Merry Christmas From The Review Diaries

The Review Diaries would like to wish all readers a very Merry Christmas filled with many wonderful bookish things.

I hope wherever in the world you are you have a lovely day with family and friends.

It's been a very disjointed end of the year here, so I know there hasn't been as much activity as usual. However I will be back to your regularly scheduled reviews and posts after the festive break!

Merry Christmas!

Review: Lords & Ladies by Sir Terry Pratchett

Publication Date: November 1^st 1993 (this edition)
Publisher: Corgi
Length: 382 pages

The fairies are back – but this time they don’t just want your teeth…
Granny Weatherwax and her tiny coven are up against real elves.
It's Midsummer Night.
No times for dreaming...
With full supporting cast of dwarfs, wizards, trolls, Morris dancers and one orang-utan. And lots of hey-nonny-nonny and blood all over the place.

Well that was intense.

It’s been well documented here over the last few months, my first foray into the Witches thread of the Discworld books, and I finally made it onto the fourth instalment, which effectively blew me away. Up until now, my favourite had been ‘Wyrd Sisters’ but something about ‘Lords & Ladies’ really clicked for me and it’s now vying for top spot.

I’ve found with past Pratchett novels that the action takes its time to build up, and the first two thirds are generally spent weaving several seemingly random stories that suddenly intertwine and snowball into a brilliant climax. Not so here. The action kicks off right from the start, and whilst there were a few sections that take their time, and storylines that amble along at their own pace, I was thoroughly hooked and engrossed in the story right from the first page.

It features some truly brilliant character development, particularly in the case of Magrat who has a real shift which was fascinating to watch unfold. But also with Granny Weatherwax, who continues to be brilliantly acidic, but with a slightly softer side she likes to keep well-hidden and cowed into submission.

This story takes stories set in motion in previous novels and builds upon them, although a brief summary at the start gives you an overview if you’re coming into this novel without the background laid out in the previous books. It also felt darker and at times scarier than I’ve come to expect from Discworld novels, which kept me on my toes and gave me chills whilst I was reading. This is definitely fairies as you’ve never seen them before, and they are not the nice kind…

All in all this is another fantastic Discworld instalment, offering brilliant character development, more acerbic wit and a brilliant melding of other stories and ideas into one insane yet brilliant whole. Pratchett has definitely found his feet within the Discworld now and it shows in one of the strongest novels I’ve read yet in the Witches thread.

Top Ten Authors I've Discovered This Year

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created and hosted by the lovely folks over at 'The Broke & The Bookish' - to join in simply follow the link!

It’s been a busy year for books for me. At the time of writing I’ve read over 140 books, some written by authors I know and love and return to again and again. Others written by authors I have only just discovered. It’s been a wonderful mix of established authors that I hadn’t yet managed to read, and debut authors with stunningly eye catching first novels, and it’s so great to celebrate the top ten of those here.

 

Moira Fowley-Doyle

With the release of Moira’s debut novel ‘The Accident Season’ she shot straight onto my list of favourite authors. I adored ‘The Accident Season’ – the secrets, the magic, the tilting, shifting view of the world as everything unravels. It marked Moira as an author to watch, with a gorgeous writing style and an incredible imagination.

Leigh Bardugo

The first of my ‘Rosy which rock have you been hiding under to only just discover this author NOW’ authors, I’d somehow managed to avoid reading The Grisha trilogy until this year, but now that I have, followed by ‘Six of Crows’, I am hooked, HOOKED I TELL YOU. Basically I am on the Leigh Bardugo bandwagon and I cannot wait for the next book from her.

 

Rainbow Rowell
So my rock I’ve been hiding under has been busy. Technically I had already discovered Rainbow, but I’d not been particularly fussed on ‘Eleanor and Park’ so she hadn’t really caught my interest as an author to watch. But then earlier this year I read ‘Landline’ and it caught me at the perfect moment. It resonated so strongly with me, filled me with hope and longing and the magic that Georgie finds every night with this old clunky phone, and really captures both the wild reckless surety of love in your twenties juxtaposed by the deeper, more entangled love later in life. It was beautiful and perfect, and had me sobbing and auto buying every other novel Rainbow has written.

Diana Gabaldon
Outlander has been around for a while but it took getting hooked on the TV show (which is brilliant by the way, go watch it now if you haven’t seen it yet) for me to finally look up the books and immerse myself in Claire and Jamie’s world. These books are epic. Truly epic. They are so much more than the romance at their heart. They’re time travel, they’re historical novels, romance, war, political. A mix of everything into one glorious series. I fell in love with Claire and Jamie, with this world that Diana is depicting. It cemented my love of Scotland yet further, and illuminated a period of history I was shockingly hazy on. It also turned Diana into one of my favourite authors, and one whose books I am loving working my way through.

 

Sabaa Tahir
A dark, intriguing and complex novel, the hype surrounding ‘An Ember in the Ashes’ was huge and well deserved. It was a surprising novel that came to me at just the right time and sets up for a thoroughly fascinating series. The cliff hangers we were left with at the end of the first book have left me longing for book two to see more world development, character arcs and a plot worthy of the excitement the first book left me with.

Renne Adieh

This book was gorgeous. One of those beautiful novels that sweeps readers away and I saw the wave coming towards me and knew I was going to love this book. I was so right. Heart breaking, beautiful with such a rich and vivid story folded within its pages, I loved this one. I’m both eager to get my hands on the next book and sad to see the story conclude. If you’re a fan of the tale of 1001 nights and you haven’t picked this one up yet, you need to get onto this asap…

Martha Brockenbrough

I’d not come across any of Martha’s writing before, and then ‘The Game of Love & Death’ fell into my lap and broke me completely. It’s a stunningly beautiful novel. Unique, magical, and filled with hope. I loved the complexity of the characters, the added depth the game and the personification of Love and Death gave to the story. But above all I loved Flora and Henry, watching their story unfold and their emotions unfurl. It’s an incredible novel, one of my favourite reads of the year.

Sarah Benwell
Ok, so technically I have known Sarah and her writing much longer than just this year. However her debut novel ‘The Last Leaves Falling’ hit shelves way back at the start of this year and I want to show it some more love. Because it’s almost Christmas, and you should really be giving this book to everyone you know. Sarah’s debut novel was stunning. A beautiful, hauntingly quiet novel suffused with longing, the fragility of life and working out what it truly means to live, and hope. It’s beautiful, a uniquely different young adult contemporary that smashes the moulds and greets difficult subjects head on. It is an incredible debut and I cannot wait to see what Sarah writes next.

 

Marie Rutkoski

The first book in The Winner’s Trilogy somehow didn’t make it to the top of my to read pile before the second book came out, so I marathoned both books in a matter of days. My only complaint? That I didn’t wait for book three to be out first because THAT CLIFF HANGER. Despite the fact that my nerves will be in shreds by the time I read the third book, I LOVED this series. So well written, such a brilliantly constructed world with fascinating and morally grey characters, and such TENSION AND STRESS. I cannot wait to get my hands on the last book.

Terry Pratchett

Another author that yes ok I technically discovered a long time ago. But whilst I had read the odd Discworld book before, I don’t feel I truly discovered and started to appreciate Pratchett and the Discworld before this year. I enjoyed previous books, but something about the Witches thread has me thoroughly captivated. I’m loving getting to know Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and co, and these are books that have definitely fallen into my lap at precisely the moment I’ve needed them most. I’ve stopped just enjoying my visits to the Discworld and started loving them, and I’m so glad I have so many more outings and stories yet to discover.

So there you have my top ten authors I've discovered this year. Do we share any? Are you appalled that it's taken me so long to discover some of these? Let me know and link me to your own top ten lists in the comments below!

Review: Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

Publication Date: June 17^th 2014 (this edition)
Publisher: Square Fish
Length: 435 pages

Darkness never dies. 
Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a life with Mal in an unfamiliar land, all while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. But she can't outrun her past or her destiny for long. 
The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling's game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her--or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm. 

So I read and loved the first book in the trilogy ‘Shadow and Bone’ – it was the perfect bit of escapism at a moment when I needed it the most. So as soon as I finished the first book I immediately picked up the second book and carried straight on with Alina’s story, which at the end of the first book was tinged with a little bit of hope in amongst all the darkness. It doesn’t last long. We’re barely thirty pages in when everything goes to hell in a handbasket and Alina and Mal are plunged straight back into terror and torture and bad things all round.But in amongst all the very bad things is one extraordinarily thing, or rather, person. Sturmhond. Be still my beating heart.

This book is a lot funnier than the first, the banter is on point, and it is pretty much all thanks to this wonderful guy. Seriously, virtually every word out of his mouth is a quote I highlighted, and I was frequently laughing out loud. There are also AWESOME TWISTS involving him which made me giggle with glee. 

Basically laughter, banter and a little bit of swooning. Whilst I would have enjoyed this book without him, the presence of Sturmhond truly lifted the book from one I enjoyed into one I adored. Which is a good thing because Mal was truly getting on my nerves in this book. I wanted to love him, so much love just waiting to give to Mal (except Sturmhond stole it all) but he was being a whiney child throughout the novel. I wanted to shake him. I couldn’t see the relationship between him and Alina, and almost every interaction with them left me frustrated. I feel like I’m being pointed at this ship and told to love it, yet not really getting any reason why I should.

The pacing is very different to the first. We’re chucked straight into the action for the first half and then there is a lot of politics and strategizing which was interesting, but definitely a change of pace. It’s a time to slow down, take stock, develop characters and relationships, and, you know, for Alina to think she’s going full on crazy. Despite the change of pace, or perhaps because of it, I really enjoyed this book, and I really settled down into loving this series. I loved getting lost in the magic, the world, the characters. Basically it was the perfect read for me in this frame of mind. If you’re after escapism, this is one to pick up.

Then it all kicks off and we have big battles and much death and it all feels rather bleak and desperate and I LOVED IT. Seriously, whilst I really enjoyed the first book, this book took everything to a whole new level, which was intriguing because often the second book in a series is the point where everything falters as pieces are moved into place for the grand finale in book three.

So if you’re worried that the second book won’t live up to you love of the first, HAVE NO FEAR, because it’s excellent. And you’ll meet Sturmhond, who is basically my latest fictional baby. Because, reasons.
And if you like me have put off reading this series (foolishly) then you need to get on it stat, because this is brilliant. Imaginative, brilliantly written, and thoroughly addictive, I love it.

Review: A Wicked Old Woman by Ravinder Randhawa

Today I’m the latest stop on the ‘A Wicked Old Woman’ Blog tour – don’t forget to check out all the other stops to find out more about the book!

Publication Date: October 24^th 2015 (this edition)
Publisher: Matador
Length: 242 pages

Thanks to the author for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review

Drama. Masquerade. Mischief.
A sharply observed, witty and confident novel. Linguistically playful, entertaining and provoking.
In a bustling British city, Kulwant mischievously masquerades as a much older woman, using her walking stick like a Greek chorus, ‘…stick-leg-shuffle-leg-shuffle…’ encountering new adventures and getting bruised by the jagged edges of her life. There’s the glamorous rebel who rescues her after a carefully calculated fall; Caroline, her gregarious friend from school days, who watched over her dizzy romance with ‘Michael the Archangel’, and Rani/Rosalind, who’s just killed a man…
Vividly bringing to life a bit of the 60s, 70s and 80s.

That blurb had me thoroughly intrigued from the outset, and whilst this is an intriguing novel it is a very different beast to the one I was expecting when I started reading.

The novel is a jumbled collection of characters and situations, story threads and backstory that takes a while to untangle so you can see the pattern clearly, and whilst I think this may put some people off, once you get through to that point it is well worth the effort.

The writing is lyrical, in places overly verbose, an exercise in linguistic gymnastics as Ravinder plays with language, thoughts and feelings to create an almost poetical writing style that paints Kulwant’s life in vivid colours.

This can become confusing and frustrating as you try to unravel the meanings and thoughts hidden in sometimes overly complex language. However in places it can be brilliant in its execution.
It can also provide some confusion as the characters are predominantly female and the author has a tendency to refer to characters by pronoun rather than name. That can lead to confusion and frustration as you have to then not only untangle the writing, but also try to work out who is speaking and to whom.

However despite these drawbacks and frustrations I thoroughly enjoyed working my way through this novel. It’s unique, fascinating and complex. I loved watching the characters grow, come into their own and embrace the world around them. I loved the culture, Kulwant’s experiences being Asian in England, the community and the vibrant characters that populate the novel.

It’s beautiful in places, filled with clever turns of phrase and lyrical prose, an interesting novel that is unlike anything else you will read this year.

If my review has piqued your interest don’t forget to check out the other stops on the blog tour!

You can find Ravinder across the interwebs

Website / Facebook / Twitter

Review: The Door That Led to Where by Sally Gardner

Publication Date: January 1^st 2015
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Length: 288 pages

Thanks to Netgalley and Hot Key Books for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review

When the present offers no hope for the future, the answers may lie in the past AJ Flynn has just failed all but one of his GCSEs, and his future is looking far from rosy. So when he is offered a junior position at a London law firm he hopes his life is about to change - but he could never have imagined by how much. Tidying up the archive one day, AJ finds an old key, mysteriously labelled with his name and date of birth - and he becomes determined to find the door that fits the key. And so begins an amazing journey to a very real and tangible past - 1830, to be precise - where the streets of modern Clerkenwell are replaced with cobbles and carts, and the law can be twisted to suit a villain's means. Although life in 1830 is cheap, AJ and his friends quickly find that their own lives have much more value. They've gone from sad youth statistics to young men with purpose - and at the heart of everything lies a crime that only they can solve. But with enemies all around, can they unravel the mysteries of the past, before it unravels them?

This one was a quick and enjoyable read that thoroughly sucked me in, but never really developed into anything more than surface enjoyment. Sometimes that’s a good thing to have a story that you can just whip through in one sitting and be taken away for a little while. Sometimes that can be incredibly frustrating and leave you feeling cheated. Luckily I was in the former camp when I sat down to read this one.

It takes a little while to find its feet and really get going, but once it does it trundles along at a decent pace, not offering too much of a challenge in terms of plot or having to think whilst reading, but instead offers a simple story that relies heavily on the intrigue and magic infused within to carry the readers interest. A door that leads to the past, I loved how little time AJ spends having long desperate crisis about how this could be possible and just embraces it whole heartedly. AJ is an interesting protagonist, and I loved watching his story unfurl. The most interesting aspect for me was this idea of these three boys who hadn’t amounted to much in our world making something of themselves through the door. It was such a fascinating idea and I wish we could have seen a little more of its development. However the relationships between the three boys is left a little underplayed. We’re supposed to see that their the closest of friends, but it never really comes across. In fact the relationships throughout a little under developed which was a shame.

The writing is good, and I loved the historical details that are littered throughout. They really help to bring the past to life and to make AJs journeys through the door even more realistic and interesting. However the novel never really lifts from good into fantastic, which is a huge shame, and I felt like the writing let the concept down in several places.

All in all this was an interesting read that was thoroughly enjoyable to sit down with for a couple of hours. I was frustrated that it glossed over some of the parts that interested me the most, but on the whole it was a great stand alone read.

Review: Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Publication Date: May 7^th 2013 (this edition)
Publisher: Square Fish
Length: 372 pages

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.
Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.
Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha… and the secrets of her heart.

I know what you’re thinking – how has it taken you so long to get to this series?! And I have no decent excuse. It got tangled up in my head with ‘Daughter of Smoke and Bone’ by Laini Taylor, and by the time I realised they were two very separate books the ship had sailed and I decided to wait until the full trilogy was out to sit down to read to them.
Then I promptly forgot.
Until ‘Six of Crows’ started making exciting waves and I decided that enough was enough and I really ought to get caught up on the Grisha world properly before launching into ‘Six of Crows’, and well, here we are.

This book had me from the first page. It was just the type of world, mythology, and exciting plot peopled with fascinating characters that I needed to get lost in. I stormed through it virtually in one sitting and loved it thoroughly.

It was such a refreshing change to see a gorgeous take on Russia used as the backdrop in Ravka. It leant the book a wonderful freshness and set it apart from so many of the fantasy books I’ve read this year. The world building is superb and I loved being immersed in this world, familiarising myself with the history and culture which is all captured so vividly and really adds an additional layer to the story that helps lift it from the page.

The characters are all complex and fascinating and I loved Alina from the start. She’s a wonderfully relatable protagonist, filled with flaws and weaknesses as well as strength and determination. I loved watching her come to terms with her past, her present and her future and all the facets of herself that she’s kept hidden for years. The only character that I wasn’t fussed on was Mal, strangely enough. I cared about him, but I wasn’t sold on the romance in the way I was hoping and expecting to be, which was a shame.

This is a fantastic start to what I’m sure is going to be a fabulous series. It’s filled with excitement and drama and magic and I slipped into this world and Alina’s life and fell in love. I cannot wait to see what the rest of the trilogy has in store.

Books I'm Squeeing About in December

December already, and another year almost done! It's been quite a hectic and stressful few weeks here with Mum heading into hospital. However she is out and on the mend now which is a huge relief! As a result I'm spending most of my time reading books I've had sat on my shelves or kindle for ages, trying to tidy up and finish series before the end of the year rather than pick up new releases. These two look too intriguing for me to pass them by, so these are the books I'm squeeing about this month!

1st December - The Rosemary Spell by Virginia Zimmerman
Part mystery, part literary puzzle, part life-and-death quest, and chillingly magical, this novel has plenty of suspense for adventure fans and is a treat for readers who love books, words, and clues. Best friends Rosie and Adam find an old book with blank pages that fill with handwriting before their eyes. Something about this magical book has the power to make people vanish, even from memory. The power lies in a poem—a spell. When Adam's older sister, Shelby, disappears, they struggle to retain their memories of her as they race against time to bring her back from the void, risking their own lives in the process. 

I'll be honest, it was the title that caught my eye, but that blurb has me thoroughly intrigued. I could do with a good urban fantasy and I'm looking forward to getting stuck into this one.

1st December - Medicis Daughter by Sophie Perinot

Winter, 1564. Beautiful young Princess Margot is summoned to the court of France, where nothing is what it seems and a wrong word can lead to ruin. Known across Europe as Madame la Serpente, Margot’s intimidating mother, Queen Catherine de Médicis, is a powerful force in a country devastated by religious war. Among the crafty nobility of the royal court, Margot learns the intriguing and unspoken rules she must live by to please her poisonous family.
Eager to be an obedient daughter, Margot accepts her role as a marriage pawn, even as she is charmed by the powerful, charismatic Duc de Guise. Though Margot's heart belongs to Guise, her hand will be offered to Henri of Navarre, a Huguenot leader and a notorious heretic looking to seal a tenuous truce. But the promised peace is a mirage: her mother's schemes are endless, and her brothers plot vengeance in the streets of Paris. When Margot's wedding devolves into the bloodshed of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre, she will be forced to choose between her family and her soul.

French historical? Yes please! I love historical novels, and I'm particularly enjoying delving into anything set in France and trying to fill in a few gaps in my French history. Catherine de Medicis is a fascinating historical figure and I'm looking forward to seeing a little of her daughter in this exciting new novel.

Are you curious about either of these titles? Or are there any others you think I should be reading this month? Let me know in the comments below!

Review: Instructions for the End of the World by Jamie Kain

Publication Date: December 8^th 2015
Publisher: St Martin’s Press
Length: 224 pages

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martin’s Press for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review

He prepared their family for every natural disaster known to man--except for the one that struck.

When Nicole Reed's father forces her family to move to a remote area of the Sierra Foothills, one without any modern conveniences, it's too much too handle for her mother, who abandons them in the middle of the night. Heading out to track her down, Nicole's father leaves her in charge of taking care of the house and her younger sister, Izzy. For a while, Nicole is doing just fine running things on her own. But then the food begins to run out, the pipes crack, and forest fires start slowly inching their way closer every day. Wolf, a handsome boy from the neighboring community, offers to help her when she needs it most, but when she starts to develop feelings for him, feelings she knows she will never be allowed to act on once her father returns, she must make a decision. With her family falling apart, will she choose to continue preparing for tomorrow's disasters, or will she take a chance and really start living for today?

Side note: It really frustrates me when covers are designed by people who have clearly never read the book. Why is she wearing a hat and a blanket? The entire book takes place in the middle of summer when it’s stupidly hot and there are forest fires coming for them.

It’s always a bad sign when you want to shake 90% of the characters in a book. Alas, ‘Instructions for the End of the World’ has that in spades, in fact I think there was only one character that didn’t frustrate me. It also might be my book of the year for truly terrible parenting. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book with such a bunch of awful, unfit to have children parents in some time. You have Wolf’s mother who is completely self-absorbed and tries to bring everyone into the drama of her life. Then Nicole and Isabel’s parents – one of whom it emerges never wanted children and willingly leaves her kids with their slightly unstable father in the middle of nowhere with no intentions to come back and rescue them.
Good job parents.

Then there are the kids, who are slightly screwed up but no less frustrating. There was so much potential here with both Nicole and Isabel and the situations they find themselves in, but it didn’t feel like the book was ever fully allowed to explore them, it just glossed over the top and as a result any emotional impact was lost. It also makes both of the girls decisions really hard to understand, particularly in the end of the novel where I just wanted to introduce my head to the desk for a while and weep for the idiocy.

There are several character viewpoints: Wolf, Nicole and her sister Isabel – all reasonable. But then we have one random other view point from Laurel who gets a grand total of two chapters out of the book and feels like a secondary character arc that was meant to be expanded into something, but instead was left as a beginning and an end.

Whilst the concept was fascinating, I never really connected with the characters or the story. I wanted to get drawn into the situation, to feel for these people, but I felt like nothing was really driving the events – there was no real plot to speak of. I ended up just feeling apathetic and mildly frustrated, and wishing for the story I thought I’d be diving into when I opened this book.

Top 10 Books That I'm Thankful For

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created and hosted by the lovely folks over at 'The Broke & The Bookish' - to join in simply follow the link!

This week to celebrate Thanksgiving, The Broke and the Bookish have tasked us with listing bookish things we're thankful. I decided to go the traditional route and list the ten books/series that I adore. I know I talk about them already from time to time, but today I want to let them shine in all their glory as I explain (again) exactly why I love these books and why they mean so much to me.

The Song of the Lioness Quartet by Tamora Pierce
(Alanna: The First Adventure/In The Hand of the Goddess/The Woman Who Rides Like a Man/Lioness Rampant)
As you know by now, these books were my first foray into the world of fantasy. They shaped my love of books, my love of fantasy lands, of magic, of strong female characters. These books did so much for little me, and she had no idea when she picked up that strange book with the purple eyed cat on the cover, exactly how it would shape her bookish loves.

The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater
(The Raven Boys/The Dream Thieves/Blue Lily, Lily Blue/The Raven King)
We haven't even had the last book in the series yet (which, by the way, is going to completely emotionally destroy me. I can't wait.) but this series is a defintie favourite and one I am eternally thankful for. You don't realize when you first start reading The Raven Boys after reading that terrible blurb, just how special that book and the series really are. They creep up on you until you are so in love with these boys and Blue, with the magic and the impossibleness of it all, that you cannot ever imagine a time when you didn't know and love this book.

The Bridgerton Series by Julia Quinn
(The Duke & I/The Viscount Who Loved Me/An Offer From a Gentleman/Romancing Mr Bridgerton/To Sir Philip With Love/When He Was Wicked/It's In His Kiss/On The Way to the Wedding)
Over a decade ago I read 'It's in His Kiss'. It was the first historical romance I ever read, and it sparked a love for the genre that is alive and well to this day. My Mum bribed me into studying for my exams with Julia Quinn's books, and I loved escaping the humdrum necessity of studying for these sweeping romances, dashing heroes and witty heroines. I adore this series, and no matter how many other historical romances I may read, I always come back to the Bridgertons.
The Discworld Series by Sir Terry Pratchett
I've read a few Discworld's over the years, but I never really got thoroughly sucked into the Discworld until recently. On discovering that I was reading 'The Shepherd's Crown' without ever having read any other Witches's thread books, my lovely friend Sarah shrieked and demanded that I go back to the start and do it properly. So I am. I'm falling in love with these books in ways I never expected to, and I'm loving going through and actually exploring the world and the series properly for the first time. This series redefined what fantasy books could be. They're bitingly funny, full of brilliance, and no matter how late to the party I am, I am so thankful that we were graced with so many books in this series by Pratchett.

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
I don't think I will ever be able to adequately put into words just how much I love this book. There is something indefinable about it, something magical and haunting that leaves you feeling like you have just spent several weeks on Thisby when you turn the final page. If I could move to Thisby tomorrow I would. I love the island, the characters, the horses, the rituals and festivals and traditions, the November cakes and cinnamon twists. This book is indescribably special to me, one I revisit again and again.

The Lynburn Legacy & The Demon's Trilogy by Sarah Rees Brennan
(Unspoken/Untold/Unmade) (The Demon's Lexicon/The Demon's Covenant/The Demon's Surrender)
Sarah's books are amazing. They're funny, they're clever, they're heart wrenching and dark and will rip your heart out and smush it about a little before giving it back to you. Plus, I now have proof that they are for everyone after shoving them into Husband's arms and having him go feral when I with held the final book in the Lynburn Legacy from him for five minutes...
Her books are like nothing I've ever read before, the perfect blend of humour and darkness, brilliant characters, imaginative plots and utterly sublime writing. I will forever be thankful to that random day of googling 14 year old me did that led me to Sarah's writing.

The Lady Julia Grey Series by Deanna Raybourn
(Silent in the Grave/Silent in the Sanctuary/Silent on the Moor/The Dark Road to Darjeeling/The Dark Enquiry)
I stumbled across the first book in the series quite by accident and was immediately hooked. Deanna creates such startlingly real characters, flawed, human and utterly fascinating. Add in world building with some of the most thorough research to truly bring the day to day existence of these characters to life, and complex and intriguing plots that keep you on your toes and you hit perfection. I love Julia and Brisbane and all of Julia's colourful family, I love the mysteries that leave me breathless and tense even now after multiple re-readings, and I love the careful balance of darkness and light that truly brings these stories to life.

The Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling
Do I really need to say anything more? I grew up with Harry, Ron & Hermione. They brought light into dark times, they took me on their adventures with them, and they taught me all the ways to be brave. I'm so thankful for this incredible series.

The Throne of Glass Series by Sarah J Maas
(The Assassin's Blade/Throne of Glass/Crown of Midnight/Heir of Fire/Queen of Shadows)
When I first picked up 'Throne of Glass', I will admit, I wasn't convinced. But within a few pages I was hooked. I couldn't put it down. I was thoroughly enthralled by the world, by the bad ass heroine, by the magic and general awesomeness. That feeling has only grown with each subsequent book. And the best part? This year I passed the first book in the series to my husband, unsure what response it would get. We ended up fighting over who would get to read 'Queen of Shadows' first...

The Seven Kingdoms Trilogy by Kristin Cashore
(Graceling/Fire/Bitterblue)
If I cannot got to Thisby or Hogwarts, I want to visit The Dells and the Seven Kingdoms. They're so vibrant, so fascinating, filled with magic and peopled with intriguing characters. I love how different and complex these three heroines are, how they portray different facets of stereotypes and then tip them on their head and show such developed characters. I love their stories, the slow unraveling of mysteries and plots that are always so much more than I expect. Simply put, I adore these books.

So there you have the top ten books/series that I am insanely thankful for. Basically a chance for me to wax lyrical about ten of my all time favourites, would grab from the shelves if my flat was on fire. They have all had a huge impact on my life in some way or another and I adore them. Are any of these long term favourites for you? Any that you're interested in picking up after seeing why I love them? Let me know and link me to your Thanksgiving Top Ten Thankful lists in the comments below!

Review: Aristotle & Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz

Publication Date: April 9^th 2013 (audiobook release)
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Length: 7hrs 29 mins

A lyrical novel about family and friendship from critically acclaimed author Benjamin Alire Sáenz.
Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship--the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be. 

So many people have loved this book, so many people whose bookish overlap mine, so I was expecting to love this book when I finally sat down to listen to it. Unfortunately it ended up being a bit of a rocky road. I don’t know if it was that I didn’t get along with listening to it and would have loved it had I decided to read it instead, or whether I was in the wrong frame of mind, but this novel and I really did not get along until around 80% of the way through. And that was heart-breaking.

I couldn’t connect with the characters, I found both Ari and Dante frustrating. I was irritated by the emotional swings – people crying all the time. The writing style was at times abrasive and abrupt, intermittently littered with truly beautiful prose. It was just such a mix and I couldn’t settle into the story.

Finally at around the 80% mark I settled more into the rhythm of the story and found myself beginning to really care about these characters, so by the end I was thoroughly engrossed in the story, but it was so frustrating for it to have taken that long to pull me in.

There is so much to love about this story though. Like I said, it has some truly gorgeous prose and some really profoundly beautiful phrases and quotes that I loved. I loved the content, the subject matter tackled, the two polar opposites we find in Ari and Dante. I loved their parents. Too often in young adult fiction parents are portrayed as awful, absent, or ignored completely. Here both Ari and Dante’s parents are complex individuals who round out the story and complete it in ways that would never be achieved if the focus was purely on the two boys. Their love for each other shines through, and each of them is individual bringing their own fears, hopes, and personalities to the narrative.

I think part of the problem for me was that the story is incredibly slow. There is no driving force to the plot to really propel it and keep the momentum going. It ambles, it pauses, it takes tangents, and at times that can be incredibly frustrating. I think that would have been less of a problem for me had I been reading this, but listening to someone else take these narrative rambles didn’t hold my interest.

I can see why people love this book. I can see why others have found it frustrating and hard to engage with. It isn’t a favourite for me – yet. I think this is one of those times I need to go away and forget it for a few years, then come back and read it rather than listen to it. 

Review: One Dance With a Duke by Tessa Dare

Publication Date: May 25^th 2010
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Length: 384 pages

A handsome and reclusive horse breeder, Spencer Dumarque, the fourth Duke of Morland, is a member of the exclusive Stud Club, an organization so select it has only ten members--yet membership is attainable to anyone with luck. And Spencer has plenty of it, along with an obsession with a prize horse, a dark secret, and, now, a reputation as the dashing "Duke of Midnight." Each evening he selects one lady for a breathtaking midnight waltz. But none of the women catch his interest, and nobody ever bests the duke--until Lady Amelia d'Orsay tries""her luck. 
In a moment of desperation, the unconventional beauty claims the duke's dance and unwittingly steals his heart. When Amelia demands that Spencer forgive her scapegrace brother's debts, she never imagines that her game of wits and words will lead to breathless passion and a steamy proposal. Still, Spencer is a man of mystery, perhaps connected to the shocking murder of the Stud Club's founder. Will Amelia lose her heart in this reckless wager or win everlasting love?

Every now and again you need a good romance to sweep you off your feet and since I had such a wonderful experience reading my first novel by Tessa Dare earlier this year, I was eager to go back and fill in the gaps with some of her other novels. Enter the ‘Duke of Midnight’ who had me intrigued just from the blurb and I couldn’t wait to see whether he live up to all of that anticipation.

Short answer? Sort of.

The novel gets off to a glorious start that had me laughing out loud at the sheer plucky nerve of our heroine Amelia, and the banter between her and Spencer. I loved the whirlwind of their romance, how quickly they fall together and how their relationship unfurls. I was utterly swept away.

But then it all starts to get a little bit murky. I really struggled both with Spencer and Amelia’s inability to truly communicate with each other and their inability to compromise. Add in Amelia’s truly baffling defence of her brother, who has a gambling problem and at no point shows any sort of love or affection for Amelia and I was becoming increasingly frustrated. Blindness over loved ones is fair enough, but because we never see any reason or reciprocation of that love, Amelia’s blind faith and defence of her brother just become irritating to read. That leads into a snowball effect where both Amelia and Spencer become increasingly unlikeable and I just wanted to sit them down and give them a stern talking to.

However, despite this I had too much love for Amelia and Spencer built up over the first half to truly despair. It got me thoroughly intrigued about the other boys and their stories, and was just the kind of escapism read that I needed. It doesn’t rank as one of my favourite historical romances, but it does have a lot to love. Fluff, romance, feisty heroines and dashing heroes galore.

Review: How To Be Brave by E. Katherine Kottaras

Publication Date: November 3^rd 2015
Publisher: St Martin’s Press
Length: 288 pages

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martin’s Press for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review

An emotional contemporary YA novel about love, loss, and having the courage to chase the life you truly want.
Reeling from her mother's death, Georgia has a choice: become lost in her own pain, or enjoy life right now, while she still can. She decides to start really living for the first time and makes a list of fifteen ways to be brave - all the things she's wanted to do but never had the courage to try. As she begins doing the things she's always been afraid to do - including pursuing her secret crush, she discovers that life doesn't always go according to plan. Sometimes friendships fall apart and love breaks your heart. But once in a while, the right person shows up just when you need them most - and you learn that you're stronger and braver than you ever imagined.

Something about this book just didn’t click with me, so whilst I saw a huge amount of love for it before I started and I was expecting to love it myself, we never really hit it off.

At the start of the novel I was engaged, interested in these characters and their problems and I loved the idea of the living with no fear list – all things combining to set up a truly great novel. But then it starts to drift. Georgia starts to smoke, do drugs, skip school, and all in the name of her mother’s memory and this list of living with no fear. She acts as though what she’s doing is living, when she’s actually just throwing it all away. Whilst she does realise how badly she’s screwed up later in the novel it felt like too little too late after the borderline glorification of taking drugs etc. that occurs throughout.

With the drugs everything seems to spiral and it turns into a very different novel to the one I started out reading. It loses focus, it drifts, Georgia spends a lot of time isolating and feeling sorry for herself and sabotaging her life and it’s frustrating to read. It also serves to make Georgia come across as extremely unlikeable as she blames her dead mother for the fact that she forced her to live without fear – to do this list in the first place. At no point does Georgia’s mother force her to create this list, or to do anything on it. It’s an interpretation of her wishes that Georgia devises and then spends a good portion of the novel being angry about. As a result my empathy for her decreased sharply and by the end I really didn’t care for her at all.

Throw in a love story with a caricature of the hot guy from school who we never really get to know, or get to see and understand the attraction between them for the three scenes they have together, and I was more than a little grumpy by the end of the novel.

It has its good moments, some truly emotional scenes that had me feeling more than a little bit teary, but they aren’t enough to balance out the problematic aspects. Ultimately it’s a quick read that sadly lacks anything to truly make it shine.