bobblybear

The Loop – Nicholas Evans Synopsis from Amazon: Helen Ross, a twenty-nine-year-old biologist, is sent to a sleepy Rocky Mountain ranching town to defend a pack of wolves from those who want to destroy them. For in Hope, Montana, a century ago, the wolf was slaughtered to extinction and though now protected by law as an endangered species, the old hatred runs deep. Alone in this hostile place, bruised by a broken love affair, Helen struggles for self-esteem and survival, embarking on a dangerous alliance with the son of her most ferocious opponent, the brutal and charismatic Buck Calder. My Thoughts: Loved this book, but no surprises there as I have enjoyed all of Nicholas Evans’ books. The Loop has a double meaning, of the circle of life and the horrific trap used to kill wolf pups. His books are always about people with a journey to make – people who are ‘incomplete’ in some way and need to undergo a particular life experience to be ‘whole’ or to reach their full potential. I like the way he writes flawed characters so well, without going over the top and making them caricatures. He never skims the surface, but goes right into the detail of what has made his characters the way they are and it’s painful to watch them struggle to better themselves. The tale of the wolves is very interesting in itself, and I’m surprised that they are so hated in parts of America (I’m assuming that bit is factual – haven’t actually looked it up myself). Some parts make for difficult reading (as an animal lover), but I guess it’s necessary to tell the whole story. It’s a shame he’s mostly known for The Horse Whisperer, as I think that is his ‘weakest’ book (perhaps because it was his first), though it’s still pretty damn good. The Loop is probably my most-loved of his books now, though it’s a close call with The Divide as well. 10/10

Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch Synopsis from Amazon: My name is Peter Grant and until January I was just probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service (and as the Filth to everybody else). My only concerns in life were how to avoid a transfer to the Case Progression Unit - we do paperwork so real coppers don't have to - and finding a way to climb into the panties of the outrageously perky WPC Leslie May. Then one night, in pursuance of a murder inquiry, I tried to take a witness statement from someone who was dead but disturbingly voluable, and that brought me to the attention of Inspector Nightingale, the last wizard in England. Now I'm a Detective Constable and a trainee wizard, the first apprentice in fifty years, and my world has become somewhat more complicated: nests of vampires in Purley, negotiating a truce between the warring god and goddess of the Thames, and digging up graves in Covent Garden . . . and there's something festering at the heart of the city I love, a malicious vengeful spirit that takes ordinary Londoners and twists them into grotesque mannequins to act out its drama of violence and despair. The spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it's falling to me to bring order out of chaos - or die trying. My Thoughts: Unfortunately I didn’t enjoy this as much as other people have, but I seem to be in the minority. The synopsis made it sound like something I would like. It started off well with a very quirky storyline (loved the first meeting with the ghost) and a likeable lead character. One of the problems I had with it was the humor. I’ve come to realise that I don’t particularly enjoy humor in fiction. It reminded me of Jasper Fforde whose book I couldn’t fully get into, partially because of the humor. It just got a bit too bizarre for my liking. The murders in the story were extremely graphic; that didn’t bother me, but it was an odd juxtaposition with the humor and lightheartedness within the novel. I couldn’t quite place the genre – was it supposed to be serious or funny? It didn’t feel right to me and it left me scratching my head. I did chuckle at the Harry Potter references though. I won't be reading the sequel anytime soon. 6/10

I've just had to give up on Fault In Our Stars, which I picked up after enjoying the mysteriousness and angst of Paper Towns. It was well written, but just not something I related to. I feel I'm doing it a bit of dis-service by giving up on it, and it's a serious topic, but I just struggled with reading it. When I read in 10 minute chunks here and there, I know it's not my kind of book. Nollaig, the title is explained a little in the book, and is to do with the phrase: 'Star crossed lovers'. Shakespeare wrote that Cassius said: "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars / But in ourselves." So the book says - I'm not au fait with Shakespeare.

Bless Obi! Dogs are wonderful, aren't they?

I've given up on The Fault in our Stars by John Green. It's well-written but not something I can relate to. I did flip to the back though, to see how it ends. Now I've started The Brave by Nicholas Evans. I've only read the first chapter and I'm already hooked. He has to be one of my favorite authors now. After this one, I'll have read all of his books.

I've just updated my Books Purchased list. Here I was thinking I was being good and not buying many, and I've bought 13 Kindle books in the last 2 months. How did that happen? Goodness knows how many I will buy during the Twelve Days of Kindle. I'm dreading it but also looking forward to it.

Men In Black 3. Really fun movie!

Nothing yet, but some Cornish Pasties are the in the oven cooking.

Welcome back, Echo!

I'm now reading The Fault in our Stars by John Green.

I finished Pigeon English. I wasn't as moved by it as I think I was "supposed" to have been.

Yep - guilty as charged. I hesitated for a while before buying a Kindle because I didn't realise quite how much I would use it. I thought I would read the odd book on it, but still mostly read paper books. The opposite is true - I have probably read 5 paper books this year (if that); all the others have been Kindle books. If you are going to use it primarily for reading, then I would stay away from the Kindle Fire and stick with one of the e-ink Kindles. It really is just like reading a paper-book (in terms of no eye-strain) and even easier to read, somehow. Also, it needs charging maybe once a month (even if you use it daily) and the storage capacity is very handy, especially when travelling.

Struggling a bit with Pigeon English, but it's only a short book so I shall persevere.

I've just read Season One of Yesterday's Gone, which was free when I bought it, but now they are charging. However, you can download the first two 'Episodes' (as they call them) of Season One for free: Episode One Episode Two From what I gather, they release a new 'episode' each month or so. I've read the first 6 episodes and they are brilliant, if you are into 'end-of-the-world' type fiction.

Finished Yesterday's Gone - awesome! Have now started Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman

I saw Crazy Stupid Love recently and thought it was great.

Finished Fingersmith by Sarah Waters. Really liked it, though it took me a while to get my head around some of it. Now I'm back on Yesterday's Gone by Sean Platt and David Wright.

The Witches - Roald Dahl Synopsis from Amazon: "There is a secret society of Witches in every country," said my grandmother. "An English witch will know all the other witches in England. They swap deadly recipes. Goodness knows what else they talk about. I hate to think." Unfortunately, there is no way of telling for sure whether a woman is a witch or not- but there are a number of little signals that you can look out for, as the hero of this story finds out. But can he foil the Grand High Witch and her gang before he is squelched forever? My Thoughts: This is another re-read from my childhood. I loved the story back then and loved it just as much now. Roald Dahl really shows off his creative talents with his description of these wig-wearing, square-toed witches. Such an inventive and imaginative story. No wonder he was such a popular children’s author. Highly recommended for children and adults alike. 9/10

The Declaration - Gemma Malley Synopsis from Amazon: Sixteen-year-old Anna should not have been born. It is the year 2140 and people can live for ever. No one wants another mouth to feed, so she lives in a Surplus Hall, where unwanted children go to learn valuable lessons . . . at least she wasn't put down at birth. One day, a new inmate arrives. Anna's life is thrown into chaos. He says things about her parents and the Outside that couldn't possibly be true . . . Or could they? Thrilling, passionate and beautifully written, this dystopian novel is perfect for fans of The Hunger Games My Thoughts: I liked the story, but probably would have preferred it as an ‘adult’ book rather than ‘young adult’ as it would have maybe been told in a grittier way. While the story itself was serious, it was often interrupted by the romantic tension between Anna and Peter. I lost count of the times Anna blushed when Peter looked at her, and how often Peter’s eyes ‘flashed’ whevever someone said something that irritated him. (In fact, as the story went on, I kept myself entertained by guessing - sometimes correctly – that Peter’s eyes were about to ‘flash’ ) But, really that’s a minor criticism and probably wouldn’t bother other readers. Thinking on it, I would have enjoyed it more if the main characters were adults. I thought the story took a little while to take off and a bit too much time was spent in the Surplus Hall but I can see how it was need to set the scene. I was just dying to find out about the outside world so I was a bit impatient. If you like dystopian novels, then there will be something in this book to keep you interested whether you are a young adult or adult. I'll read the sequels, but they aren't at the top of my TBR list. 7/10

I have about 100 pages or so left of Fingersmith. This morning I borrowed from the library: The Brave - Nicholas Evans Pigeon English - Stephen Kelman The Fault in our Stars - John Green

He is gorgeous and I love him more and more each day. He's just so sweet-natured and adores everyone. He's always wagging his tail and is such a happy puppy. Reuben is quite vocal, which at first worried us. We were wondering if something was wrong with him or if he was in pain or something, but like you say I think it's his way of expressing himself and also getting attention. He used to sit in front of me and do this shaky little whine over and over; he's stopped doing it as much now which is good, as it can get a bit irritating. Our previous dog wasn't very vocal and was quite settled, whereas Reuben is high-energy, demanding and vocal. He's the polar opposite of Max so it's a bit of a shock to the system.

What did you think of the ending? I found it very disturbing.

Reading more of Fingersmith by Sarah Waters. I keep second guessing what is happening to the characters, because of an earlier twist. I keep getting it wrong though - I'm so hopeless. I may have to renew it at the library, as it's due on Saturday and I doubt I will finish it by then.

I would say an average of one book every 7 - 10 days. It varies so much though. Some books can be read in a day; others it can take me several weeks. It's not necessarily related to the size of the book either. I find some books just tend to flow a bit more and are easier to read than others.

Skipping the ones which don't apply: Your favourite read of the year? Me Before You by Jojo Moyes, followed (very closely) by The Forgotten Garden, The Thirteenth Tale, and The Loop Your favourite author of the year? JK Rowling Your most read author of the year? JK Rowling, as I finished the Harry Potter series this year The book you abandoned (if there was more than one, the one you read least of)? The Quest for Anna Klein by Thomas H Cook The book that most disappointed you? As above. I had such high expectations after reading Red Leaves. The funniest book of the year? I've recently realised that I don't really like funny fiction, so I will go with An Idiot Abroad by Karl Pilkington Your favourite literary character this year? Scarlett O'Hara Your favourite children's book this year? Excluding Harry Potter, as I think they stopped being children's books partway through the series, I'll have to go with The BFG by Roald Dahl Your favourite classic of the year? Gone With The Wind Your favourite non-fiction book this year? Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi (a re-read) Your favourite re-read of the year? The Art of Racing in the Rain - Garth Stein. I must like it as I read it twice this year!