ending was also a little disappointing as it lost it's dramatic build up and the final events were dealt with very quickly, losing the tense build up I had enjoyed within the story.

I do feel bad to say anything bad, as I feel this book really does have a lot of potential, but in my opinion, changes would need to be made.

The Shop at Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber

Pages 408

Published by MIRA books in 2006

Challenges - 100+ books

I have to say this really isn't a book that I would normally read, but I was in need of some light reading and after hearing lots of recommendations about Debbie Macomber, I thought I would give it a go and I can now hold up my hands and say I really enjoyed it.

I was expecting a real light and fluffy book, what I actually got was a book that looks at how the most unlikely friendships develop, how people can be truly their for others. This book made me feel really good after reading it, because it talks about how when a door closes, a window opens and new opportunities come your way.

This story is about Lydia, who after suffering two bouts of brain cancer, decides it is time to live her life and do what she has always dreamed of. She opens a knitting shop, a hobby that got her through the dark times, because even when she felt really ill, she could still knit a row which was a big achievement during the bad days.

Once her shop has opened, she decides to offer knitting classes to her customers. In her class, she gets three people who develop the most unlikely friendships.

Jacqueline a wealthy society woman in her mid forties, who has an empty marriage and a son who has just married way beneath his social status and who are now expecting their first child.

Carol, a successful business woman who is unable to conceive a child and preparing to go through her final IVF treatment.

Alix a streetwise, convicted young girl, who decides to knit to fulfil her community service hours.

Every week, this unlikely trio go to Lydia's shop to learn to knit and their lives unravel and intertwine to develop into long lasting friendships.

This book deals with real life situations that affect everyone's life. Cancer, IVF treatments failing, adulterous affairs, empty marriages and drugs. There is a lot of drama and anxiety in the book, which kept me turning the pages. I felt comfortable in the company of these four women as they each try to cope with their problems and how they find solutions to help them cope.

If you read this book, you should come away thinking that you should never give up on life, because their is always a light at the end of the tunnel and life does get better. I have always believed that if something goes wrong, good will finds its way out of the situation and this book, even though it is fiction, just helps to confirm my beliefs.

I will definitely be reading the followup ' A Good Yarn' as I want to know how the characters lives develop and move on.

Debbie Macomber reminds me of an Irish writer, Sharon Owens, who writes in a similar style supplying you will a real feel good read. Her books include 'The Tavern At Maple Street' and 'The Tearoom at Mulberry Street.'

So if you are looking for a feel good book, then I would definitely recommend this one by Debbie Macomber.

Has anyone else read any books by Debbie Macomber?

Mailbox Monday

I have had such a busy weekend, I feel like my blog has been a little neglected. I haven't been able to visit many people's blogs, so I shall be playing catch up today to try and visit as many as possible.
I have received a couple of lovely emails this week from Miranda Innes who wrote Cinnamon City which I reviewed here and she has promised to come on my blog when she gets back from her latest crisis in Marrakesh, where she has found her manager has chased away her English visitor! Hopefully she will be able to tell us all about it next month.

I have received a few very lovely books this week.
Dead If I Do by Tate Hallaway, which I won over at Ladytink's site which can be found here.

The Reincarnationist by M.J Rose, which you may remember me raving about last week. I managed to pick this one up in the charity shop, so I was really chuffed.

Mr Toppit by Charles Elton - I kept seeing this book around and became quite intrigued by it. When I saw it in the charity shop I had to have it.
Here is a summary of it from Amazon.

And out of the Darkwood Mr Toppit comes, and he comes not for you, or for me, but for all of us. When The Hayseed Chronicles, an obscure series of children's books, become world-famous millions of readers debate the significance of that enigmatic last line and the shadowy figure of Mr Toppit who dominates the books. The author, Arthur Hayman, an unsuccessful screenwriter mown down by a concrete truck in Soho, never reaps the benefits of the books' success. The legacy passes to his widow, Martha, and her children - the fragile Rachel, and Luke, reluctantly immortalised as Luke Hayseed, the central character of his father's books. But others want their share, particularly Laurie, the overweight stranger from California, who comforts Arthur as he lies dying, and has a mysterious agenda of her own that changes all their lives. For buried deep in the books lie secrets which threaten to be revealed as the family begins to crumble under the heavy burden of their inheritance. Spanning several decades, from the heyday of the British film industry after the war to the cut-throat world of show business in Los Angeles, Mr Toppit is a riveting tale of the unexpected effects of sudden fame and fortune. Not since Jonathan Coe's What a Carve Up! has a novel managed to capture a family and a society to such wonderfully funny and painful effect.

The Girl Who Stopped Swimming by Joshlyn Jackson. This one has been making the rounds of the blogging world and after reading so many excellent reviews I was over the moon to find it in a little shop called Choc A Books which sells all it's brand new books for a pound.

Shamanka by Jeanne Willis is a YA book also from the Choc a Book shop. Here is a short description of it.

What is magic? What is illusion? What is real? Step into the extraordinary world of Sam Khaan, who has just discovered a witch doctor's notebook in her attic. Convinced that it belongs to her long-lost father - the son of a witch doctor - she sets out on a journey to discover the answers to these questions. In her encounters with diviners and healers, conjurers and mystics, Sam learns the truth about magic the hard way. Here is your chance to take a far easier route.

So these are the books I received this week. What did you get?

Saturday Scrapping

I finally got around to making some scrap pages last week. I went to my regular monthly scrap day and spent a lovely day with my friends.
I managed to make two single layouts and one double layout during the day.

My first layout is a very simple page and only took me half hour to make. The picture was taken at Leonardslee Gardens and is definitely one of my favourites. The paper is from the My Minds Eye range.
This second layout was created to show the Hannah Montana mania that seems to have taken over my house. We went with friends to see the Hannah Montana film and I have to say I really enjoyed it. I actually thought it was funnier than the programme.

The paper used is actually Hannah Montana paper from Sandylion which I bought about a year ago and never used.

This is my double layout of Leonardslee Gardens, one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited. I will definitely be making a return trip in the Autumn to see all the Autumn leaves on the trees.

I made the title using my Sizzix machine, which is in dire need of some more alphabets.

The stick on birds and bees are by Kraft Kutz and they are fabulous for adding to pages.

That is my creative bit for the week. Have you done any scrapbooking? Have you made anything creative this week?

Friday Finds

Friday Finds is hosted by MizB at You Should Be Reading and you can find it here.

I have found four books this week, that I would really like to add to my collection.

White is for Witching is by Helen Oyeyemi, who is one of Waterstones 25 authors for the Future.
Her first novel The Icarus Girl was written whilst she was studying for her A levels. This book was written during a year Helen spent doing volunteer work in South Africa. She got the idea from the house she was staying in .

Here is a synopsis of the book.


In a vast, mysterious house on the cliffs near Dover, the Silver family is reeling from the hole punched into its heart. Lily is gone and her twins, Miranda and Eliot, and her husband, the gentle Luc, mourn her absence with unspoken intensity. All is not well with the house, either, which creaks and grumbles and malignly confuses visitors in its mazy rooms, forcing winter apples in the garden when the branches should be bare. Generations of women inhabit its walls. And Miranda, with her new appetite for chalk and her keen sense for spirits, is more attuned to them than she is to her brother and father. She is leaving them slowly –
Slipping away from them –
And when one dark night she vanishes entirely, the survivors are left to tell her story.

A real spine tingling tale, with Gothic roots.

I came across this Sarah Waters book by accident, whilst searching for another one and was quite taken by it. This book is set in the same time period as Night Watch.

Here is a synopsis of it.

In a dusty post-war summer in rural Warwickshire, a doctor is called to a patient at Hundreds Hall. Home to the Ayres family for over two centuries, the Georgian house, once grand and handsome, is now in decline, its masonry crumbling, its gardens choked with weeds, the clock in its stable yard permanently fixed at twenty to nine. But are the Ayreses haunted by something more sinister than a dying way of life? Little does Dr Faraday know how closely, and how terrifyingly, their story is about to become entwined with his. Prepare yourself. From this wonderful writer who continues to astonish us, now comes a chilling ghost story.

I do love a spooky story!

The Chosen One by Carol Lynch William. I read about this book on Lost in Books which you will find here

The synopsis from Amazon is as follows.

'Taking a story “ripped from the headlines,” Williams looks inside a polygamist cult and the dangers it poses for one girl. Kyra and her father, three mothers, and 20 siblings live in an isolated community under the thumb of a prophet, who controls every aspect of his apostles’ lives. The most shocking intrusion of all comes when the prophet decrees that Kyra is to become the wife of her 60-year-old uncle. A secret patron of a local mobile library, Kyra knows there’s a world away from the compound she might escape to, but first she pins her hopes on her father’s ability to change the prophet’s mind. Instead, her family is threatened, and the stakes for her refusal to marry are raised. The clandestine relationship Kyra is having with one of the compound’s teenage boys is a romance more convenient than convincing (everyone is carefully watched except this duo, it seems). Contrivances notwithstanding, this is a heart pounder, and readers will be held, especially as the danger escalates. Williams’ portrayals of the family are sharp, but what’s most interesting about this book is how the yearnings and fears of a character so far from what most YAs know will still seem familiar and close.'

The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt.

Here is the blurb on the book.

Olive Wellwood is a famous writer, interviewed with her children gathered at her knee. For each of them she writes a separate private book, bound in different colours and placed on a shelf. In their rambling house near Romney Marsh they play in a story-book world - but their lives, and those of their rich cousins, children of a city stockbroker, and their friends, the son and daughter of a curator at the new Victoria and Albert Museum, are already inscribed with mystery. Each family carries its own secrets. Into their world comes a young stranger, a working-class boy from the potteries, drawn by the beauty of the Museum's treasures. And in midsummer a German puppeteer arrives, bringing dark dramas. The world seems full of promise but the calm is already rocked by political differences, by Fabian arguments about class and free love, by the idealism of anarchists from Russia and Germany. The sons rebel against their parents' plans; the girls dream of independent futures, becoming doctors or fighting for the vote. This vivid, rich and moving saga is played out against the great, rippling tides of the day, taking us from the Kent marshes to Paris and Munich and the trenches of the Somme. Born at the end of the Victorian era, growing up in the golden summers of Edwardian times, a whole generation grew up unaware of the darkness ahead. In their innocence, they were betrayed unintentionally by the adults who loved them. In a profound sense, this novel is indeed the children's book.

I am absolutely intrigued by this book.

So there are my findings this week, what books did you find?