Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books With Autumn Themes 10/10/17

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists over there at The Broke and the Bookish. I'd love to share my lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

It's definitely beginning to feel a lot like autumn now. Denver had had its first snow and here in the UK it's nearly October half term! There are definitely some great autumn themed books out there, and some set at the beginning of a new school year (which feels like autumn for me) so here's my list. 

Bookshop Day Haul and Books Are My Bag Giveaway!

So Saturday was Bookshop Day a day all book lovers head to their local bookshops to show them some love and of course buy some books! 

This day is run by the fabulous Books Are My Bag campaign-if you're not already following them on Twitter, you should do! I'm going to show you where I went and what I bought but first I wanted to tell you about the amazing competition that the Books Are My Bag campaign are running this year.

To celebrate selling 1 million Books Are My Bag tote bags, they are offering book lovers the prize bundle of a lifetime - £250 National Book Tokens, a Golden ticket to the Hay Festival, a picture signed by Quentin Blake, West End tickets… This is the most incredibly gift ever!

To enter, bookshop lovers just need to Tweet #OneInAMillion saying what their favourite bookshop is and why. 

People will have until 7^th November to enter the competition, with the three lucky winners being revealed on 25^th November. You can find the Bookseller Association, who run Books Are My Bag and Bookshop Day, on twitter @BAbooksellers

The #OneInAMillion Prize winner will take home:

·         An exclusive, one-off Orla Kiely leather bag

·         £250 in National Book Tokens

·         A golden ticket to Hay Festival

·         Afternoon Tea for Two at Claridges (Hachette)

·         London Zoo tickets and a copy of Zoo Quest (Hachette)

·         A limited-edition copy of Alan Bennett’s Keeping on Keeping On, RRP £200 (Faber)

·         A limited-edition print from Billy and the Minpins, signed by Quentin Blake (Puffin)

·         A special edition Handmaid’s Tale (Vintage)

·         A set of Vintage Classics Dickens (Vintage)

·         A signed Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World print by Kate Pankhurst (Bloomsbury)

·         A signed first-edition copy of Sparsholt Affair by Alan Hollinghurst (Pan Macmillan)

·         A set of PanMacmillan70th Anniversary edition books (Pan Macmillan)

·         A pair of tickets to The Christmasaurus Live on Stage at the London Apollo (Penguin Random House) – any date between 20 – 28th December

Two runners up will also be in with the chance of winning the following fantastic prizes:

Second Prize

·         A signed copy of Hurrah for Gin by Katie Kirby, together with a bottle of Sipsmith gin (Hachette)

·         A copy of Nigella Lawson’s new cookbook, At My Table (Vintage)

·         A signed copy of The Pearl Thief by Elizabeth Wein (Bloomsbury)

·         A signed copy of My Name is Victoria by Lucy Worsley (Bloomsbury)

·         A signed copy of Moonrise by Sarah Crossan (Bloomsbury)

·         Subscription to the New Scientist magazine (Hachette)

·         Haunted House tour and a signed copy of Devil’s Day by Andrew Hurley (Hachette)

·         A mounted Emily Sutton print (Bloomsbury)

Third Prize

·         A copy of Sleeping Beauties by Stephen King and a box set of Stephen King DVD’s (Hachette)

·         A signed copy of Down to Earth: Gardening Wisdom by Monty Don (DK)

·         A copy of The Creakers by Tom Fletcher (Puffin)

·         A signed print of Oliver Jeffers’ new book Here We Are (Penguin Random House)

·         A Perfectly Norman print by Tom Percival (Bloomsbury)

The competition marks the 1 millionth Books Are My Bag tote bag to be worn by the public, showing their support for bookshops in the UK & Ireland.

Meryl Halls, Head of Membership Services at the Booksellers Association, said: “Reaching our one millionth supporter is a hugely exciting milestone, and we’re delighted to be able to show our thanks to bookshop lovers across the UK & Ireland with this fabulous prize. It is wonderful to see the book industry coming together to support bookshops with the amazing prizes they have donated. We wish everyone the best of luck, and look forward to hearing all about our supporters’ favourite bookshops!”

Bookshop lovers will have until 7^th November to enter the competition, with the lucky winners being revealed on 25^th November, when bookshops across the country will offer a Saturday Sanctuary as respite from the business of daily life.

Orla Kiely, said: “I am so happy to have collaborated with the Bookseller’s Association. As a great lover of books and bookshops, nothing gives me more pleasure than discovering a new book, whether it’s a beautiful edition on a new favourite photographer, a great novel or a rare out of print edition. There is nothing more relaxing, inspiring or stimulating than reading and losing oneself in another world. We should all take time to read and importantly, to encourage our children to love books.”

Now in its fifth year, the Books Are My Bag campaign highlights and celebrates the vital role of high street and campus bookshops. Over the last four years, a million people have worn a Books Are My Bag canvas bag in support of the campaign.

More details on Books Are My Bag 2017 will be unveiled in the coming weeks; keep an eye on www.booksaremybag.com for updates.

And here is my #OneInAMillion...So I visited Imagined Things Books in Harrogate, and if you haven't already visited, I would definitely recommend popping in, it is such a lovely shop and, as well as amazing books, they have a great range of bookish march and Jewellery to buy too!

I got myself one of the limited edition Orla Kiely tote bags...

As well as this fab Stephen King tote...

And a copy of the Wonder picture book We Are All Wonders by RJ Palacio

Guest Review: Moonlight Over Manhattan by Sarah Morgan

She'll risk everything for her own Christmas miracle…

Determined to conquer a lifetime of shyness, Harriet Knight challenges herself to do one thing a day in December that scares her, including celebrating Christmas without her family. But when dog-walker Harriet meets her newest client, exuberant spaniel Madi, she adds an extra challenge to her list – dealing with Madi's temporary dog-sitter, gruff doctor Ethan Black, and their very unexpected chemistry.

Ethan thought he was used to chaos, until he met Madi – how can one tiny dog cause such mayhem? To Ethan, the solution is simple – he will pay Harriet to share his New York apartment and provide 24-hour care. But there's nothing simple about how Harriet makes him feel.

Ethan's kisses make Harriet shine brighter than the stars over moonlit Manhattan. But when his dog-sitting duties are over, and Harriet returns to her own home, will she dare to take the biggest challenge of all – letting Ethan know he has her heart for life, not just for Christmas?

Review: This is book 6 in the From Manhattan With Love series written by Sarah Morgan. Although part of a series, it can easily be read as a standalone as any mention of characters or events from previous parts are explained along the way. I have loved every one of these books and find myself looking forward to the next each time I am nearing the end of my current read. This one was no exception. I was hooked right from page one, particularly as the author cleverly introduces us into an interesting situation. 

This book centres around Harriet, who, with her twin sister, Fliss, runs a very successful dog-walking business (The Bark Rangers) in Manhattan. Although very good with dogs, and animals in general, Harriet is shy with humans, and leaves most of the client contact to Fliss. However, we find Harriet on her own now that her sister has moved away, and determined to come out of her shell. In fact, she has challenged herself to do something that she wouldn't normally do every day for the month between Thanksgiving and Christmas. This is why the reader finds Harriet at the start of the book doing something most un-Harriet like and at the same time hilarious. However amusing and ill-advised this escapade, it does lead to her meeting handsome and hunky Dr Ethan Black, one of the best ER doctors in the city. He turns out to be the brother of one of Harriet's clients, and through her client's dog, Madi, Ethan and Harriet are pushed together.  

This is yet another heartwarming and amusing tale from Sarah Morgan. Its setting, a snowy pre-Christmas Manhattan, is brought to life by her skilful descriptive narrative. I particularly enjoyed the banter between the main characters. I really wanted them to come together, but I was never absolutely sure how things were going to pan out. There was also some entertaining interactions between Ethan and his work colleague, Susan. Of course, as always in this series of books, there is a collection of cute dogs and kittens for all us animal lovers. I would heartily recommend this book for curling up with when it's cold outside. It's sure to give a warm glow for lovers of romantic comedy, medical romances, Christmas tales and animal stories alike. 

To order your copy now, just click the link: UK or US

Guest Review: Tremarnock Summer (Book 3) by Emma Burstall

Bramble Challoner has had a very normal upbringing. She lives in a semi in the suburbs of London with her parents and works at the call centre down the road. She still goes out with the boy she met at school. At weekends they stay in and watch films on the telly and sometimes hold hands. Bramble is dying for an adventure. 

So when her very grand grandfather, Lord Penrose, dies, leaving his huge, rambling house in Cornwall to her, Bramble packs her bags immediately, dragging along her best friend Katie. The sleepy village of Tremarnock had better be ready for its newest residents...

Review: This is the third book in the Tremarnock series, by Emma Burstall. For those who have not come across this series, Tremarnock is a quaint little seaside village in Cornwall full of interesting characters and drama. I have read and very much enjoyed the first two books in the series, and have been looking forward to reading this third one. I would say that you could read this story as a standalone; events and characters from previous stories are explained where necessary. 

There are lots of familiar faces in this story as well as some new ones. The main character here is a newcomer to the village, Bramble Challoner. Completely out of the blue, she has been remembered in the will of her estranged grandfather, who has left her his entire estate, comprising Polgarry Manor on the outskirts of Tremarnock, and its contents. Against the advice of her family, she has decided to move into the Manor House, accompanied by her friend, Katie. However, things are not as grand as she had imagined. The house and grounds are in a real state of disrepair and the girls are faced with a mammoth task. However, as Bramble gets her teeth into the job of setting things right, she learns more and more about the grandfather she never knew. 

Of course, the girls soon become accepted by the friendly locals who they gradually meet. As readers of the Tremarnock books know, there is great community spirit in the village. Other new characters in this story include: Rafael, a teenager from Brazil who has come to live with his uncle; Maria, the housekeeper at the manor; local artist Fergus and his young son Wilf; and Shannon, a young girl caring for her father and younger brothers. All of them have interesting storylines of their own, adding to the enjoyment of the book. 

I have very much enjoyed this new story about this lovely little village. As with the others in the series, reading this book just makes me want to find my way to Cornwall and enjoy the kind of scenery and hospitality described within its pages. If everyone there is as likeable as the characters in the Tremarnock stories, it must be a great place to visit. I was pleased to read at the end of this story that another book in the series will be appearing next summer. I will definitely be looking out for that. 

To order your copy now, just click the link: UK or US

September Wrap Up

Ok, we all knew that September was going to be a much slower reading month for me. To begin with, I didn't read as much on my fight as I thought I would, just because I get travel sick and when that happens, I can't read so... Then I got back to the UK and it was full of lovely things like visiting people and seeing things and wedding and restaurants, not a lot of time for reading!

So as usual I have divided my books into categories, Ebooks, Audiobooks and Physical books, if i have already reviewed it then I'll leave a link to that too. Let's take a look at which is my biggest category this month...

Ebooks

My review

My Review

My Review

Physical Books

My Review

Audiobooks 

My Review

Review: What to Say Next by Julie Buxbaum

Sometimes a new perspective is all that is needed to make sense of the world. 

KIT: I don't know why I decide not to sit with Annie and Violet at lunch. It feels like no one here gets what I'm going through. How could they? I don't even understand.

DAVID: In the 622 days I've attended Mapleview High, Kit Lowell is the first person to sit at my lunch table. I mean, I've never once sat with someone until now. "So your dad is dead," I say to Kit, because this is a fact I've recently learned about her. 
When an unlikely friendship is sparked between relatively popular Kit Lowell and socially isolated David Drucker, everyone is surprised, most of all Kit and David. Kit appreciates David's blunt honesty--in fact, she finds it bizarrely refreshing. David welcomes Kit's attention and her inquisitive nature. When she asks for his help figuring out the how and why of her dad's tragic car accident, David is all in. But neither of them can predict what they'll find. Can their friendship survive the truth?

Review: This was another hit from Julie Buxbaum, I have found a new author to add to my favourites list! This book is just as full of feeling and covert romance and loverly friendship as Tell Me Three Things but this one deals with some deeper and more misunderstood issues as well. This books covers family not being what you expect them to be again, which I always enjoy when it comes up. This book also deals with mental health, grief and Aspergers. And of course dealing with all of that doing high school-yey!

These were two new characters for me and I found myself really warming to David right away. I loved his take on the world and his awareness that he didn't see things that same way as other people so he would have to keep notes watch other people or ask for help when it comes to social interactions. He is also incredibly clever and don't play it down in any way, which I loved too! Kit took me longer to warm to. I enjoyed her take on things and the fact that she too has a different perspective of the world. I didn't always like the way that she handled things she was put up against but she is grieving and so that is to be expected. 

Of coursed being high school, we have members of the other classic high school groups and they all have their part to play in this novel. I really enjoyed who friendship was explored at every level. I know having gone through high school how friendships can look different, can be more superficial than you realise and can also be found in unexpected places an this book really does cover all of that well. I think this would be a great solace to someone currently experiencing high school but was also really interesting to revisit having gone through the experience and successfully come out the other end!

I would love to hear more from Kit and David, like I need a sequel now. I am sure you will love their story too!

To order your copy now, just click the link: UK or US

October TBR

Ok so we know that October won't be as good of a reading month as, say August, was but I think I will possibly read more in October than I did in September, as long as I don't go on any long flights that make me sick and then come down with awful jet lag that is... Some of these books are, of course, left over from my September TBR since I only read 7 books in September-oh well!

As always, I'll break my reading down into October releases and other books I want to get to.

October Releases

Other Books on my TBR