The House with a Clock in its Walls by John Bellairs (Review)

The House with a Clock in its Walls by John Bellairs

About the author

John Belliars (1938-1991) was an award-winning American author of many gothic mystery novels for children and young adults.

Blurb

When orphaned Lewis Barnavelt comes to live with his Uncle Jonathan, he is amazed to find out there is a wizard in his family.

Lewis experiments with Uncle Jonathan’s spells and uncovers the mystery behind the ticking that he can hear throughout the house, sometimes loud, sometimes quiet, sometimes fast, sometimes slow. It’s an evil clock and it could destroy humankind.

It is up to the Barnavelt’s to find where the clock is hidden in the walls – and stop it.

Review

I bought this book ages ago and it has just been sat in a pile gathering dust but I spotted it the other day and thought that looks like a fun quick read and thankfully I was correct. As I have mentioned previously I do enjoy reading children’s books and especially enjoy reading them when I’m very busy or stressed. I can truthfully say I loved this book and could not put it down.

The three main characters Lewis, Uncle Jonathan and Mrs Zimmermann were fantastic. I especially loved the character of Mrs Zimmermann who isn’t afraid of anything and speaks her mind and has an unhealthy obsession with the colour purple. She just seems to be the ultimate cool aunt figure.

Uncle Jonathan is the ultimate cool uncle, teaching Lewis to play poker and letting him stay up late and basically doing what he likes within reason. Lewis is the typical child who doesn’t quite fit in at school but has found his happy place living with his Uncle because as the story develops you can see that Uncle and nephew are rather alike.

Overall I loved the storyline and it kept me hooked from the start, the idea of magic being in a house and its walls was fantastic and in places it was rather spooky although that part was rather rushed through but that was probably because it is a children’s book. The only issue I had with the story was the lack of story about the actual clock, considering the book is about the clock in the walls it hardly features and it just feels like a very rushed ending.

I give this book 4 out of 5 dragons because of the lack of clock in the story. I highly recommend it to children and adults alike. A really good read that keeps you hooked from beginning to end.

Purchase links

Waterstones

Book Depository

Book Haul 28/10/2019

Hello everyone!

Well today is my first day of half term and I celebrated by having a lie in and a leisurely day. I had to run into our nearest town to run some errands and my husband suggested visiting Waterstones for a browse. Well a browse is something that never happens with me, it always ends in buying books. I was just going to buy Now You See Them by Elly Griffiths but my husband said that Wakenhyrst by Michelle Paver looked good so I ended up buying another book because it was on buy one get one half price.

Not too much damage with just three books bought.

Now You See Them by Elly Griffiths

Wakenhyrst by Michelle Paver

A Keeper by Graham Norton

Please drop me a comment if you have read any of these books. I would love to hear your thoughts.

Happy reading.

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood (Review)

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

About the author

Margaret Atwood born 18th November 1939 is a Canadian author, poet, essayist and literary critic. She has written numerous fiction and non-fiction books, books of poetry and children’s books. She has won the Giller Prize in Canada, Premio Mondello in Italy and the 2000 Booker Prize. She was also awarded the Asturias Prize for Literature in 2008.

Blurb

In this brilliant sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale, acclaimed author Margaret Atwood answers the questions that have tantalized readers for decades.

When the van door slammed on Offred’s future at the end of The Handmaid’s Tale, readers had no way of telling what lay ahead for her–freedom, prison or death.

With The Testaments, the wait is over.

Margaret Atwood’s sequel picks up the story more than fifteen years after Offred stepped into the unknown, with the explosive testaments of three female narrators from Gilead.

Review

This book was a welcome change from The Handmaid’s Tale that I will be honest I really did not enjoy but thankfully because I had preordered this book and forgot it until it turned up on my doorstep I read it instead of just avoiding it because of thinking it would be like The Handmaid’s Tale. I understand that people find my opinions on The Handmaid’s Tale as controversial and a lot of people will find my opinions on The Testaments as controversial but thankfully we are all different and that is what makes us all interesting.

I loved this book and would have happily read it a lot quicker but I have a lot of university reading that is taking up my reading time. The first thing that struck me was how different the writing style was from The Handmaid’s Tale. The book flowed better and to me made more sense and because there was so much more information in it about Gilead and its history I found the book a great deal more interesting.

I loved the characters in this book especially sweet Becka who was just so kind and loving even though she had such a horrid upbringing. To me she is the embodiment of goodness in the dark and dangerous world of Gilead.

The character of Aunt Lydia was what really made the book. Her contributions were fantastic and I loved how she could play all the other characters like they were on a chess board. She could orchestrate everything because she was always so many moves ahead of everyone and her main talent was reading people and knowing how people would act.

This book also keeps you on your toes because it has a great deal more action within it in comparison to The Handmaid’s Tale and this is probably another reason why I enjoyed this book more.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book and due to this I have given the book the full 5 out of 5 Dragons.

Purchase links

Waterstones

Book Depository

Birthday Books!

Hello my fellow readers!

So on Sunday I had a birthday and of course I had a few books and one of these books I was very excited about as I had been dropping subtle hints to my husband for this book for quite a while.

So I had three books and one very pretty notebook.

The books were:-

The Greek Plays by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides.

Marvel: Golden Age 1939-49 (Folio Society)

The Bartender’s Guide to Gin

Alice in Wonderland notebook

So the book I had been dropping many hints about was the Marvel Golden Age book by The Folio Society, I love all things Folio and when I saw this book I knew I wanted it and so the hints began. I was very happy that I had it for my birthday as I just love all things comic book and Marvel.

The Greek Plays has been on my wish list for a while so I was really pleased to also get this book for my birthday, hopefully it might help with my Masters.

My brother got me the gin book and so far I have tried two of the recipes and they have been excellent!

The notebook is very pretty but I haven’t decided yet what to use it for. I always like to plan what I will use a notebook for before using, as I do not want to ruin it by putting rubbish in it.

So that is my birthday book haul.

Happy reading.

Girl in Trouble by Stacy Claflin (Review)

Girl in Trouble by Stacy Claflin

About the author

Stacy Claflin is a USA Today bestselling author who writes about complex women overcoming incredible odds. Whether it’s her Gone saga of psychological thrillers, her various paranormal romance tales, or her sweet romance series, Stacy’s three-dimensional characters shine through.

Decades after she wrote her first stories on construction paper and years after typing on an inherited green screen computer that weighed half a ton, Stacy realized her dream of becoming a full-time bestselling author.

When she’s not busy writing or educating her kids from home, Stacy enjoys watching TV shows like Supernatural, Pretty Little Liars, and Once Upon a Time.

Blurb

He gave up his daughter years ago, but now he’ll risk his life to save hers.

Alex Mercer is no stranger to kidnappings. The emotional scars still run deep from his sister’s disappearance years earlier. His daughter Ariana remains safe long after her adoption, and he cherishes the few times a year he gets to see her. The joy is palpable when he takes her on their first one-on-one outing. At least until he pauses to answer a text and Ariana disappears…

Wracked with guilt and determined to find answers, Alex teams up with an unlikely ally at the police department. As the clues reveal a pattern of missing girls, the kidnapping case becomes a race against time to save Ariana. What cost is Alex willing to pay to keep his daughter alive?

Review

I got this book as a freebie on Apple Books and I must admit it did not take me long to read and was nice to pick up and read when I had a few minutes spare. This was an easy read and I enjoyed the story but for me it lacked the wow factor and the ending was rather predictable.

I really liked the characters in this book especially Alex and Nick the police captain. I also liked how the character of Alex developed from a dead beat man who had little to do with his daughter but as the story went along Alex turned into a dad determined to get his little girl back and become a better dad and person in general.

The character that I did not like very much was Zoey, Alex’s ex and Ariana’s mother. She drove me slightly mad and I would be happy to not have her feature greatly in the following books in the series if I decide to continue reading the series. I’m not sure what it was that caused me to dislike the character but for some reason she grated against my nerves.

I will be honest it took me a while to get used to Claflin’s writing style and the sheer number of chapters was a bit mind numbing at times but I did enjoy the story. I personally think this book would make a great holiday read or read on a long flight and I will happily read the rest of the series. I have only given this book 3 out of 5 Dragons because it just did not have the wow factor for me.

Purchase Links

Book Depository

Classics: A Very Short Introduction by Mary Beard and John Henderson (Review)

Classics: A Very Short Introduction by Mary Beard and John Henderson

About the authors

Mary Beard and John Henderson both teach Classics at the University of Cambridge. Mary Beard is a fellow of Newnham College, and John Henderson is a fellow of King’s College, Cambridge.

Blurb

This Very Short Introduction to Classics links a haunting temple on a lonely mountainside to the glory of ancient Greece and the grandeur of Rome, and to Classics within modern culture – from Jefferson and Byron to Asterix and Ben-Our.

Review

This is not the first A Very Short Introduction book that I have read as I had to read and review the Music one for one of my modules in my Music Degree about ten years ago and I must admit I did enjoy it and found it interesting and I am pleased to say the Classics one did not disappoint.

I read this book as part of the set preparatory reading before my Masters started and I found it to be a great introduction into the field of Classics. The first thing I enjoyed was that the book was all linked to the Temple at Bassae and the frieze panels that are now found at the British Museum. I must admit it left me desperate to visit the British Museum and view the frieze. However I would have liked a little bit more knowledge of other classical elements.

The other element that I really enjoyed was the travelling through time of famous peoples’ encounters with the classics and the Temple of Bassae. I really enjoyed this little book and thought it was an excellent introduction to the classics.

The only reason I gave this book 4 Dragons instead of 5 was that I would have liked a bit more about Classics in general than just a focus on one element which was the temple. I highly recommend this little book to anyone who is intrigued and wanting to learn a little about classics.

Purchase links

Waterstones

Book Depository

Goodreads Summer Reading Challenge: Reflection

Summer is officially over so I thought it high time to reflect on my Goodreads Summer Reading Challenge. Sadly I did not complete it but I did learn a few things. Here is the result.

Good as gold:- The Casual Vacancy by J. K Rowling

~~The Book is Better:- The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt~~

~~On the bandwagon:- The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Attwood~~

~~Short and sweet:- The Turn of the Screw by Henry James~~

~~Actually want to read:- Jaws by Peter Benchley~~

Not from around here:- Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

In a friend zone:- The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell

~~Wheel of format:- Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare~~

~~Past love:- Matilda by Roald Dahl~~

Armchair Traveler:- A Room with a View by E. M. Forster

First of all I spent way too much time on a book I really regret reading which was The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, I really wish I had just stopped reading it because I did not enjoy it and wasted a great deal of my free time reading a book I found tiresome. This is a lesson I keep telling myself to learn from but sadly I don’t, maybe this time I will.

The second thing I learned was I hated having a reading list! I want to read these books eventually and I had options but I found myself regretting the choices and wanting to read other books which I did and so did not complete the challenge in the allotted time. I think from now on I will avoid challenges and just choose whatever I want to read when I want because I really did not enjoy the challenge. I loved choosing the books but not feeling like I had to read them.

However, doing the challenge has taken a few books off my enormous TBR list, so it wasn’t all bad.

What does everyone think of reading challenges? Yes or No? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Happy reading.

September Wrap Up

Ok everyone, I admit September for me was a complete and utter right off. I only reviewed one book and hardly blogged at all. Going back to work and trying to finish my final assignment for my diploma all became too overwhelming and I hardly read anything at all. This probably added to my stress because reading helps me unwind but sadly my brain just could not take in the words I was reading. October I am hoping for much better.

Books or should I say book that I read.

Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare

Pages: 101

Total pages this year: 11651

Friday Poetry

6/9:- Brian Patten

13/9:- Tolkien

20/9:- Robert Louis Stevenson

27/9:- Rachel Field

Mid Week Quote

4/9:- Francois-Rene de Chateaubriand

11/9:- Bede

18/9:- Sima Qian

26/9:- Phaedrus

Book Tags

Down the TBR Hole #15

ABC Book Challenge: H

Anticipated Releases Book tag

WWW Wednesday

So that is my September wrap up, as you can see rather disappointing. Fingers crossed for a better October!

Happy Hobbit Day

Happy Hobbit Day Everyone!

Today is the birthday of Bilbo and Frodo two of my favourite Hobbits. Although the Shire calendar and the Gregorian calendar do not quite match up, this day has generally been agreed upon as Hobbit Day.

As some of you might have guessed I do love all things Middle Earth and I must admit Hobbits have always been a favourite. They are so loyal and full of hope, how can anybody not love them?

The other reason I love Hobbits is because they have possibly one of the best eating schedules imaginable. In the film they try and have seven meals a day and in The Fellowship of the Ring the book they will have six meals a day if they can manage it and that is if my memory of the book serves me correctly. They have a second breakfast, what is not to like?

Anyway, I think we should all try and be a bit more Hobbit. If we could all be a loyal friend, who is full of hope and try to always see the good in the world and love and respect this world we live in, the world would be a much better place to live in. And yes going for a nice drink at our local Green Dragon with friends to talk about anything and everything is also an excellent Hobbit tradition.

Happy Hobbit Day!

The Immortal City by Amy Kuivalainen

Happy Weekend Everyone!

This post is a little bit of a throw back.

Today my preordered book of The Immortal City by Amy Kuivalainen arrived and I must admit I am very excited. My regular readers will know that I had the privilege of reading this book and reviewing it on NetGalley a few months back and I loved the book so much I immediately preordered it. This at the moment is one of the best books I have read in 2019 and I can not wait for the next one in the series.

I know it sounds weird but I am planning on reading this book again very soon because when I read it a few months ago I could not put it down and flew through it and now I want to read it again and savour it a bit more. Is this just something that I do or do other people do the same?

Anyway if you love fantasy, murder mysteries and romance this is definitely the book for you. I cannot recommend this book enough. If you want to check out my review please click the link.

Purchase links

Book Depository

Waterstones

Happy Reading