Cora Carmack Giveaway Winner Part 2

Ok so no one claimed their prize the first time I drew this giveaway. So all the other names went back into the bowl and, again, I drew one at random...

And the winner is.... MEGAN!

Please email me, or message me on twitter with your address & ill get the signed copy out to you in the week!

Review: Before I Met You by Lisa Jewell

Having grown up on the quiet island of Guernsey, Betty Dean can't wait to start her new life in London. On a mission to find Clara Pickle - the mysterious beneficiary in her grandmother's will - she arrives in grungy, 1990s Soho, ready for whatever life has to throw at her. Or so she thinks...

In 1920s bohemian London, Arlette - Betty's grandmother - is starting her new life in a time of post-war change. Beautiful and charismatic, Arlette is soon drawn into the hedonistic world of the Bright Young People. But less than two years later, tragedy strikes and she flees back to Guernsey for the rest of her life.

As Betty searches for Clara, she is taken on a journey through Arlette's extraordinary time in London, uncovering a tale of love, loss and heartbreak. Will the secrets of Arlette's past help Betty on her path to happiness?

Review: I am a massive Lisa Jewell fan, Ralph's Party is one of my all time favourite books and so I was very excited when this book came out. I want to catch up on the last few Lisa Jewell novels over the summer and this was the first that I chose. The book jumps between two time zones, 1920 and 1995. I have to say, I found this is little disconcerting to begin with, until I understood the significant of the two years. Betty is searching for someone mentioned in her grandmother's will, and the 1920 parts of the book, bring together the things that Betty is searching for. It tells her grandmother's story, of the people she met and how she came to be in London, as Betty is now. I have to say, I found the 1920s section of the book a little slow, and did find myself skimming parts of it. I liked the fact that it is tying everything together, but I didn't really like the character of Arlette and so wasn't THAT interested in her story...

The 1995 section of the book, I really enjoyed, I liked Betty's self discovery and the kind of capers that she got up to trying to find a job and a place in soho when she first comes over the London. I really felt for her at some points, not realising the way that life is in a big city, having come over from Guernsey. She meets a mark stall holder in front of her hideous sounding studio flat. This character I really liked, I thought John Brightly was genuine, and lovely, and on,y ever wanted to help Betty, I think he was key in tying Betty's side of the story together, and I was willing them to form a relationship right the way to the end of the book. His sister is also a wonderful character, I really enjoyed reading about Betty's animated interactions with her. 

I didn't understand the significance of some of the other characters in both parts of the book. Arlette seems to mention a lot of names that then don't form any major part in the story, and there is Betty's friend Bella whom she talks to a handful of times in the book, but who doesn't really play a significant part either. 

I really loved the setting of this novel, I love soho and all the mentions of the street names and locations was really fun because I could picture where Betty was and the kind of atmosphere she was experiencing. Arlette too roamed around parts of London I am familiar with, and with the added back drop of the roaring twenties, I really enjoyed reading about the well-described settings for their stories. 

As much as I didn't enjoy the 1920 part of the book, I really liked the dual-setting structure. I love a novel when there are two separate parts that are linked an eventually come together at the end of the story (a bit like Ralph's Party) and so I did find that made the book read a bit quicker than it might have done if the parts hadn't been interwoven so well. This is a great book to read in the sunshine and it has a real mysterious, historical aspect to it that I really enjoyed. If you are a fan of Lisa Jewell then I'm sure you will love this novel. If you're not so keen on books that jump from time to time then this would not be for you.

In read this book as part of the summer reading challenge on Laura's Lovelock Book Reviews Blog.

If you fancy a copy of the book for yourself, click here

You can follow this fabulous author on twitter  @lisajewelluk

Review! By My Side by Alice Peterson

One step can change everything...

Cass Brooks loves her job, her boyfriend Sean, her life. Until, leaving home one morning, distracted and hungover, she steps into the path of a truck.

When she wakes up, she can’t walk. And suddenly all her hopes and dreams, the plans she’d made with Sean, the future she thought she’d have, seem out of her reach.

But then fate intervenes again. Cass meets Ticket, a loyal golden Labrador who refuses to leave her side. And on a flight to Colorado, she sits next to Charlie, who believes he can show her a life full of possibilities, if only she’ll let him.

Cass wants her life back the way it was. Charlie knows this cannot be. Yet a future beckons all the same...

Review: I had heard so much hype about this book and was looking for something to use my audio book credit on, so thought instead of buying the eBook; I would download the audio book. I absolutely devoured this book in the hours that it took the lovely narrator to read it to me-I loved it so much. It was a fabulous heart-warming tale. So simple, the story of someone getting their life back on track and yet, so relevant to so many readers!

I was really worried that the fact that Cass has lost the ability to walk was going to really upset me, but I actually loved the fact that we had a heroine in a wheelchair! I think it is brilliant to have someone in a wheelchair who is the star of the book. And Cass is certainly no shrinking violet. She sees what has happened to her, allows it to affect her for the appropriate amount of time, and then simply gets on with her life. She does things I might not even consider doing being an able bodied person.

The relationships that she has within the book are also fabulous. I really like the way her mum and dad feature so heavily throughout the course of the book, it really reiterates the need to keep your family on side, because she really relied on them when this life-changing event happened to her. She also has a lovely relationship with other paraplegics that she meets along the course of the story. Each one has their own story of how their disability came about. These give the story so much depth and also add new, strong characters to this already wonderful novel.

There are two very important men that I have to touch on who are a major part of Cass’s story and indeed the novel as a whole. Charlie, the love interest and Ticket, Cass’s gorgeous assistance dog. The combination of these two heroes really gets Cass’s life burning again. They mean that she can go skiing, get herself back out to work, and have a proper life like any other able-bodied person. I have to admit, I was seriously suspicious of Charlie at the beginning of this novel, I felt sure that he was going to hurt Cass, but I did really warm to him towards the end. Ticket of course, I loved the whole way through and think that there should be more awareness of assistance dogs, not just those for the deaf and the blind!

Overall I would defy anyone not to fall in love with this novel. It has all the qualities of a fabulous read no matter what the weather is doing outside. There are some wonderfully funny bits, especially where Cass and her friend decide to take on someone who has taken the last disabled space in the car park (I actually cheered at this bit). I loved having the audio book but whatever format you choose to get your copy in, you will not be disappointed. There are definitely a few weepy areas, and things get quite deep in some parts, but overall, it is a fast paced journey which will allow you to fall in love with Cass, Ticket, and their journey together. 

You can buy a copy of this wonderful novel by clicking here
You can also visit Alice Peterson's website by clicking here.
Or follow this fabulous author on Twitter @AlicePeterson1 

Review! No-one Ever Has Sex on a Tuesday by Tracy Bloom

Never has a late-night stand led to such chaos!

Childhood sweethearts Matthew and Katy agree they must never see each other ever again after they end up in bed together following a school re-union.

So all is forgotten...until eight months later when a shock meeting at an antenatal class forces them to confront the fact that Matthew could be the father of Katy's baby. Oblivious to the mayhem unfolding, Matthews highly strung wife frets over giving birth to twins and Katy's much younger boyfriend refuses to take fatherhood seriously.

Love and life are messy but Katy and Matthew take things to a whole new level as deep emotions begin to resurface and hormones run riot.

How will they navigate their way through this almighty pick-up?

Review: wow, what an unexpected gem! I downloaded this book after hearing some good things about it on twitter. I love the title, I think it's definitely something to get head turning in a bookshop or online, straight and to the point, so that, initially, was what attracted me to the book. But when I started reading I actually found it to be a real page turner! Right from the word go, we find out that our heroine Katy isn't exactly happy to be pregnant, and underneath it all, she isn't really looking forward to the prospect of motherhood, and the changes it will bring...

But the book is about so much more than that. We get to travel back in time to when Katy met Ben, back to school where she met Matthew, and where Matthew met his wife Alison. What follows is a twisted romp of a novel involving all four of them in ways you would never expect! It's so well written because I really felt like I was there with the characters, in the antenatal classes, at disaster out weddings and even on the labour ward! I also like that fact that it was set mainly in Leeds, I like a northern novel-but them I'm entirely biased! 

Katy was a fabulous character. A really strong female. And yet, as I said, she seems almost in denial about the baby coming and her complicated situation entirely! She has bought some of the baby stuff but it still sits in bags in the bedroom. Despite being strong, she does succumb to the hormones of pregnancy in some parts, there are some very funny moments when this happens! Her boyfriend Ben, who is 8 years younger than her, also seems in denial about the baby, he goes through a lot over the course of the story and becomes a much stronger person because of it. I started out disliking him but by the end of the book I was rooting for him all the way!

Initially I liked Matthew but the more I got to know him, find out about his relationship with Katy and his relationship with Allison, I really began to dislike him, he and Ben switched places by the end of the novel for me. I felt really sorry for Allison throughout the whole thing, and not just because she is expecting twins! I really hope that she has a happy ending. The fact that I felt worried for her by the end of the book shows how well written the whole thing was.

I think that this book would be a fabulous addition to anyone's summer reading list, add it to your kindle now. It's fast-laced and fun, but at the same time, very real. I think there is something in here for everyone, and will be looking forward to hearing much more from this author in the future!

You can follow this author on twitter @TracyBBloom

Or click here to buy this fabulous novel!

Review! The Rosie Project by Graeme Simison

Don Tillman, 39, a successful but odd genetics prof, designs a questionnaire for his Wife Project: punctual, non-drinker, non-smoker. Rosie, a spontaneous, outspoken barmaid, smokes, curses, and adjusts his clock when he complains about his schedule. Yet an unlikely partnership blooms when Don agrees to help Rosie find her biological father.

Review: I didn't really know what this book was about. I saw it popping up all over twitter and in bookseller charts. I had a quick glance at the blurb and knew that I would have to read this. I'm very susceptible to people talking about books, I know I have to have them. I actually downloaded the audiobook so that I could get through it quicker, and from the first moments I was listening to it, I knew I had unearthed a truly funny Gem!

Professor Don Tillman is a fabulously funny character, and without even meaning to be! It begins with him giving a lecture on Aspergers to a group of Aspergic children and their parents, and it is quite clear to us as readers that, he himself is Aspergic. This had me laughing from the start. The other things he does throughout the book, show clear signs that he is on the autistic spectrum and yet he clearly doesn't know he is! 

When Rosie comes into the story, she turns Don's world upside down, and the results of this are also hilarious. I love how understanding Rosie is of Don's little foibles and I think their interactions are very well written. Don's other colleagues at the university are not as understanding as she is, which is a shame, but also, fairly true to life! 

The beginning of the story moves fairly slowly, and there is a lot of scientific jargon throughout, but this doesn't take away from the humour and the heart-warming moments that take place! I don't want to give too much away, but my highlight is definitely the road trip that Rosie and Don embark on towards the end of the novel-it's fabulously funny! 

If you like The Big Bang theory, especially, Sheldon Cooper, you will love this novel, but I really do think there is something in here for most readers. It's a nice quick read and the humour makes it a nice lacy story, and yet you are not left wanting more. I really hope there will be a sequel as I would love to hear more from Don and indeed Rosie!

If you fancy reading it yourslef, just click here

To follow this fabulous author on Twitter, follow @GraemeSimison

Top Ten Tuesday: top ten most intimidating books

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!

I'm glad of this weeks top ten because its shows that I'm not the only one who is intimidated to read a book sometimes. Sometimes it's a book by an author that I love and I wonder, what if I don't love this one. Sometimes it's just so damn long, a few of those still languishing on my shelves are there for this reason and sometimes, everyone has been talking about it on twitter, if I admit to reading it and don't love it, what will people say?

1. My first sub-category in this category is books sent to me by Authors. I always find this intimidating even though I am being sent more and more books through for review now. If an author sends me a book to read. I feel under so much pressure to like it (whether I am or not) and so that makes this intimidating. We have Kept by Elle Field. Rise of the Shadow Stealers by Dan Ingram Brown. Married by Christmas by Scarlet Bailey. The Bow Wow Club by Nicola May and Alison Wonderland by Helen Smith. All these generous authors gave, or sent me their novels for review. I am so grateful but felt like I had to be extra specially detailed whilst reading them.

5. The next group of books felt intimidating to read because everyone else was loving them and I wasn't sure if i was. In the case of the Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, it was also a very long book and so that was intimidating. Then with The Mystery of Mercy Close by Marian Keyes and Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire, I found I actually didn't like the book as I was reading it and I was going to have to reflect this in the review that I left for it... But The Fault in our Stars by John Green, I liked and I am just about to start The Noble Conflict by Malorie Blackman, so hopefully I will Like it. Of course this has the added pressure of her having just been made Children's Laureate so...

 

Let me know what made your Top Ten Most Intimidating books, and what reasons they were for, I always love to hear your opinions too...

Finding it by Cora Carmack-Cover Reveal!

Exciting news! I've been chosen to be one of the blogger bringing you the cover of Cora Carmack's brand new novel Finding It! So here it is...

Isn't it gorgeous? Finding it follows another of the characters from Losing It-Kelsey who went travelling when she graduated from college. I am very excited about this novel and I LOVE the mint colour scheme! Totally hot! This novel is set to be released on the 26th September here in the UK. I'm being extra lovely to you and have found the UK cover too. Just as lovely I think you'll agree...

Happy reading!