28.10.10

Book Review: Getting Away With It by Julie Cohen

Wherever there's trouble, there's Liza Haven. After years of misbehaving in the quaint country village where she grew up with her identical twin sister Lee, Liza escaped to LA for a thrilling life as a stunt woman. But when her job brings her a little too close to death for comfort, Liza has to go back to the one place she couldn't wait to get away from- home.
Only when Liza arrives she discovers that her seemingly perfect sister has run off, leaving behind her ailing mother, a family ice-cream business that's frozen in time and a dangerously attractive boyfriend. And what's ore, everyone thinks Liza is Lee. This is Liza's one chance to see how it feels to be the good twin. She might be getting away with it but there's no getting away from facing up to who she really is...
I have had a rather nasty kidney infection over the past few weeks and this book arrived just at the right time. Getting Away With It has kept me company in many doctors waiting rooms!
Firstly let me say that the cover to this book is lovely, several people have commented on it when it has been spotted lying around my house.
The story focuses mainly on Liza Haven as she returns to Stoneguard but we do gradually get to know Lee too as the odd chapter details what she is up to while Liza is trying to juggle everything and fool everyone into thinking she is her perfect twin sister. It seems that both sisters are running away from certain things and the  book deals with what they are afraid of and whether the answer to their problems is to simply return home.
it was really interesting to see Liza pretending to be her sister, she learns more about herself and the person she wants to be by stepping into her twin sister's shoes. The only person that Liza can't fool is her mother who has appeared to favour Lee over Liza for their whole lives. Liza's mother has Alzheimers and I think that Julie Cohen dealt with this issue so well. The author describes the day to day struggles and challenges of caring for somebody with this condition.
There is an element of romance to this book too, Liza finds herself attracted to Will Naughton, the local aristocrat but she tries to keep her distance as she knows that it would be the ultimate betrayal to steal her sister's boyfriend, but he is very persistent...
Julie Cohen has written a lovely book, Getting Away With It questions what you are running away from in life and to consider that everyone has struggles no matter how calm and content they appear. I would highly recommend this book, you can find out more at Julie Cohen's website.

Many thanks to Headline for sending me a copy to review, the book is published today!

25.10.10

Book Review: The Wedding Gift by Kathleen McKenna

17 year old Leeann Worthier is the perfect girl in town or so she says. George Willets is the heir to a blooming petroleum business. When they announce their engagement, George's controlling mother is unimpressed and Leeann absolutely refuses to live with her mother-in-law.
So George gives his new wife a house as a wedding gift. Thirty years before, the same house hosted a grisly scene: George's uncle and cousins were all slaughtered and his aunt Robina accused of both murder and suicide.
The house is a gorgeous and well maintained mansion but has stood empty since the tragedy. It's intimidating, but who is Leeann to turn down a free house? When the ghost of Robina begins to haunt Leeann, she realises she's made a huge mistake.
Kathleen McKenna very kindly asked me to review her book a couple of months ago and I decided to save it for some spooky October reading!
The Wedding Gift is so different from anything I have ever read, there's a little bit of everything in it, romance, horror, mystery, chick-lit and plenty of humour. Leeann has been entangled in the Willet's family ever since her brother died in the infamous Willet house of horrors. So when she marries George and he presents her with the same house as a wedding gift, she should have known there would be problems. The strange and spooky occurrences begin as soon as Leeann moves into her new marital home. She is visited by Robina who was apparently the crazed murderess but Robina is desperately trying to tell Leeann her side of the story.
The descriptions of the murders are pretty gruesome and you are kept guessing right to the very end as to exactly how events unfolded. I really enjoyed Kathleen McKenna's book, I thought it was entertaining and I liked the paranormal element to it.

22.10.10

Book Review: Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham by M.C. Beaton

He was a hairdresser to dye for...
The local ladies all deem Mr John a wizard, so when Agatha finds a few grey hairs on her head- and the rinse she tries at home turns her hair purple- she makes a bee-line for the handsome Evesham hairdresser. As well as undertaking to restyle her hair it soon becomes clear the charming man also has designs on her heart, but all too soon their budding romance is cut short when Mr John is fatally poisoned in his salon.
Once again Agatha finds herself embroiled in a murder case. Was it one of Mr John's many lady clients, all of whom seem to have divulged to him their darkest secrets? It's time for Agatha to get to the root of this hair-raising mystery. 
I love the Agatha Raisin series of books by M.C. Beaton. They are similar to the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series in that it is like catching up with old friends, you know you are going to have a great time. 
Agatha is the same as always, a bit bored and hoping some mystery will come along which it does in the form of Mr John, the Wizard of Evesham. Agatha really does not realise how much trouble she is going to get herself into, the dastardly deeds of Mr John are far worse that Agatha initially thought. 
Agatha's friendship with Mrs Bloxby, the vicars wife is developed a little more in this one , you can see that Agatha has really settled into country life and is part of the furniture, not that she would ever admit that to anyone.
I would recommend and of the books in this series, there are great characters, interesting mysteries, humour and you very quickly become involved in the exciting world of Agatha Raisin and her many adventures. 

19.10.10

Book Review: 10 Reasons Not to Fall in Love by Linda Green

1. I'd have to shave my legs- even in Winter.
2. Couldn't get away with wearing big knickers.
3. Or having spaghetti hoops for tea.
4. He'd have to meet my mother.
5. My boss is my ex and no man could accept that.
6. Single mums are about as attractive to men as syphilis.
7. 'I'll Never Fall in Love Again' is my theme tune.
8. Last time I was dumped for a weather girl.
9. I no longer trust men.
And most importantly...
10. Can't risk Alfie getting hurt again.
Jo Gilroy gave her heart away once. She won't be making the same mistake twice. In fact, she's got 10 reasons not to fall in love. Until Dan Brady comes along, with some reasons of his own...
The lovely Verity recommended this book to me and I'm so glad she did as I really enjoyed it.
Jo Gilroy is a very believable character, she has had her life turned upside down by the birth of her first child and the fact that her husband walked out on his new family just one year in. She has no confidence and no interest in love until Dan Brady, a balloon sculptor, comes into her life.
The chapters alternate between the present situation and Dan's childhood. The reader gradually builds up a picture of the domestic abuse that Dan witnessed his mother suffer at the hands of his drunk and violent father. Linda Green deals with a very sensitive subject extremely well, she shows through Dan, the emotional scars that people are left with in their adult lives.
10 Reasons Not to Fall in Love contains a lot of humour, most of which is provided by 1 year old Alfie in the way that only children can. I was willing Jo and Dan to get together from the moment they met but everything seems against them.
I would highly recommend this book, Linda Green has a good mix of humour and romance whilst also exploring a serious and sensitive issue. I have read Linda Green's other book Things I Wish I'd Known which is also very good, you can read my review by clicking here.

14.10.10

Book Review: Down to Earth by Melanie Rose

When Michaela Anderson signs up for a charity parachute jump, she gets more than a case of vertigo.
Suffering last minute panic, Michaela's three colleagues go first. But just as she takes her leap of faith, an almighty gale blows up from nowhere.
When she returns to the ground, she finds the airfield deserted, her car gone and the seasons mysteriously changed. Posters nearby proclaim Michaela to have been missing  for the last six and a half years...
Everything about her life is completely different.
But Michaela is determined to find out the truth. Was she kidnapped? Is she now suffering amnesia- or has something even more extraordinary occurred?
With the help of handsome pilot Matt, Michaela sets out to find out the truth. And what she discovers rocks everything she has ever believed to the core.
I liked the sound of this book when it arrived but I was also a little worried as I have read books based on a similar idea and found them too far-fetched. However, Melanie Rose has written a very good one and Down to Earth is an entertaining read that I struggled to put down.
Michaela has effectively lost six and a half years of her life and has absolutely no idea what has happened during that time. To her it feels as though she only saw everyone yesterday but a lot has changed in her absence. She returns to Callum, her boyfriend and his daughter Abby who was a sweet 10 year old when Michaela last saw however, she is now 16 and has a definite attitude problem. Feeling that she is doing the right thing by returning to Callum, Michaela tries to settle back into life but there are so many questions that need answering plus she can't ignore the huge connection she feels to Matt, who was the instructor on the day she jumped.
I got a bit annoyed half way through as Michaela just seemed to be getting on with her life whereas I know if it was me then I would not settle until I knew what had happened. But it all comes right in the end, Michaela starts asking questions and searching for the truth.
This is the first book I have read by Melanie Rose but I would highly recommend her books. As I said before Down to Earth is a very entertaining book, the plot keeps you turning the pages and I was absorbed right to the very end.

Many thanks to the lovely people at Avon for sending me this book to review. Down to Earth is available to buy now and if you would like to find out more about the author then you can check her website out http://www.melanierose.co.uk/

13.10.10

Book Review: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

Two girls, united in a quest to save a young prince, but separated by over two hundred years. Andi lives in present-day New York and is dealing with the aftermath of her brother's accidental death. Alexandrine lives in Paris and is desperately trying to save a young boy from the ravages of the French Revolution.
Their paths collide as Andi unlocks a route into the past which might just hold the key to reconciling herself with her own history- and her future.
A romantic, utterly engrossing story of two girls, two boys and the heart-wrenching thread that binds them together across the centuries.
Bestselling, award-winning author Jennifer Donnelly has written an incredibly evocative portrait of lives torn apart by grief and mended by love.
I only recently read Jennifer Donnelly's first book, A Gathering Light so I knew she was good. However, Revolution is not just good, it is brilliant, as with her first book I think it will easily cross over into an adult audience.
The book revolves entirely around the two main female characters who are completely believable, I felt as though I knew them so well by the end of the book. Andi is from present day New York, she is extremely intelligent and musically gifted. Her life and that of her family have been torn apart by the death of her younger brother, Truman. Andi blames herself, she feels her father blames her and Andi's mother is barely holding on to life and reality. When Andi's father gets a call from her prestigious high school about Andi's slipping grades, he steps in and places his ex-wife in a psychiatric hospital and takes Andi to Paris with him so she can concentrate on her thesis which she needs to complete in order to graduate.
It is Andi's trip to Paris that introduces us to the second main character. Andi is staying with friends of her fathers and comes across an old guitar case; she discovers that she can open a secret compartment in the case with a key that once belonged to her brother. The case is from the time of the French Revolution  and it contains Alexandrine's diary. She was not trying to save just any boy but the son of Louis XVI who she was the companion of. The young boy is orphaned after his parents are killed and locked in a tower with very little care shown to him. Alexandrine describes in her diary the horrors of the revolution and her struggles to free the boy who she dearly loved.
Louis-Charles was the same age as Truman when they both died, this is something that Andi cannot ignore. She becomes engrossed in Alexandrine's story just as the reader does; she is looking for answers, not only about Louis-Charles's fate but also her own as she struggles to continue on without Truman.
Jennifer Donnelly's writing completely blew me away. She describes the horrors of the French Revolution in great detail so you feel as though you are standing by watching it all happen. I have to be honest in that the French Revolution has never been something that I have been particulary interested in, but having read Revolution I know that I will look into this period of history to find out more.
As the synopsis states, these two young girls are connected by love and grief, emotions that have the same effects no matter what century they are experienced in. Both Andi and Alexandrine are carrying around the burden of guilt which has huge consequences for both of them. Obviously Alexandrine's fate cannot be changed but I kept turning the pages in the hope that Andi will find some kind of resolution.
Revolution is right at the top of the list of my favoutite books this year. The plot and characters are absorbing and the attention to historical detail is amazing. Jennifer Donnelly has written a book that children and adults will greatly enjoy.

Many thanks to Bloomsbury for sending me a copy to review, Revolution is published today.

11.10.10

New to Dot Scribbles Shelves

I have been a very lucky lady this week as three lovely books have been delivered by the postman. First of all, I have had two for review:

A Winter's Wedding by Sharon Owen (Penguin 11th November) Emily loves Dylan. And Dylan loves Emily. Their relationship is rock solid. Everyone says they are meant to be together, it's just a matter of when- not if- Dylan is going to pop the Big Question.
There's just one tiny fly in the ointment: Emily hates weddings. Which is fair enough seeing as she was jilted at the altar years ago by Alex, her supposed soul mate. Still, Dylan isn't Alex. He's gorgeous and sexy and scruffy and kind- and more than worth taking a chance on...
But what happens when the ghost of Emily's Christmas past threatens to ruin everything? Can Dylan convince the love of his life he's different and that their wedding day will be remembered for the right reasons?
After all, with a sprinkling of snow and a touch of magic in the air, there's nothing quite like a Winter's wedding to warm the soul...

Black Swan Rising by Lee Carroll (Transworld 25th November) Jeweller Garet James isn't the same as everyone else. She just doesn't know it yet. With her fair share of problems- money (lack of), an elderly father, a struggling business- Garet should be just like any other young, feisty, single New Yorker. If only it was that simple...
It  begins with the old silver box that had been soldered shut. All Garet had to do is open it. A favour for the frail owner of the antiques shop. Who wouldn't help?
Only it's then that things start to change. Garet doesn't notice at first, the shift's barely perceptible. But the city in which she grew up is beginning to reveal a long-hidden side- darker, and altogether more dangerous; a parallel world of chaos, smoke and blood.
Now it's out of the box... and it has no intention of going back in.

I also bought one book this week:


Sister by Rosamund Lupton (Piatkus) Nothing can break the bond between sisters...
When Beatrice gets a frantic call in the middle of Sunday lunch to say that her younger sister Tess is missing, she boards the first flight home to London. But as she learns about the circumstances surrounding Tess's disappearance, she is stunned to discover how little she actually knows of her sister's life- and unprepared for the terrifying truths she now must face.
The police, Beatrice's fiance and even their mother accept that they have lost Tess, but Beatrice refuses to give up on her. So she embarks on a dangerous journey to discover the truth, no matter the cost.

8.10.10

Book Review: Chocolate Wishes by Trisha Ashley

Life is sweet for chocolate maker Chloe Lyon. In the picture-pefect Lancashire village of Sticklepond, confectioner Chloe dispenses inspirational sweet treats containing a prediction for each customer. If only her own life was as easy to forecast-perhaps Chloe would have forseen being jilted at the altar...
But when a new vicar arrives in the village, the rumour mill goes into over-drive. Not only is Raffy Sinclair the charismatic ex-frontman of Rock band 'Mortal Rain', he's also Chloe's first love and the man who broke her heart.
Try as she might, Chloe can't ignore this blast from her past. Could now be the time for her to make a wish- and dare to believe it can come true?
I really wasn't very well when I read this book and I think that was the main reason that I struggled with it. I felt as though the book didn't really get going until about halfway through but I did find myself enjoying the second half.
I loved the idea of the Chocolate Wishes that Chloe makes and was quite envious of her life in rural Sticklepond. The main problem was that I didn't particularly like Chloe as a character. Maybe it's because I am very laid back but I just felt as though she had so many grudges against people and appeared to have a rather large chip on her shoulder.
I don't want to put anyone off reading this book as overall I enjoyed it. I did like Trisha Ashley's writing style, I just didn't take to Chloe. I will certainly try her other books as I know they have received positive reviews.

7.10.10

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly is being published next week and there is blog tour that you can follow. There is a button at the side of my blog but I do not seem to be able to make it any bigger so thought I would do this post so it is clearer. I loved A Gathering Light by the same author and there is a lot of excitement about Revolution, review hopefully coming up next week.

5.10.10

Book Review: 26a by Diana Evans

Identical twins Georgi and Bessi live in the loft of 26a Waifer Avenue. It is a place of beanbags, nectarines and secrets, and visitors must always knock before entering. Down below there is not such harmony. Their Nigerian mother puts cayenne pepper on her Yorkshire pudding and has mysterious ways of dealing with homesickness; their father angrily roams the streets of Neasden, prey to the demons of his Derbyshire upbringing. Forced to create their own identities, the Hunter children build a separate universe. Older sister Bel discovers sex, high heels and organic hairdressing, the twins prepare for a flapjack empire and baby sister Kemy learns to moonwalk for Michael Jackson. It is when reality comes knocking that the fantasies of childhood start to give way.
How will Georgia and Bessi cope in a world of separateness and solitude and which of them will be stronger?
I had seen very mixed reviews for 26a so I decided to find out for myself. To be honest, I was pretty disappointed and really struggled to get to the end of it. It's very strange as there are some big plot twists in this book but they just didn't hold my attention.
This may just be me but I was really confused as to what the author was trying to get across with this story. It is part coming-of-age, part living in different countries and part dysfunctional families. Don't get me wrong, these are all very interesting but it was almost as though Diana Evans had tried to deal with too many subjects in a relatively short book.
I'm glad that I tried it but I found 26a disappointing. Have any of you read it, if so what did you think?

1.10.10

New to Dot Scribbles Shelves

It's been a busy old week here at Dot Scribbles, we've had our sometimes lodger's Birthday to celebrate, jobs to apply for, in-laws to entertain but there has still been time to enjoy the new books that have come through the post box.
I have bought two books this week, both of which are quite old but I had recently seen very good reviews so here they are:

The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Penguin) Enter a vanished world: Jackson, Mississippi, 1962. Where black maids raise white children, but aren't trusted not to steal the silver..
There's Aibileen, raiding her seventeenth white child and nursing the hurt caused  by her own son's tragic death; Minny, whose cooking is nearly as sassy as her tongue; and white Miss Skeeter, home from college, who wants to know why her beloved maid has disappeared.
Skeeter, Aibileen and Minny. No one would believe they'd be friends; fewer still would tolerate it. But as each woman finds the courage to cross boundaries, they come to depend and rely upon one another. Each is in search of a truth. And together they have an extraordinary story to tell...

All You Need is Love by Carole Matthews (Headline) Single mum and superwoman Sally Freeman wants a better life for herself and her son Charlie. But it's not going to be easy when their home is on a run -down Liverpool council estate.
Just as Sally's mission to improve their surroundings gets under way, she's offered a ticket out of there, in the splendid form of Spencer Knight. He has everything she could wish for- the looks, the charm, not to mention the wallet. But is he the answer to her prayers, or does her hapless ex-boyfriend Johnny still hold the key to her heart?
As Sally decides what to do, she discovers that if The Beatles are right, and all you need is love then everything will fall into place.

I have received two lovely books for review this week:

Out for Blood by Alyxandra Harvey (Bloomsbury 1st November) Hunter Wild, vampire hunter and star pupil at a top secret slayer academy, has a crush on a guy called Quinn. He's tall, dark and very handsome. He's also a vampire, and one of the infamous Drake brothers at that.
As if forbidden love wasn't bad enough, something strange is also happening at the Helios-Ra academy. Vampire attacks are increasing, students are mysteriously falling ill and the teachers seem completely clueless. It's up to Hunter and her friends to put things right...that is if she can get a certain immortal out of her head long enough to think about anything else.

Down to Earth by Melanie Rose (Avon 14th October) Suffering last-minute panic, Michaela's three colleagues go first. But just as she takes her leap of faith, an almighty gale blows up from nowhere.
When she returns to the ground, she finds the airfield deserted, her car gone and the seasons mysteriously changed. Posters nearby proclaim Michaela to have been missing for the last six and a half years...
Everything about her life is completely different.
But Michaela is determined to find out the truth. Was she kidnapped? Is she now suffering amnesia- or has something even more extraordinary occurred?
With the help of handsome pilot Matt, Michaela sets out to find the truth. And what she discovers rocks everything she has ever believed in to the core...

All change here!

I have made the decision to stop doing written reviews on here for a little while. I shall keep this page open but for the time being I sha...