WWW Wednesday: 26/08/2020

WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words.

The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you will read next?

 

Happy Wednesday!

Half way through another week and I really can’t work out where the week has gone.

What I am Currently Reading

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About 200 pages in and it is going ok so far but I am finding it all a bit far fetched but I will stick with it.

 

What I Have Recently Finished Reading

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Loved this so much! Review will follow shortly.

 

What I Plan to Read Next

Ok, let’s be honest this could be anything! I am a mood reader and change my mind all the time about books.

 

There is another WWW Wednesday complete. Drop me a comment with your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit.

 

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The Weekly Brief

Hello my fellow Book Dragons.

I hope everyone is ready for Monday.

So everyone knows the drill by now, here is my week in blogging…

Posts this Week

 

Currently Reading

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Books I’ve Acquired 

 

 

Blogs I’ve Enjoyed this Week

I love The Chronicles of History because as a history fan I love the posts and I have been learning about subjects I wasn’t overly familiar with like American History.

Next up is Sofi with her blog A Book. A ThoughtI really enjoy Sofi’s posts and especially her book reviews.

Finally we have Blair at Feed the Crime. I really enjoy a good crime novel so I’m always checking out Blair’s reviews to see what she thinks of the latest crime thriller.

 

So that is my week in the blogging world. I hope everyone has also had a good week in the blogging world.

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The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary (Review)

The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary

About the author

Beth studied English at university before going into children’s publishing. She lives as close to the countryside as she can get while still being within reach of London, and wrote her first novel, The Flatshare, on her train journey to and from work.

You’ll usually find her curled up with a book, a cup of tea, and several woolly jumpers (whatever the weather).

Blurb

Tiffy Moore needs a cheap flat, and fast.

Leon Twomey works nights and needs cash.

Their friends think they’re crazy, but it’s the perfect solution: Leon occupies the one-bed flat while Tiffy’s at work in the day, and she has the run of the place the rest of the time.

But with obsessive ex-boyfriends, demanding clients at work, wrongly-imprisoned brothers and, of course, the fact that they still haven’t met yet, they’re about to discover that if you want the perfect home you need to throw the rulebook out the window…

Review

This book was recommended to me by my best friend and so I bought a copy as soon as I could and I am so pleased I did. I started reading this book and read a bit a day until I got about a quarter of the way through and then I just could not put it down and I binged the whole book in one afternoon.

The book is told from Tiffy’s and Leon’s perspective and it is really interesting seeing their different perspectives. Leon is very shy who needs quiet and alone time to process things but Tiffy is the complete opposite: she has to talk to her friends to process things and thrives on noise and people.

Tiffy and Leon communicate via post-it notes that they post all over the flat and through this method of communication they get to know each other and they also help each other through their troubles. Tiffy has problems which revolve around her ex-boyfriend but with Leon and her friends’ help she is working through these problems.

Leon also has problems of his own in the fact that his brother is in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Leon is a palliative care nurse who spends all his time trying to help and care for everyone.

This novel deals with some difficult issues but O’Leary writes about this in a sensitive and realistic manner and is very respectful. This novel was a big surprise to me as I was expecting something a lot more light hearted and chick lit read but in fact it had depth and understanding. O’Leary is a talented writer and I really look forward to reading more of her books. I rate this book 5 out of 5 Dragons.

Purchase Links

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(All purchases made using one of the above affiliate links gives a small percentage of money to myself with no extra cost to yourself. All proceeds go towards the upkeep of this blog. Thank you)

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First Lines Friday: 21/08/2020

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

 

Happy Friday!

Now let’s get guessing that book.

“The Polydorus is a charming family-run hotel, located a short walk away from the lively town of Agios Nikolaos, one hour from Heraklion. Rooms cleaned daily, all with Wi-Fi and air con, some with sea views. Coffee and home-cooked meals served on our lovely terraces. Visit our website or find us on booking.com.”

 

Answer is below the cats!

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Featuring his famous literary detective Atticus Pund and Susan Ryeland, hero of the worldwide bestseller Magpie Murders, a brilliantly complex literary thriller by Anthony Horowitz. The follow-up to Magpie Murders.

Retired publisher Susan Ryeland is living the good life. She is running a small hotel on a Greek island with her longterm boyfriend Andreas. It should be everything she’s always wanted – but is it? She’s exhausted with the responsibilities of making everything work on an island where nothing ever does, and truth be told she’s beginning to miss her old life in London.

And then a couple – the Trehearnes – come to stay, and the story they tell about an unfortunate murder that took place on the same day and in the same hotel in which their daughter was married, is such a strange and mysterious one that Susan finds herself increasingly fascinated by it. And when the Trehearnes tell her that their daughter is now missing, Susan knows that she must return to London and find out what really happened …

Book Depository

Waterstones

Wordery

Drop me a link with your First Lines Friday and I will head over for a visit.

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Friday Poetry: Lord Byron

Happy Friday!

My chosen poem today is by the notorious Lord Byron who is known for his often outrageous writings and misadventures.

 

So, We’ll Go No More a-Roving

 

So, we’ll go no more a-roving

So late into the night,

Though the heart be still as loving,

And the moon be still as bright.

 

For the sword outwears its sheath,

And the soul wears out the breast,

And the heart must pause to breathe,

And love itself have rest.

 

Though the night was made for loving,

And the day returns too soon,

Yet we’ll go no more a-roving

By the light of the moon.

Lord Byron

 

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Top Ten Tuesday: Books that Should be Adapted into Netflix Shows/Movies

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and now hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl. For more info please check out Jana’s blog.

Hello!

There are so many books that I would love to see adapted into films or TV adaptations so this will be a tricky choice.

 

Watermelon Snow by William A. Liggett

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Sammantha Shannon

The Immortal City by Amy Kuivalainen

Carpe Jugulum by Terry Pratchett

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

The Fifth Elephant by Terry Pratchett

Half A World Away by Mike Gayle

The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett

The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara: Antrax by Terry Brooks

 

There is my choice. Please drop me a link to your Top Ten Tuesday and I will head over for a visit.

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Books I’m Excited About #3

Hello!

I love preordering books as they are such a nice surprise when they turn up on your doorstep and this year because I haven’t been able to visit many bookshops I’ve mainly been preordering all my books.

So here are a few of the books I am excited about…

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A brand new collection of short stories from the incredible Sir Terry Pratchett. This deluxe collector’s edition comes in a beautiful slipcase, and includes an extra short story (the brilliant tale of The Bed Scratcher!), an exclusive colour print . . . and an unique number assigned to your book!!

Imagination is an amazing thing.

It can take you to the top of the highest mountain, or down to the bottom of the deepest depths of the sea.

This is where it took Doggins on his Awfully Big Adventure: a quest full of magic and flying machines. (And the world’s best joke – trust me, it’s hilarious.)

It took three young inventors to the moon (where they may or may not have left a bottle of lemonade) and a caveman on a trip to the dentist.

You can join them on these adventures, and many more, in this incredible collection of stories . . .

From the greatest imagination there ever was.

Written for local newspapers when Terry Pratchett was a young lad, these never previously published stories are packed full of anarchic humour and wonderful wit.

I am so excited about this – anything Terry Pratchett and I must read it.

 

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The eagerly awaited sequel to the cult classic Ready Player One, Cline’s bravura mash-up of high-octane gaming adventure and 1980s pop culture rides again in the electrifying Ready Player Two. Fizzing with wit and invention, this is big-hearted, big concept science fiction built to last.

 

Absolutely loved book one and I am so pleased there is going to be a sequel. I just hope I am not going to be disappointed.

 

 

 

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Lyra Silvertongue and her daemon Pantalaimon have left the events of His Dark Materials behind. Here in this snapshot of their forever-changed lives they return to the North to revisit an old friend where we will learn that things are not exactly as they seem.

I will be honest this is actually for my husband as I’ve never really got on with Philip Pullman but I might give this one a try.

 

 

 

 

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The Ickabog is coming… A mythical monster, a kingdom in peril, an adventure that will test two children’s bravery to the limit. Discover a brilliantly original fairy tale about the power of hope and friendship to triumph against all odds, from one of the world’s best storytellers.

The kingdom of Cornucopia was once the happiest in the world. It had plenty of gold, a king with the finest moustaches you could possibly imagine, and butchers, bakers and cheesemongers whose exquisite foods made a person dance with delight when they ate them.

Everything was perfect – except for the misty Marshlands to the north which, according to legend, were home to the monstrous Ickabog. Anyone sensible knew that the Ickabog was just a myth, to scare children into behaving. But the funny thing about myths is that sometimes they take on a life of their own.

Could a myth unseat a beloved king? Could a myth bring a once happy country to its knees? Could a myth thrust two children into an adventure they didn’t ask for and never expected?

If you’re feeling brave, step into the pages of this book to find out…

This was preordered as soon as I heard about it and I can’t wait to read it.

 

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Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission–and if he fails, humanity and the earth itself will perish.

Except that right now, he doesn’t know that. He can’t even remember his own name, let alone the nature of his assignment or how to complete it.

All he knows is that he’s been asleep for a very, very long time. And he’s just been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with nothing but two corpses for company.

His crewmates dead, his memories fuzzily returning, he realizes that an impossible task now confronts him. Alone on this tiny ship that’s been cobbled together by every government and space agency on the planet and hurled into the depths of space, it’s up to him to conquer an extinction-level threat to our species.

And thanks to an unexpected ally, he just might have a chance.

I loved The Martian and adored Weir’s style of writing so even though this isn’t out till next year I had to preorder it so I will get it the day it comes out.

So there is my list of books that I simply can’t wait to get ahold of. Are there any books that you are excited about? Please drop me a comment for a bookish chat.

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The Weekly Brief

Hello!

Another week is over and we are halfway through August already!

Posts this Week

Currently Reading

Books Acquired

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Blogs I’ve Enjoyed Reading This Week

First up is Evelyn, who writes about all things books on her blog evelynreads. Evelyn does some fantastic reviews on her blog.

Another one of my favourite blogs and one that I have followed from when I first started blogging is Sara at The Bibliophagist. Sara reviews young adult, new adult and romance.

 

So that is my week!

Happy Reading.

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Too Good To Be True by Ann Cleeves (Review)

Too Good To Be True by Ann Cleeves

About the author

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Ann Cleeves was born in 1954 and is an English crime writer. She has won the Duncan Lawrie Dagger and her Vera and Jimmy Perez novels have been dramatised as TV detective series. She currently resides in Whitley Bay.

Blurb

Too Good To Be True is a gripping Quick Read from Ann Cleeves, featuring Detective Inspector Jimmy Perez from the bestselling Shetland series.

When young teacher Anna Blackwell is found dead in her home, the police think her death was suicide or a tragic accident. After all, Stonebridge is a quiet country village in the Scottish Borders, where murders just don’t happen.

But Detective Inspector Jimmy Perez soon arrives from far-away Shetland when his ex-wife, Sarah, asks him to look into the case. The local gossips are saying that her new husband, Tom, was having an affair with Anna. Could Tom have been involved with her death? Sarah refuses to believe it – but needs proof.

Anna had been a teacher. She must have loved kids. Would she kill herself knowing there was nobody to look after her daughter? She had seemed happier than ever before she died. And to Perez, this suggests not suicide, but murder . . .

Review

I love the Quick Reads books and have discovered quite a few authors that I enjoy from reading books from this series and this book is no exception. My parents are massive Ann Cleeves fans but I will be honest I have never read any of her books but looking for a short read for the weekend I came across this book and promptly began reading.

Although this is only a short book and I easily read it in one setting I really liked the character of Jimmy Perez and would love to read more books about this character. He worked out the case brilliantly even though the policeman who was in charge of the case missed some pretty obvious things and really should have had his wrists slapped for his sloppy policing and just jumping to the easiest conclusion. Perez is obviously a deeply caring person who will do anything for family and that was really moving to read about even if it was only hinted at.

The story contains the question of was it a suicide or a murder and Perez is left to work it out but as he is trying to unravel the mystery there is a sinister figure that is clearly watching him.

This story had everything: mystery, suspense, crime and much more. I loved this book and will definitely be reading more by Ann Cleeves, hopefully the parents will allow me to borrow some of their copies. A fantastic short read that I read in one sitting and I highly recommend to all crime fiction fans. I give this book 4 out of 5 Dragons.

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