30.4.12

Developing Miss Darcey

Darcey is now three months old and I cannot believe how quickly that time has gone! Thought that I would update you all as to how we are getting on so I'm afraid that this isn't book related. I have thought about writing this post for a while, I am always completely honest in my reviews so I am going to be completely honest in this post too. I have found being a new mum really hard. I hoped that I would be a natural but I have to admit that things haven't come that easily. I can now hold my hands up and admit that I have had full-blown post natal depression, the past month and a half have been extremely difficult and without the support of Dr S and my family, I don't know how I would have coped.
I really wish that people would talk about these things more as it is so, so easy to feel that you are the only one that is experiencing it. I am definitely coming out of the other side now and I love being a mum to Darcey and seeing how much she changes every single day; she has her moments but on the whole she seems very happy and content and we get lots of smiles now which is just lovely!
Once again though, reading and blogging have helped me through a really difficult time, being able to escape into a book, if only for 20 minutes or so has done me the world of good. As you can see from the picture of Darcey in her chair, we have started her early with the books, she loves looking at them and I can't wait to be able to read her a story, the tough part will be deciding what to read to her first!

24.4.12

Book Review: The Darker Side of Love by Jessica Ruston

Lies: we all tell them. To protect those we love, to disguise failure, to hide disappointment. To mask betrayal or deceit. But what happens when they start to catch up with us? When our lives begin to be shaped by the lies of others?
The late 'noughties'. A global recession looms. A group of old friends, all leading outwardly successful, interesting lives. All in apparently loving, secure relationships. Yet all, in some way, lying to those closest to them, concealing secret worries, jealousies or desires. This group of friends is about to discover that the truth won't stay buried forever.
Welcome to the darker side of love.
I very much enjoyed Jessica Ruston's book To Touch the Stars but I must admit that I enjoyed The Darker Side of Love even more and was sad to get the the last page.
There are four main female characters. Izzy who is married to James, they have two beautiful children but she is in definite need of something more. Stella and Johnny have a baby together but Johnny's band is about to hit the big time and his life-style is leading Stella to self-destruct. Caroline is newly married to Bart and should be enjoying the honeymoon period but things aren't always as perfect as they appear. Harriet is the final character, she has been with Will for what seems like forever but she still doesn't have a ring on her finger; maybe it's time to issue him with an ultimatum.
They are four very different women and it was really interesting to see how they slotted together. I think that I identified the most with Izzy but I was as equally interested in all of the others. As the title suggests, Jessica Ruston is exploring the darker side of love. This book is beautifully dark, full of lies, betrayal, sex and jealousy but I also felt that it was brilliantly honest. It didn't paint pretty pictures but stripped these women's relationships back and showed how they really are rather than how they look from the outside.
I really struggled to put this book down and it is one of the best that I have read so far in 2012. I think this is the most powerful of Jessica Ruston's books so far and I highly recommend it.

Dot Scribbles Rating 5/5

Many thanks to Headline Review for sending me a copy of the book to review, The Darker Side of Love is out now.

22.4.12

New to Dot Scribbles Shelves

I have received some very exciting books to review recently, here's a few of them, let me know your thoughts!

Summer Daydreams by Carole Matthews (Sphere, 24th May) Nell McNamara has a happy life: her boyfriend Olly adores her, their four-year-old daughter Petal is the centre of their world and Nell has a steady job in the local chip shop. When the chippy needs a makeover, Nell jumps at the chance to unleash the creativity fizzing inside her.
Inspired by what she can achieve- and encouraged by the best friends a girl can have- Nell is determined to try something new. Waving goodbye to the chip shop, she starts up a new business making her own line of must-have handbags, which are soon flying off the shelves!
It seems Nell's dreams are finally coming true, but her success doesn't come without a price. Before too long, Nell has to ask herself if it's really possible to have it all...

Catching The Sun by Tony Parsons (Harper Collins, 7th June) When taxi driver Tom Finn is almost jailed for confronting two burglars in his own home, he leaves broken Britain and takes his wife and children to live on the tropical island of Phuket, Thailand. Phuket is all the Finn family dreamed of- a tropical paradise where the children swim with elephants, the gibbons sing love songs in the jungle, the Andaman Sea is like turquoise glass and the young family is free to grow. But both man-made disaster and unleashed forces of nature shatter this tropical idyll.

White Wedding by Milly Johnson (Simon and Schuster, 7th May) It's the day they've always dreamed about. But will it turn out to be a nightmare...?
Bel is in the midst of planning her perfect wedding when disaster strikes and everything she thought she knew is turned on its head. Can she hold it all together and, with the help of her friends, and a mysterious man she meets unexpectedly, turn disaster into triumph?
Bel's best friend, ice-cream parlour owner Violet, is engaged to Glyn, who is besotted by her although Violet fell out of love with him long ago. But however trapped she feels in the relationship, she can't quite say the words, 'I don't want to marry you anymore.' Then, just when she's about to give up and resign herself to married life, she finds love in the most surprising of places. Will duty rule her heart or will she allow herself to be swept off her feet?
Their childhood friend Max was planning a quick registry office do with her fiance Stuart until she sees a TV programme about traveller brides and becomes determined to have the most extravagantly glitzy wedding ever. But in all the excitement has she lost sight of what's really important? Does she want the wedding more than she wants the groom?
And as all three friends find the dress of their dreams at the White Wedding bridal shop, its owner, the lovely Freya, guarantees that her gowns will bring them happiness- though maybe not quite in the way they expected...

Until I Die by Amy Plum (Atom, 3rd May) She fell in love with the perfect man. But his secret condemns him to die: again and again. For Kate's boyfriend is a revenant. A man who gave his life in place of another. Now one of the undead. Locked in an immortal battle played out on the streets of Paris. Kate and Vincent can be together right now, in the moment. But when one is mortal and the other immortal. What will they do about forever? Set in a Paris rich in art, history and mythology, Until I Die is a gothic novel about love against the odds. With a detailed revenant mythology rooted in existing legend, Amy Plum introduces you to a dark and fascinating new paranormal underworld.

Better Together by Sheila O'Flannagan (Healdine, 5th July) Sheridan Gray has the perfect life: dream job as a hot-shot journalist, ideal boyfriend and demanding parents' approval. That is, until her world crashes around her. Left with few options, she takes a job in what just so happens to be the hometown of the man she blames for everything- is this ever going to be the new start Sheridan needs?
When her husband, an aspiring actor, was offered a part in Dublin, Nina Fallon never dreamt her own life would become a soap opera. Faced with running her guesthouse alone and denying the idle gossipers, the last thing she needs is her new tenant's eagle-eyed investigations. As Sheridan gets closer to the truth, both women struggle to let go of the past. Will they stick to what they know? Or will they find that practice makes perfect and sometimes it's best to move on?

Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness (Headline, 10th July) It began with A Discovery of Witches. Historian, Diana Bishop descended from a line of powerful witches, and long-lived vampire Matthew Clairmont have broken the laws dividing creatures. When Diana discovered a significant alchemical manuscript in the Bodleian Library, she sparked a struggle in which she became bound to Matthew. Now the fragile coexistence of witches, daemons, vampires and humans is dangerously threatened. Seeking safety, Diana and Matthew travel back in time to London, 1590. But they soon realise that the past may not provide a haven. Reclaiming his former identity as poet and spy for Queen Elizabeth, the vampire falls back in with a group of radicals known as the School of Night. Many are unruly daemons, the creative minds of the age, including playwright Christopher Marlowe and mathematician Thomas Harriot. Together Matthew and Diana scour Tudor London for the elusive manuscript  Ashmole 782, and search for the witch who will teach Diana how to control her remarkable powers... Fall under the spell of Diana and Matthew once more in this stunning , rich imagined epic tale.



16.4.12

Book Review: 77 Shadow Street by Dean Koontz

The Pendleton stands on the summit of Shadow Hill, a palace built in the 19th Century as a tycoon's dream home. But its grandeur has been scarred by episodes of madness, suicide and mass murder. Since being converted into luxury apartments in the 70's, however,  the Pendleton has been at peace. For its fortunate residents- among them ex-marine Bailey Hawk, songwriter Twyler Trahern and her young son Winny- the Pendleton is a sanctuary, its dark past all but forgotten.
But now inexplicable shadows caper across walls, security cameras relay impossible images, phantom voices mutter in strange tongues, not-quite-human figures lurk in the basement, elevators plunge into unknown depths. It seems that whatever drove past occupants to their unspeakable fates is at work again. As nightmare visions become real, a group of extraordinary individuals hold the key to humanity's destiny.
Welcome to 77 Shadow Street.

This is the first book by Dean Koontz that I have read. I used to love reading horror as a teenager  but it is the first time for a long time that I have dipped into this genre.
77 Shadow Street revolves around The Pendleton, it was a palace built in the 19th Century which has now been converted into luxury apartments with a wide mix of tenants. The Pendleton almost becomes a character within the book, all of the action takes place in the one building and I could vividly picture what it would look like.
Dean Koontz builds tension from the very beginning, there are many instances of characters being observed without their knowledge which makes for very creepy reading. I would imagine that Dean Koontz is a master of this genre and just when I thought I had worked it all out, he would throw in another surprise and I would have to think it all through again.
The only problem that I had with this book was keeping up with all of the characters. For me, there were just too many, I felt that I had to really think back and remember which details went with which character. Having said that, my favourite character was Winny, using a child is a really clever device as it really highlighted the malevolent force at work in the building by pitting it against such an innocent and helpless character.
77 Shadow Street was a pretty gripping read and I think it will lead me to trying more horror books in the future. It's a twist on the classic haunted house tale and Dean Koontz keeps his readers guessing to the very end.

Dot Scribbles Rating: 3.5/5

Many thanks to Josephina at The Big Shot for sending me a copy of the book to review. 77 Shadow Street has a brilliant interactive website where you can explore The Pendleton and find out more about the book and the characters, to have a look just click here.



12.4.12

Book Review: The Midwife of Venice by Roberta Rich

Hannah Levi is famed throughout Venice for her skills as a midwife but, as a Jew, the law forbids her from attending a Christian woman.
However, when the Conte di Padovani appears at her door in the dead of night to demand her services, Hannah's compassion is sorely tested. And with the handsome reward he is offering, she could ransom back her imprisoned husband.
But if she fails in her endeavours to save mother and child, will she be able to save herself, let alone her husband?
The Midwife of Venice is an extremely interesting historical read. The book moves between two main stories, Hannah's in 16th Century Venice and her husband Isaac's in Malta where he is serving as a slave.
Hannah risks everything to earn Isaac's ransom money; putting her own life and those around her in extreme danger. She attends the Christian birth of the Conte's wife, two women separated by class and religion but thrown together in the traumatic and wonderful event of childbirth. However the link between these two women does not end there but Hannah could not have had any idea of how events would unfold.
Roberta Rich's writing is extremely rich in detail, I loved her detailed descriptions of both Venice and Malta. Having spent much of my childhood in Malta I can say that she got the landscape spot on. She brought the two plot lines together seamlessly whilst keeping a really good pace throughout.
I would highly recommend this book for its vivid imagery and enthralling plot.

Dot Scribbles Rating 4/5

Many thanks to Ebury press for sending me a copy of the book to review, it is out now.

5.4.12

Book Review: Between a Mother and her Child by Elizabeth Noble

For Maggie and Bill it was love at first sight...
One impulsive wedding later and with the arrival of three perfect children, Jake, Aly and Stan, the Barrett family seem to have it all. Until the day their world stops turning.
When Jake dies suddenly, they're swept away on a tide of grief that fractures Maggie and Bill's marriage. She and the children are left clinging to the wreckage of their family. And they need help, because in her grief Maggie is in danger of losing Aly and Stan too.
Enter Kate, housekeeper, companion and shoulder to cry on. She's here to pick up the pieces and fix what isn't completely broken. But can Maggie trust Kate? And why is Kate so keen to help?
When Bill falls for another woman, Maggie realises she will have to fight to put her family back together- but will they still want her?

Between a Mother and her Child is Elizabeth Noble's seventh book and I think it is her best so far. Maggie and Bill's world is torn apart when their teenage son Jake is killed in a tsunami whilst on his gap year travels. Life will never be the same again but life has to go on, especially when you have two other children depending on you. The grief caused by Jake's death leads Maggie and Bill to separate. Maggie's sister from Australia can see that the family is falling apart and enlists the help of Kate; part Mary Poppins and part rent-a-granny; Kate comes into their lives at just the right time. Bill has met another woman and Maggie realises that she may be close to losing Aly and Stan due to the barrier of grief that she has put up around her. Kate will hopefully be able to help but why doesn't she have her own family to look after?
Elizabeth Noble explores the devastating affect that grief can cause within a family. We get to know each member of the Barrett family and see their different perspectives in losing Jake and how it has affected them individually and their relationships with each other.
I thought that the book was really interesting in that Jake's death causes Maggie and Bill's marriage to come to an end but not their relationship. Of course they still have to have contact because of the children but it becomes very clear as the book develops that they still love each other. They may not want to continue their marriage but they must find a way to move on in order to find any happiness in the future.
Elizabeth Noble's writing is very poignant and there were times when I was close to tears. She is so good at giving you all the little details so you feel as though you know the characters completely and this is what kept me turning the pages.
If you haven't read any of Elizabeth Noble's books then I highly recommend them. Between a Mother and her Child is a highly emotional read but worth every page.

Dot Scribbles Rating 5/5

Many thanks to Kate at FmCm Associates for sending me a copy of the book to review, it is out now.

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...