Lauraloves Reads 2016

[lauraloves]

20) The Yorkshire Shepherdess - Amanda Owen

 

(couldn't find  a book cover that would copy onto here )

 

Synopsis -  Amanda Owen has been seen by millions on ITV's The Dales, living a life that has almost gone in today's modern world, a life ruled by the seasons and her animals. She is a farmer's wife and shepherdess, living alongside her husband Clive and seven children at Ravenseat, a 2000 acre sheep hill farm at the head of Swaledale in North Yorkshire. In 'The Yorkshire Shepherdess' she describes how the rebellious girl from Huddersfield, who always wanted to be a shepherdess, achieved her dreams.

 

My Thoughts - I picked this book up as its on a subject close to my heart - farming. In farming terms we are a million miles away - she deals in sheep and we deal in a lot of pigs and straw. However it was still nice to read a book about 'our' way of life. Farming is such a different way of life and its kind of 'in your blood or not' as my father in law says. Its difficult to explain sometimes the differences but its kind of farming and animals come first and you kind of have to juggle everything around it. I love in the book she has all her children helping on the farm as little one comes out with me and rides the tractors and litters down the pigs - obviously with a lot of very close supervision but it was such a nice book. I've since found out she has written another book and that's gone straight onto my wishlist.

 

Rating - 5/5

[lauraloves]

21) Everything Everything - Nicola Yoon

 

 

Synopsis - My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.

Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

 

My Thoughts - I'd seen this book on Instagram at lot with lots of good reviews so I couldn't wait to get my hands on this and read it. Unfortunately I didn't enjoy it as much as I had hoped. It was ok but I had guessed the big twist in this book about a quarter of the way in and to me it was really obvious. I've heard its going to be a movie too and I'm not sure that I'd watch it either.Howver on a positive the cover is really pretty!

 

Rating - 3/5

[Nollaig]

Shame to hear you weren't that gone on Everything, Everything. It's on my wishlist.

[Athena]

Great reviews!

 

Shame about the Alex Rider book .

I'm glad you liked The 5th Wave, I have the book on my TBR.

Shame you weren't a big fan of Everything, Everything, I quite liked it (the cover is beautiful, I agree!).

[bobblybear]

Great reviews!

 

I'm re-reading the Harry Potter books as well, though I'm taking it very slowly. I've only read the first one, so loads of pages to go.

 

I thought I owned The 5th Wave, but it turns out I have it on my wishlist.

 

I've added The Yorkshire Shepherdess to my wishlist, as I love books and shows on farming. I find it so fascinating.

[bobblybear]

I just borrowed The 5th Wave movie from my local library. I know I should wait till I read the book first, but oh well....

[lauraloves]

Shame to hear you weren't that gone on Everything, Everything. It's on my wishlist.

Hopefully you'll love it and its just me being a bit odd haha!

 

Great reviews!

 

Shame about the Alex Rider book .

I'm glad you liked The 5th Wave, I have the book on my TBR.

Shame you weren't a big fan of Everything, Everything, I quite liked it (the cover is beautiful, I agree!).

Thank you I might go back to Alex Rider in the future but I'm not overly sure! I think I'm a bit odd in the not liking of Everything Everything as everyone else seems to love it!

 

Great reviews!

 

I'm re-reading the Harry Potter books as well, though I'm taking it very slowly. I've only read the first one, so loads of pages to go.

 

I thought I owned The 5th Wave, but it turns out I have it on my wishlist.

 

I've added The Yorkshire Shepherdess to my wishlist, as I love books and shows on farming. I find it so fascinating.

 

Thank you I'm hoping to have finished the Harry Potter series by Christmas. I'm on #5 at the minute so its do-able The Yorkshire Shepherdess is fantastic - hope you enjoy it as much as me

I just borrowed The 5th Wave movie from my local library. I know I should wait till I read the book first, but oh well....

 hehe - I'm terrible at reading a book after seeing the movie I don't seem to be able to get into the book after seeing it on screen!

[lauraloves]

22)Sunshine Over Wildflower Cottage - Milly Johnson

 

 

Synopsis - Escape to Wildflower Cottage this summer with the brilliant new novel from the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Teashop on the Corner and Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Café.

Viv doesn't like animals. And the feeling is mutual: animals seem to hate Viv too. So when she applies for a job at Wildflower Cottage, a tumbledown animal sanctuary which caters for a variety of unloved animals, she is not sure she will fit in. But then she catches sight of Heath, the owner, and things start looking up...

Geraldine runs the Wildflower Cottage sanctuary. She's a woman who has a secret in her past and who was drawn to the sanctuary just as Viv was. But her sanctuary is about to come under threat. Can she keep her past a secret and her future safe?

Back home, Viv's mother Stel thinks she might have found a man who will treat her right for once. Ian is kind, considerate, and clearly head over heels for her. That's what she has wanted all along, isn't it...?

 

​My Thoughts - I read this book while I was on holiday and to be honest it was a really good holiday read. It tells the story of Viv who is running away with something and her family surrounding her. It juped around from character to character and this was easy to follow and also very interesting reading about the different types of things going on in there lives. There was a few twists and turns in this book that were quite obvious but enjoyable all the same. I've never read anything by this author before but I've added a couple more books of hers to my wishlist.

 

​Rating - 3.5/5

[lauraloves]

23)Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Jack Thorne/J.K. Rowling/John Tiffany

 

 

Synopsis - Based on an original new story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, a new play by Jack Thorne, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is the eighth story in the Harry Potter series and the first official Harry Potter story to be presented on stage. The play will receive its world premiere in London’s West End on July 30, 2016.

It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children.

While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places

 

​My Thoughts - I've been looking forward to his book since it was announced and I'd had it on pre-order. I'm the biggest fan of Harry Potter so for me this was a dream come true. I wish I could say that that I loved this book but I cant say that I did. For me it read a lot like fan fiction as I couldn't understand the plot line sometimes and the plot surrounding Harry was quite unbelievable. I couldn't really warm to Albus however I did love Scorpius. I'm not sure how the plot line of the book is going to impact on any further Harry Potter stories but I just didn't understand the plot lines in regards to Voldemort and Bellatrix. To me this just didn't seem like something that would have happened. Now while I enjoyed revisiting Harry Potter I think i'll just stick with the original stories.

 

​Rating - 3/5

[lauraloves]

24) Dead Until Dark - Charlaine Harris (Sookie Stackhouse #1)

 

 

Synopsis - Sookie Stackhouse is a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana. She's quiet, keeps to herself, and doesn't get out much. Not because she's not pretty. She is. It's just that, well, Sookie has this sort of "disability." She can read minds. And that doesn't make her too dateable. And then along comes Bill. He's tall, dark, handsome--and Sookie can't hear a word he's thinking. He's exactly the type of guy she's been waiting for all her life....

But Bill has a disability of his own: He's a vampire with a bad reputation. He hangs with a seriously creepy crowd, all suspected of--big surprise--murder. And when one of Sookie's coworkers is killed, she fears she's next....

 

My Thoughts - I've had this book on my wishlist and TBR pile for years but for some reason I'd never picked it up until now. I really enjoyed this book it was different to other vampire books that I have read and much more enjoyable. I cant wait to read more of the series and see where her and Bill go and also where her powers go and if there are other people in the story with powers.

 

Rating - 4/5

 

Yay finally caught up

[Athena]

I just borrowed The 5th Wave movie from my local library. I know I should wait till I read the book first, but oh well....

I've heard the book is better than the movie, so don't let the movie put you off from the book! I hope you enjoy it though . 

 

Laura, great reviews!

 

22)Sunshine Over Wildflower Cottage - Milly Johnson

 

I've got two other books by Milly Johnson on my TBR, glad this one was an enjoyable holiday read. 

 

23)Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Jack Thorne/J.K. Rowling/John Tiffany

 

Shame this wasn't very nice . I've heard other people also say it reads like fanfiction.

 

As a sidenote, my sister has read this three-book fanfiction series (based on the HP books) that she quite liked called The James Potter Series by G. Norman Lippert, which J. K. Rowling has approved. I haven't read them yet but you can download all three books for free from the website as e-books. I don't know if you'd be interested but my sister quite liked them (she's a big fan of Harry Potter), so I thought I'd mention it (if you're not interested, fine too!) I'm not a big fan of e-books myself but I plan to read them eventually.

 

24) Dead Until Dark - Charlaine Harris (Sookie Stackhouse #1)

I'm glad this was good! I should still make a start on this series.

 

Yay finally caught up

Woohoo .

[chesilbeach]

Just wanted to pop in and recommend The Shepherd's Life by James Rebanks.  I read it recently and it was excellent.  Another sheep farmer (obviously!) but it's a great memoir about farming and I think you'd enjoy it.

[Janet]

I read A Yorkshire Shepherdess for my Book Club last year and thought it was very good.  I was a bit bothered by her lax way of dealing with her pregnancies knowing how quickly she gives birth and not having contractions (how many times did she give birth in a lay-by?!) and the other thing which bothered me was the way she wrote her speech.  Her dialect was so Yorkshire that it sounded false and it was rather grating.  I mentioned that during the discussion of the book and several others had made a similar observation – and the host (who chose the book) played us the recording of Amanda Owen being interviewed by Libby Purves and she only had a very gentle lilt – nothing like the way she wrote about herself.  Maybe that’s how she hears herself, but it got very wearing after a while!

 

However, that aside it was very good - I think I scored it 4/5. 

[bobblybear]

I've heard the book is better than the movie, so don't let the movie put you off from the book! I hope you enjoy it though .

 

The movie was dire (couldn't even finish it), so I probably should have waited to read the book first.

[Madeleine]

Hi Laura

 

I love the Sookie Stackhouse books, the first four are the best I think, after that they get a little bit erratic, but there are plenty of other characters with strange powers to meet.  Hope you get to read some more of them and enjoy them.

[lauraloves]

I've heard the book is better than the movie, so don't let the movie put you off from the book! I hope you enjoy it though . 

 

Laura, great reviews!

 

 

I've got two other books by Milly Johnson on my TBR, glad this one was an enjoyable holiday read. 

 

 

Shame this wasn't very nice . I've heard other people also say it reads like fanfiction.

 

As a sidenote, my sister has read this three-book fanfiction series (based on the HP books) that she quite liked called The James Potter Series by G. Norman Lippert, which J. K. Rowling has approved. I haven't read them yet but you can download all three books for free from the website as e-books. I don't know if you'd be interested but my sister quite liked them (she's a big fan of Harry Potter), so I thought I'd mention it (if you're not interested, fine too!) I'm not a big fan of e-books myself but I plan to read them eventually.

 

 

I'm glad this was good! I should still make a start on this series.

 

 

Woohoo .

 

Thank you I've just had a little look about the James Potter Series and these do seem very good I'll have to download them for next time we fly somewhere - OH bans me from taking anything other than the kindle as the weight limit on the books would be ridiculous haha

 

Just wanted to pop in and recommend The Shepherd's Life by James Rebanks.  I read it recently and it was excellent.  Another sheep farmer (obviously!) but it's a great memoir about farming and I think you'd enjoy it.

 

Thank you for the recommendation - I've just had a look at it on Amazon and I've added it to my wishlist - trying to persuade hubby to look on there for anniversary presents

 

I read A Yorkshire Shepherdess for my Book Club last year and thought it was very good.  I was a bit bothered by her lax way of dealing with her pregnancies knowing how quickly she gives birth and not having contractions (how many times did she give birth in a lay-by?!) and the other thing which bothered me was the way she wrote her speech.  Her dialect was so Yorkshire that it sounded false and it was rather grating.  I mentioned that during the discussion of the book and several others had made a similar observation – and the host (who chose the book) played us the recording of Amanda Owen being interviewed by Libby Purves and she only had a very gentle lilt – nothing like the way she wrote about herself.  Maybe that’s how she hears herself, but it got very wearing after a while!

 

However, that aside it was very good - I think I scored it 4/5. 

 

I agree with the pregnancy thing - if that was me I'd be straight off to the hospital when I started to feel like things were happening! If I have anymore I've got to get myself to hospital fairly quickly as we had complications with our first so I've got to be monitored more carefully incase it happens again so I don't think I'd be putting anything at risk! I did struggle a little with the dialect and had to concentrate a little more on this. Glad you enjoyed it too

 

The movie was dire (couldn't even finish it), so I probably should have waited to read the book first.

 

ooohhh now do I want to watch it now or not?

 

Hi Laura

 

I love the Sookie Stackhouse books, the first four are the best I think, after that they get a little bit erratic, but there are plenty of other characters with strange powers to meet.  Hope you get to read some more of them and enjoy them.

 

Thank you  - hopefully I'll get around to reading them soon however it is a book series that I want to continue

[lauraloves]

25)Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J. K. Rowling

 

Synopsis - Dark times have come to Hogwarts. After the Dementors' attack on his cousin Dudley, Harry Potter knows that Voldemort will stop at nothing to find him. There are many who deny the Dark Lord's return, but Harry is not alone: a secret order gathers at Grimmauld Place to fight against the Dark forces. Harry must allow Professor Snape to teach him how to protect himself from Voldemort's savage assaults on his mind. But they are growing stronger by the day and Harry is running out of time.

 

My Thoughts - Carrying on with my re-read of this series this year it was on to one of my favourites in the series. For me this book is the one that explains everything. Its been 4 books sort of setting the major plot line and this is the book that explains the who, what, where, when and how. This is the biggest of all the books too and they really start to deal with a lot of more adult themes like death. This is also the book where Harry seems to turn more of a 'man' than a 'boy' in my opinion. Hes faced with a lot of growing up choices and has to make a lot of life decisions. Its also the book with Sirius - one of the saddest moments of the books in my opinion too. This book is very enjoyable and I loved re-reading it.

 

Rating - 5/5

[Athena]

Thank you I've just had a little look about the James Potter Series and these do seem very good I'll have to download them for next time we fly somewhere - OH bans me from taking anything other than the kindle as the weight limit on the books would be ridiculous haha

Haha, I'm saving them for a holiday too .

 

I'm glad you enjoyed your re-read of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix . I agree with your review. 

[lauraloves]

26) How to Find Love in a Bookshop - Veronica Henry

 

 

Synopsis - Nightingale Books, nestled on the high street in the idyllic Cotswold town of Peasebrook, is a dream come true for booklovers.

But owner Emilia Nightingale is struggling to keep the shop open. The temptation to sell up is proving enormous - but what about the promise she made to her father? Not to mention the loyalty she owes to her customers.
Sarah Basildon, owner of stately pile Peasebrook Manor, has used the book shop as an escape from all her problems in the past few years. But is there more to her visits than meets the eye?

Since messing up his marriage, Jackson asks Emilia for advice on books to read to the son he misses so much. But Jackson has a secret, and is not all he seems...

And there's Thomasina, painfully shy, who runs a pop-up restaurant from her tiny cottage. She has a huge crush on a man she met and then lost in the cookery section, somewhere between Auguste Escoffier and Marco Pierre White. Can she find the courage to admit her true feelings?

 

My Thoughts - I brought this book purely based on the title of the book when I was food shopping one day - its a book about a bookshop - whats not to love? I'm also happy to say that the book did not disappoint it was brilliant. Its set around residents of Peasebrook and there love of books and all there different stories. It was brilliant dipping in and out of there lives and reading about how the bookshop had influenced them. I couldn't put it down either it was fantastic. I've added some more of the authors books to my wishlist and I'm hoping they are as good as this one.

 

Rating - 5/5

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Athena]

Based on your review I might well buy this book for myself for my birthday . How can I resist when it's set in a book shop?! I'm glad you enjoyed it . Nice review!

[Madeleine]

I've read one of her others and it was a nice easy read, and I have some more by her too.

[lauraloves]

Based on your review I might well buy this book for myself for my birthday . How can I resist when it's set in a book shop?! I'm glad you enjoyed it . Nice review!

 

It is so good Hope you enjoy it as much as I did

 

I've read one of her others and it was a nice easy read, and I have some more by her too.

 

Yep definitely a nice and easy read but so heart-warming too

[Athena]

It is so good Hope you enjoy it as much as I did

Thanks . I've pre-ordered the medium-sized paperback and it'll be a birthday gift for my birthday .

[lauraloves]

27)Village of Secrets: Defying the Nazis in Vinchy France - Caroline Moorehead

 

 

Synopsis - From the author of the runaway bestseller A Train in Winter comes the extraordinary story of a French village that helped save thousands, including many Jewish children, who were pursued by the Gestapo during World War II.

Le Chambon-sur-Lignon is a small village of scattered houses high in the mountains of the Ardèche. Surrounded by pastures and thick forests of oak and pine, the plateau Vivarais lies in one of the most remote and inaccessible parts of Eastern France, cut off for long stretches of the winter by snow.

During the Second World War, the inhabitants of the area saved thousands wanted by the Gestapo: resisters, freemasons, communists, downed Allied airmen and above all Jews. Many of these were children and babies, whose parents had been deported to the death camps in Poland. After the war, Le Chambon became the only village to be listed in its entirety in Yad Vashem's Dictionary of the Just.

Just why and how Le Chambon and its outlying parishes came to save so many people has never been fully told. Acclaimed biographer and historian Caroline Moorehead brings to life a story of outstanding courage and determination, and of what could be done when even a small group of people came together to oppose German rule. It is an extraordinary tale of silence and complicity. In a country infamous throughout the four years of occupation for the number of denunciations to the Gestapo of Jews, resisters and escaping prisoners of war, not one single inhabitant of Le Chambon ever broke silence. The story of Le Chambon is one of a village, bound together by a code of honour, born of centuries of religious oppression. And, though it took a conspiracy of silence by the entire population, it happened because of a small number of heroic individuals, many of them women, for whom saving those hunted by the Nazis became more important than their own lives.

 

My Thoughts - I picked this book up a little while ago as I really enjoy books that are set in or describe the events of World War 2 so when I heard about this I knew that I should get this. I'm not overly sure what I expected from this book but what I got wasn't it. It was very heavy on different peoples back stories that I didn't think was overly relevant to the events described in the book. Also it was very heavy on religion - now while this story needed a bit on it the author went into great detail with almost everyone described and there religious background which I didn't think was necessary. I'm really not sure I couldn't get into as I find this type of book really nteresting.

 

I did think the author did well at putting it down onto paper the sheer horror of the persecution of the Jews and how so many families were ripped apart - I don't know how I would cope having to send my little boy away and never knowing if he was alive or not.

 

Overall not a good book for me.

 

 

Rating - 2.5/5 

[lauraloves]

28)The Sunshine and Biscotti Club - Jenny Oliver

 

 

Synopsis - Moving to Italy to set up a baking club is a dream come true…

…until Libby catches her husband cheating just weeks before The Sunshine and Biscotti Club opens its doors.

With the first wave of guests set to arrive any day, Libby has no choice but to tie on her apron and get set to bake. But with a dash of sunshine and a sprinkling of old friends, Libby’s kitchen nightmare might just become the best thing that’s ever happened to her.

After all, you can’t bake biscotti without breaking a few eggs…

 

My Thoughts - I picked this up in one of the supermarkets on the 2 books for £7 offer. I was interested because of the title and also because It was a light hearted read. This book was ok - it didn't stand out much plot wise from a lot of the other chick lit books that I've read this year. It did have a few more modern subjects in it like one of the characters was a blogger and she posted vlogs on YouTube and pictures on Instagram. This is something that I hadn't read before in a book and I was quite pleasantly surprised as I've just got into the whole watching vlogs on YouTube and also Instagram. There were lots of different characters perspectives in this book which was nice too as I find it can be a bit samey with this genre if it all stays in the same characters voice. This book was needed after my previous heavy going non fiction book and it would have also been a perfect holiday read. Not a bad summer read.

 

Rating - 3/5