Merry Christmas to you all!

It is that time of year, when the blogging world becomes a little bit quieter due to the festive period. So I am going to take the next few days off to enjoy some quality time with my family.  We have lots of Christmas activities planned and we intend to do a lot of baking tomorrow.  So I will wish you all a Happy Christmas and I will see you all after Boxing Day.

Merry Christmas everyone.

A Redbird Christmas by Fannie Flagg

Pages - 207

Published by Vintage in 2005

Everywhere she looked, for as far as she could see, was absolutely white, until all of a sudden she saw a flash of a powerful, incredible red streak by the window, then two, then four. When she leaned out and looked down, she saw that the ground was filled with big red camellias that must have fallen off the bushes. It was not until she saw one fly away the she realized that the whole yard was alive with redbirds!

I am so glad that I managed to find this gorgeous little book by Fannie Flagg, it really did give me a glow in my heart.  Fannie Flagg is one of those authors who makes you believe that miracles really do happen.  Her books are just so heartwarming to read and full of surprises and wonder. 

This is a rather short book but packed full to the brim of interesting and heartwarming characters. The book begins with Oswald, a depressed former alcoholic who has been given months to live. After reading a brochure given to him by his doctor, he decides to move from the bitter cold of Chicago to the warmer climate of Lost River, Alabama.  Oswald is a pitiful character, who cannot see a future to get excited about and it is lovely to see how his whole persona is transformed during his time at Lost River. He changes from someone who cannot see any further than his death to a self made man with a rosy future and an instant family.

Lost River is a town full of Golden Girls and Steel Magnolias. These women are very strong characters and reminded me a lot of the female characters in Fried Green Tomatoes At The Whistlestop Cafe.  They are self sufficient and help to create a warm welcome  to all the lost souls that wander into Lost River. 

Two of the main characters within the book are rather unusual leads.  Firstly, there is Jack the rare Red Cardinal, which was saved from death by the local shop owner Pat. You cannot help but love Jack as he mixes with the characters in the book.  He is loved by all, as he creates havoc.  He is especially loved by the second unusual lead character, Patsy, the trailer park child with  a crippled leg. Both of these characters will grab hold of your emotions from their first appearance and tie your heartstrings into knots.  You cannot help but laugh and cry at their adventures.

This is a truly wonderful heartwarming book. I would love to say I had nothing bad to comment on it, but I do have two minor irritations.

Firstly the copy of the book that I now own had loads of spelling mistakes. Well I think they were spelling mistakes unless drug stores are now known as drag stores. Or maybe the little girl liked to also be known as Pasty! 

Now I know I am not always on the ball with my spellings and my grammar, but you can't buy my blog from a book store! I just wish the editors had been a little more meticulous when proofreading the final copy.

Secondly, the ending slightly bothered me. Everything was wrapped up a little too quickly and a little too neatly for my liking. It would have been more enjoyable if the ending had been longer, giving the character's wrap up more of a natural development.

I definitely want to read more by Fannie Flagg and hope to get hold of her other books soon. Perhaps I will have a Fannie Flagg month next year too.

Skating Around The Christmas Tree

On the weekend we took the girls to Brighton to go ice skating. Just for the festive season, the lovely

Brighton Council have allowed for a real ice skating rink to be constructed. It has been set up on the beautiful grounds of the Brighton Pavilion.

 We were lucky to get on the ice rink as we managed to get the last four tickets for the early afternoon session.  The girls had only ever been skating on the plastic ice skating rinks, so this was a new experience for them. 

 The Pavilion looked beautiful and they had a band playing Christmas carols whilst we skated. 

 I hadn't been on the ice since I was seventeen, so I wondered if I could still do it. It was a breeze and I can't wait to go again. I can't believe how hefty I look in the photos but I did have quite a few layers on as the weather has been freezing. Hubby said I looked like a Victorian skater with my Christmas coat on. All I needed was one of those furry hand muffs to finish it off.

 The girls were not as easy on the ice, but I am hoping with a bit of practice they will get the hang of it.
After ice skating, we went to the international buffet for lunch. 

 This guy was playing Christmas carols on his saxophone and it sounded beautiful.

A festive scene from Brighton.

We had a  lovely day and none of us can wait to go ice skating again.

Christmas Library Loot

Happy Christmas week to you all. I hope the run up the festive season is treating you a little better than us.  We have had an igloo for a house all weekend as our boiler packed up on the weekend, leaving us without any heat.  Luckily we did have some electric heaters, a fire and immersion heater for the water, but it is terrible what you get used to.  I am so thankful for central heating and feel for anyone who doesn't have it. It made me feel very appreciative of what I have.  I wasn't even upset when the ceiling in the dining room started to crack due to a leaky pipe in the bathroom. Normally that would have really upset me, but the house finally being warm, had me happy as Larry.

We have had a busy weekend. We took the girls ice skating on Saturday which was lovely and then went to the pantomime yesterday.  Hubby had to miss the pantomime in order to stay at home and make sure our pipes didn't freeze and burst, so I felt rather bad going without him.

I had great plans for this week on my blog, but I think I am going to have to play this week by ear.  I have yet to buy food for Christmas, or to do the baking I had planned. Presents are still to be wrapped and the girls are supposed to be having a sleepover tomorrow, as well as family staying over Christmas. Don't even ask me about my Christmas journal, as I may snarl with anger!!!

I did manage to get to the library to pick up some festive books for the season.  If I get to read them I will be impressed, if not they will make lovely coffee table additions over the Christmas period.

1) Jane Austen's Christmas by Maria Hubert - this book gives you an insight into what Christmas would have been like for Jane and has details from family letters in it, describing their Christmas past times.

2)  Dicken's Christmas by Simon Callow - this is written by the actor who you may remember being the only one to die in Four Weddings and a Funeral.  This is an account of Christmas in Dicken's time and also has A Christmas Carol in it.

3) A Christmas Guest by Anne Perry - this is a Victorian crime novella and is brilliant. It reminds a little of the Agatha Christie style murders.

4) All I Want For Christmas by Amy Silver - pure Chick Lit Christmas Comfort Read!

I also have Comfort and Joy by India Knight, which is the funniest Christmas book I have ever read.  If you are a stressed mother during the festive season, then this book is for you.

 As you can see, my cat decided to help whilst I took photos of my library loot. He was determined to be in the picture. He looks like King Kong.

As some of you may know I am not committing myself to any challenges next year as I failed miserably. Instead I hope to devote each month to different genres and authors.  I have decided to make January my Young Adult month.  That doesn't mean that I won't read other books as well, but I hope to spend January predominantly reading Young Adult books. So I went to the library to pick up a few extra which is a bit of a joke as I have far too many unread Young Adult books on my shelves and I know I am probably getting more for Christmas!

1) Eternal by Cynthia Leitich Smith - angel YA in an alternate reality where vampires and werewolves do exist.

2) White Crow by Marcus Sedgewick - a modern gothic thriller. Clover at Fluttering Butterflies recently reviewed this and it sounded fantastic.

3) Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn. I have been wanting to read this for a while since Ana reviewed it. Ella Minnow Pea is a girl living happily on the fictional island of Nollop off the coast of South Carolina. Nollop was named after Nevin Nollop, author of the immortal pangram,* “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.” Now Ella finds herself acting to save her friends, family, and fellow citizens from the encroaching totalitarianism of the island’s Council, which has banned the use of certain letters of the alphabet as they fall from a memorial statue of Nevin Nollop. As the letters progressively drop from the statue they also disappear from the novel. The result is both a hilarious and moving story of one girl’s fight for freedom of expression, as well as a linguistic tour de force sure to delight word lovers everywhere.

4) The Drowning by Valerie Mendes.Sixteen-year-old Jenna wants to dance - not just in dance class or in her bedroom, but professionally, in London, under the eyes of the best teachers in the world. But a fatal accident blows her family and Cornish life apart and, guilty and grief-stricken, she puts all her plans on hold. Until a chance meeting with someone who was there with her that tragic afternoon. Who is he, and how can he help her? Will Jenna find the courage and determination to follow her dreams?

5) The Maze Runner by James Dashner - Dystopian fiction. When the doors of the lift crank open, the only thing Thomas remembers is his first name. But he's not alone. He's surrounded by boys who welcome him to the Glade - a walled encampment at the centre of a bizarre and terrible stone maze. Like Thomas, the Gladers don't know why or how they came to be there - or what's happened to the world outside. All they know is that every morning when the walls slide back, they will risk everything - even the Grievers, half-machine, half-animal horror that patrols its corridors, to find out.


These should keep me occupied over the festive season.  I hope to show you some festive photos tomorrow.

Have a great day.

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Pages - 435

To Be Published in 2011 by Harper Collins

This book was sent to me as part of the International Book Tours.

The first time, November 6 to be exact, I wake up at two a.m. with a tingling in my head like tiny fireflies dancing behind my eyes. I smell smoke. I get up and wander from room to room to make sure no part of the house is on fire. Everything's fine, everybody sleeping, tranquil. It's more of a campfire smoke, anyway, sharp and woodsy. I chalk it up to the usual weirdness that is my life. I try, but can't get back to sleep. So I go downstairs. And I'm drinking a glass fo water at the kitchen sink, when, with no other warning, I'm in the middle of the burning forest. It's not like a dream. It's like I'm physically there.

Clara Gardner has recently found out that she is part angel and that her life has a purpose she must fulfill. She knows her purpose will happen soon, she is just not sure how it will happen. All she knows is that she must save a boy named Christian from a fire.  Clara and her family move to where they believe her purpose will occur and Clara struggles to come to terms with the changes that are occurring in her life. 

Cast aside Hush, Hush and Fallen, this is an angel book that grips from page one and has you glued to the book until the end. Finally I have found an angel book that I can recommend. This really is the kind of book I have been looking for since embarking on the paranormal YA route, where even though it is part of a series, it reads like a roller coaster, twists and turns and shocks you as you fly through the pages and ends leaving you satisfied that everything has been taken care of but you are left wanting more.

The characters are well rounded, if not a little annoying at times.  My favourite had to be Tucker. He is adorable and rugged at the same time. I found Clara's mother rather strange as she seemed to keep her daughter in the dark too much about what she was capable of and I found that to be a little unrealistic, as most mother's would not leave their daughter's unprotected and unaware of what could happen to them. Clara was OK as a lead, if not a little flat. She was the perfect girl, who moves to a new area and has to start all over again, so you understand her insecurities about being the new person.

This book carries a lot of unexpected events, that made me sit and gasp. I would definitely say that parts of the plot were unexpected and threw me a little bit. It really is worth a read.

I Am Four by Pittacus Lore

Pages - 360

Published in 2010 by Penguin Group

This book was sent to me as part of the UK Book Tour run by the lovely Lynsey.

The door starts shaking. It's a flimsy thing made of bamboo shoots held together with tattered lengths of twine. The shake is subtle and stops almost immediately. They lift their heads to listen, a fourteen year old boy and a fifty year old men, who everyone thinks is his father but who was born near a different jungle on a different planet hundreds of light years away. They are lying shirtless on opposite sides of the hut, a mosquito net over each cot. They hear a distant crash, like the sound of animal breaking the branch of a tree, but in this case, it sounds like the entire tree has been broken.

Oh, how I loved this book. This was a completely different type of genre for me, I am not normally interested in sci fi or alien orientated books but this one had me gripped from page one. It was like being on a space ship hurtling to the Earth and having no time to catch your breath.   I could not put it down and I am sad to part with it.

I think the best way to describe the book is to reprint the blurb from the back of the book, as I couldn't possibly write it any better.

In the beginning we were nine.

We left when we were very young, almost too young to remember. Almost. And now...

Three are gone.

We are here to keep our race alive, which was almost entirely obliterated. We're just trying to  survive.

Six are left.

Bur we are hunted, and the hunters won't stop until they've killed us all.

They caught Number One in Malaysia

Number Two In England.

And Number Three in Kenya.

I am Number Four.

I know that I am next.

The aliens within the book look and act just like us, but they all have some extra abilities which would be lovely to have.  Number Four is known as John for now, but he changes his name with every town he moves too. He has to move a lot, because he never knows when he might be attacked. He has grown up as a normal boy and all he wants to be is a normal teenager with friends and a girlfriend. You cannot help but love him and feel sorry for him at the same time. He has never seen the aliens chasing him, so he has no idea what to expect. 

The book is very descriptive and action packed and I can understand why it is being made into a movie. It reads like an action packed Arnold Schwarzenegger film.   You are on edge from the first page. Hoping that John will survive the unknown. 

I think one of the main reasons that I loved this book, was because I used to be a huge fan of the alien series Roswell, with the three aliens living in Roswell who were not sure where they had come from and were trying to be normal teenagers. If you loved this series too, then this book is definitely one for you. It was lovely to see the alien races stepping forward to take on the vampire/fairy/angel books that have flooded our book shelves recently.

The author of the book, Pittacus Lore is fictional. Supposedly an alien seeking to warn us about the danger that lies ahead for the world. It adds to the suspense of the books. 

I can highly recommend this book and I can't wait to read the next in the series. As I understand it there are to be six books and the next one will be out in Spring 2011.  Once again, can I thank Lesley for sending me a fantastic YA book to read.

Journal Your Christmas Part 2

As promised, here is the second part of my Christmas journal. I have to admit to being rather behind on it, but once the girls break up from school on Thursday I hope to have more time to catch up.

 Day 4 is about what would make Christmas perfect for you. For me, a perfect Christmas would be to see it snow on Christmas Day.  I have never ever seen it and just once would be wonderful.  There is a strong chance that it just might happen this year, so I am keeping my fingers crossed.

 Day 5 was my own choice of topic. I chose to write about the chaos of decorating the house at Christmas. We have three Christmas trees in our house and it seems to take forever to decorate them.  They look lovely when they are done but it does cause a lot of stress and mess in our house.  The girls did  a lot of it this year, if fact they decorated all three trees whilst listening to the Christmas CD's.

 Day 6 - I wanted to show an old fashioned Advent Calender, like the ones I was given as a child. We never had ones with chocolate in back then. We just opened a box to a pretty Christmas scene. One of my most favourite ones was a colouring in one. It was  a cross section of a three storey house on Christmas eve and each day you had to colour in another part of it. I wish I could find a copy of it. Talking of colouring, does anyone remember those huge Doodle Art pictures you used to get in a tube. There was only one picture in it, but it was huge and very detailed and it came with some Berol colouring pens, which I still buy today for my girls.

 Day 7 - Things still left to do for Christmas. That was my list as of the seventh of December. I am working my way through it slowly!

 Day 8 - I wanted to show my door wreath and I am really pleased with how the picture came out.  In fact this is my favourite page so far of this journal. 

 I love these little wreath eyelets. I paid 50p for six of them from The Works.

Day 9 - shows my dining room table waiting for the Christmas celebrations to begin. I always have a runner and a candle display on my table during December. 

I will hopefully be able to show you some more pages next week. If I manage to get my finger out and get them done. Aargh! Not enough hours in the day, ladies, not enough hours.!

Henrietta's War by Joyce Dennys

Pages 158

First published in 1985. Republished by The Bloomsbury Group in 2009

'I was thinking today,' said Lady B dreamily,'That if all we useless old women lined up on the beach, each of us with a large stone in our hand, we might do a lot of damage.'
'The only time I  saw you try to throw a stone, Julia, it went over your shoulder behind you,' said Mrs Savernack.
'Then I shall stand with my back towards the Germans,'said Lady B comfortably.

Henrietta's War is a fascinating book written in epistolary form. The main character Henrietta is based on the author herself.  Joyce Dennys created the character of Henrietta for an article for Sketch. The article took the format of letter's written by Henrietta to her childhood friend Robert, who is away fighting in the war.  The article was an instant success and Dennys was asked for more.  Her fictional letters then became a regular feature in Sketch until the end of the war. The book only came about after Dennys found a bundle of cuttings during her later years in life whilst  spring cleaning her house. The cuttings were her articles from Sketch. After reading them with a friend, she was reminded of what life used to be like during the war and her friend encouraged her to have them printed. And here in my hands, is the book that came to be.

This is a delightful book that had me giggling every few pages. The antics of the villagers in this little village in Devon are hilarious. Each character more eccentric than the last. You cannot help but love them all and feel a little disappointed when you reach the last page.

This gives you a real insight into how quieter parts of the country like Devon coped during the war. There is a real sense of community amongst the villagers as they come together to do their bit for the war effort.  It made me nostalgic for a period of time I never knew.

Denny's main character Henrietta is wonderful. You can feel her fear mixed in with her bravery.  She struggled through the difficult times, scared of what might happen, jumping at every loud noise. She is real and very believable.  I could see elements of myself within her character, as she tries to put on a brave face yet feels scared out of her wits at every change that occurs through out the war.

This is a wonderfully charming little book that shows the lighter side of war. It doesn't dwell on the dark times, the unfortunate deaths and hardship that occurred. It looks more at community and making the most of what they had.  I often wonder during our times of gluttony and instant gratification, how we would survive if this situation arose again.  Would be learn to make do, after growing up in a era of want being seen as need.

If you enjoyed books such as The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and 84 Charring Cross Road, then you will love this book.  It has also been likened to The Diary of a Provincial Lady, but as I have never read it, I couldn't possibly comment. There is a followup to this book called 'Henrietta Sees It Through,' which has recently been republished by The Bloomsbury Group. It continues with the letters through the war and I for one, can't wait to read it.

Christmas Eve at Friday Harbour by Lisa Kleypas

Pages - 211

Published by Piatkus in 2010

Dear Santa
I want just one thing this year. A mom. Please don't forget I live in Friday Harbour now thank you,
Love Holly

Mark Nolan is given custody of his orphaned niece Holly.  He knows he cannot bring her up alone, so turns to his younger brother for help and they move into his house on his own vineyard.  Molly has become a selective mute, since losing her mother and Mark tries everything he can to help her talk again.  One afternoon, whilst wandering around the local toy shop, Holly becomes entranced by the free spirited owner of the shop, Maggie Flynn. Maggie manages to coax Holly to talk again.  Mark and Holly become entranced by Maggie but Maggie is afraid to commit. Then Mark finds Holly's letter to Father Christmas and realises that he may be able to make her Christmas come true.

Ok, mmm, what shall I say about this one. I was expecting a very Christmassy romantic, comforting book. What I got was a romantic book, which is fine, but it wasn't very Christmassy.  Christmas is dealt with in the last chapter and that is it.  I was looking for a book that dived into Christmas from page one, so I do feel  a little like I had been mislead.  When looking at the cover, you would believe that this was a Christmas novel, but it really isn't.

It is a nice cosy romantic chick lit book which I enjoyed and actually fitted in with a rather hectic and stressful week. The story is very predictable, no surprises at all, but I don't think I was really expecting any. It's not the best book I have read and by far not the worst.  A bit too short for my liking and a little bit rushed. 

If you like romance and escapism, then this is nice short book to lose a couple of hours in.


PS - Apologies for my unexpected absence this week. It seems that Christmas crept up behind me, stressed me out and then left like a whirlwind. Normal service should be resumed as of today.

Journal Your Christmas Part 1

As promised, here are the first few pages of my Christmas Scrapbooking Journal. This is the third year that I have made one of these and as I have been doing it for so long now, that I don't always follow the prompts set out by Shimelle.

I was a bit late to actually start this and didn't make the numbers to go on each page until the 3rd, so my pages may appear a little rushed. I wanted the numbers to look a little like stamps. I decided to only colour n the berries and then I went around the numbers with glitter glue.

 My first page is about what I expect this Christmas to be like.  To be honest, I want this one to be less stressful as last year we just took too much on. I had a whole week solid of entertaining last year and by New Years Day I was exhausted. We are definitely going for a quiet one this year, where I can watch lots of cheesy films with my kids and eat and drink in excess.

 The second page is about the weather. In past years I have been wishing for snow, this year I didn't need to as it started snowing on the 1st of December. I know it has all gone now, but I am absolutely positive it will be back.

 My third page is about the Christmas cards I send. This year I failed to make my own, but the girls did. I bought some with a New York scene. I chose these because we had planned to go to New York this Christmas, but for one reason or another it didn't happen. One day I will get there to do some Christmas shopping. Sigh!

I hope you like my first three pages. Not my best work, but at least they are done. I hope to show you more as the week goes on.

Monday Mail

I have picked up four new books this week which were all purchased from local Christmas Fayres.  The books came at a rather reasonable price of two for 50p!

1) Last Christmas by Julia Williams - a bit of Christmas chick lit.  The main character does have the surname Tinsall! There is also a character name Noel and they live in a town called Hope Christmas. I am not sure whether this one will be festive enough, what do you think?

2) One Day by David Nicholls - I have been wanting to read this for ages. 15th July 1988 - Emma and Dexter meet on the night of their graduation. Tomorrow they must go there separate ways. So where will they be on this one day next year? And the year after that? And every year that follows? I can't wait to read this one.

3) The Legacy by Katherine Webb - this was one of the TV Book Club's Summer Reads.  This is a book about two sisters. One heartbreaking secret and a past that cannot stay buried.

4) The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver - this book was the winner of the Orange Prize For Fiction this year.Set in Mexico in 1935. Harrison Shepherd is working in the household of famed muralist Diego Rivera and his wife Frida  Kahlo. Sometimes cook, sometimes secretary, Shepherd observes his employers, keeping a diary and notebook of his time. When exiled Bolshevik leader Lev Trotsky arrives, Shepherd inadvertently casts in his lot with art and revolution and his aim for an invisible life is thwarted forever.

So those are the books that I got, what came to your house this week?

Sunday Salon - it has been a long time!

I actually can't remember the last time I took part in The Sunday Salon. It must have been at the beginning of the year. I will actually need to go back to the list of posts to find out.  I thought I would try to get back into writing them as I do miss the friendly weekly chat with all the other book bloggers.

I had hoped to do lots of reading this weekend, but Christmas has started to take over.  We have been busily decorating the house for the festive season, as well as making Christmas cards to send out to our family and friends. My Christmas journal is up to date and I will post some pictures of it on Tuesday.

At the moment, I am reading one festive book, Christmas Eve at Friday Harbour by Lisa Kleypas. It is a romantic novel, which is a lot different from my normal choice of books. It is light hearted and enjoyable. I am also reading Mrs Harris Goes To Paris by Paul Gallico. A rather delightful read.

I thought I might add my November reads into this post today.

I read ten books this month and I am over the moon about that as it was rather difficult to find time to read when your doing NaNoWriMo as well, but I did it.

I did try and take part in the November Novella Challenge and I managed four novellas. I had hoped to read 8 but I was sent three review books that had to be read rather quickly, so it all went pear shaped.

Here are the books I read during the November..

1) The Small Hand by Susan Hill (Novella)

2) Cheerful Weather For a Wedding by Julia Strachey (Novella)

3) Moondial by Helen Cresswell ( Children's)

4) Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger ( Book Club)

5) Finding Sky by Joss Stirling (Review copy)

6) Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen (Review copy)

7) Henrietta's War by Joyce Dennys (Novella)

8) Three Men In a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome (Library)

9) The Haunting by Margaret Mahy (Novella)

10) I Am Four by Pitticus Lore (Review Copy)

I still haven't reviewed the last four books on the list and hope to get those written soon. I still have Dear Daddy Long Legs to review  too.

How did your reading month go during November?

Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen

Pages - 389

Published in 2010 by Harper Collins

Read as part of the International Book Tours.

It is easy to forget now, how effervescent and free we all felt that summer. Everything fades: the shimmer of gold over White Cover; the laughter in the night air; the lavender early morning light on the face of skyscrapers, which had suddenly become so heroically tall.Every dawn seemed to promise fresh miracles, among other joys that are in short supply these days. And so I will try to tell you, while I still remember, how it was then before everything changed - that final season of an era that roared.

Bright Young Things follows the life and trials of three bright young things during the year of 1929. Letty Larkspur and her best friend Cordelia Grey leave their small town lives in Ohio for the bright lights of New York. Letty is desperate to become a star and Cordelia wants to find her father who she believes to be one of the richest bootleggers in town.  The girls arrive together, but go their separate way after a huge argument. Letty finds work in an illegal drinking establishment as a cigarette girl, whilst Cordelia discovers that life isn't exactly what she imagined it would be living with her famous father. The third girl to be included in the story is Astrid, who is the girlfriend of Cordelia newly discovered brother Charlie.  She befriends Cordelia and we get to see that her glamorous life isn't as glamorous as she would like it to be. 

Many of you may have read and enjoyed Anna Godbersen's Luxe series which is set during the Victorian era. As of yet, I haven't read them, but I jumped at the chance to read her new series set during the 1920's.  I found the book to be an interesting read, if not perhaps a little predictable, but perhaps that is just me. There were no surprises for me in the book. 

The book reminded me of more modern times. I felt that I could almost pick up the cast of 90210 and drop them into the book and they would fit right in after a makeover, because the storylines were timeless. Teenagers getting knocked down and cheated on, before they get back up, dust themselves down and take revenge.The characters are interesting enough, but didn't really grab my attention enough. I wasn't desperate to see them resolve their issues.

I have always been fascinated by the Prohibition and the illegal drinking that went on during the 1920's and wanted to find out more. Unfortunately this book, didn't  really elaborate on the subject as I had hoped. I didn't find it descriptive enough, it really did just provide the basics.

Certain parts of the story happened a little too easy for my liking. The way Cordelia's father took her into the family without even a little doubt in his mind. He hadn't seen her since she was a toddler, yet he accepted her straight into his family. I kept expecting him to find out she wasn't really his daughter and turf her out all the way through the book. The way Astrid took Charles back so easily after his unfaithfulness.  She just accepted that he had slept with someone else and in her mind that was OK. Duh! It was all just too easy, not enough angst for the situations, that I would expect.

An easy light read, that could easily have occurred in  New York today.  Not sure if it will have me racing for the Luxe series though.

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

I know I said I would be back on Wednesday but it didn't happen. My week got taken over by a serious snow visitor that made itself at home. It came down quickly and heavily and decided to stay awhile. Keeping the children off school and in desperate need of entertaining, constant feeding and refueling in order to keep playing in the snow.

 I haven't seen snow like this since I was about eighteen and living in Essex. We have had more snow this year than I have seen in the seven years we have lived here. Normally we miss every little bit of snow as we are near the coast.

 I was getting quite irate on Tuesday when every news programme and weather forecast showed how Britain was gripped by heavy snow and we didn't even have an icicle growing off the conservatory. Then Wednesday morning, we woke up to about an inch of snow. School was still open, so the girls and I braved the elements by walking a mile and a half to school. I was not prepared to risk crashing my car on ice. As the day wore on, the snow kept falling and it was getting rather serious. Luckily hubby was at home, as he was unable to get to work and went to pick the girls up. He has a car that is built for bad weather and I actually call the car Nasher, as it eats up the snow.

 The snow kept falling through the night and when we woke up yesterday morning, there was about six inches of snow.  England came to a complete standstill. We are rubbish when it comes to snow and just cannot function. So school was shut and we headed out to play in the snow.

 Hubby says I look like a soldier!

So as you can see my week has been hijacked!

I haven't even begun to make my Christmas journal, so I am already three days behind. I hope to get around to it today.  I haven't written a book review all week and I have a stack of them left to do.  I haven't even read anyone's blogs this week, so I do hope to get around today. 

I hope you like the seasonal look to my blog. I was feeling rather festive with all this snow around.