bethany725 Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 It's a lovely read, a bit sad at times and will probably make you shed a few tears. My main reason for giving it a 6 was because I felt that at times the writing was slightly poor and found myself re-writing the sentences in my head to try and make them fit better into the story - if that makes sense. To be honest, I thought it would be a lot better than it was, although you may love it. I'd love to hear your opinion once you've read it yourself . Hey Rach! Just passing along that I finished the Elizabeth Noble book.. I actually liked it quite a bit! I gave it an 8.5/10. I can definitely agree that the writing wasn't the best I'd ever seen, and the proofreading errors started driving me crazy towards the middle and end... but the story itself was perfect for me as I was traveling and needed something not too heavy. There were some serious parts of course, and some sad ones.. but the reading was easy, so it kept it from being too much for a travel read for me. I think I read it at the right time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 7, 2009 Author Share Posted March 7, 2009 11. Being Dead - Jim Crace Product Description from Amazon: Their bodies had expired, but anyone could tell - just look at them - that Joseph and Celice were still devoted. For while his hand was touching her, curved round her shin, the couple seemed to have achieved that peace the world denies, a period of grace, defying even murder. Anyone that found them there, so wickedly disfigured, would nevertheless be bound to see that there was something of their love that had survived the death of cells. The corpses were surrendered to the weather and the earth, but they were still man and wife, quitely resting; dead, but not departed yet. Started: 24th February Finished: 5th March 210 pages Rating: 5/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 8, 2009 Author Share Posted March 8, 2009 12. The Orchard On Fire - Shena Mackay Amazon.co.uk Review: This intimate, intensely seen novel was short-listed for the 1996 Booker Prize. Shena Mackay's six previous novels have won her critical admiration and a popular audience in England, but her work has not received due recognition in the United States yet. The Orchard on Fire is a concise, domestic novel set in the village of Stonebridge, where the parents of April Harlency have come in 1953 to run the local teashop. April's private reveries and her entanglement with the grim family life of her best friend, Ruby Richards, fill up a vivid and dramatic year in the wonderfully distinctive life of Stonebridge. Started: 4th March Finished: 8th March 215 pages Rating: 6/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 8, 2009 Author Share Posted March 8, 2009 13. For One More Day - Mitch Albom Synopsis from Waterstones: 'Every family is a ghost story ...' As a child, Charley Benetto was told by his father, 'You can be a mama's boy or a daddy's boy, but you can't be both.' So he chooses his father, only to see him disappear when Charley is on the verge of adolescence. Decades later, Charley is a broken man. His life has been destroyed by alcohol and regret. He loses his job. He leaves his family. He hits rock bottom after discovering he won't be invited to his only daughter's wedding. And he decides to take his own life. Charley makes a midnight ride to his small hometown: his final journey. But as he staggers into his old house, he makes an astonishing discovery. His mother - who died eight years earlier - is there, and welcomes Charley home as if nothing had ever happened. What follows is the one seemingly ordinary day so many of us yearn for: a chance to make good with a lost parent, to explain the family secrets and to seek forgiveness. Started: 8th March Finished: 8th March 197 pages Rating: 7.5/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 10, 2009 Author Share Posted March 10, 2009 14. Noughts and Crosses / An Eye For An Eye - Malorie Blackman Synopsis from Waterstones: Sephy is a Cross - a member of the dark-skinned ruling class. Callum is a nought - a 'colourless' member of the underclass who were once slaves to the Crosses. The two have been friends since early childhood. But that's as far as it can go. Until the first steps are taken towards more social equality and a limited number of Noughts are allowed into Cross schools...Against a background of prejudice and distrust, intensely highlighted by violent terrorist activity by Noughts, a romance builds between Sephy and Callum - a romance that is to lead both of them into terrible danger... Started: 9th March Finished: 10th March 479 pages Rating: 10/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BookBee8 Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Glad you enjoyed Noughts & Crosses, are you going to read the other three? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 10, 2009 Author Share Posted March 10, 2009 Glad you enjoyed Noughts & Crosses, are you going to read the other three? Yep, I bought Knife Edge at the same time so I started that today. I plan on getting the others as soon as possible . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 I need to read the next ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanC_84 Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 I need to read the next ones. Yeah you do. It is a great series. I thought I would be a little disappointed with the second and third books after Noughts and Crosses but I wasn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 Thanks for that. Lol, I'll try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 13, 2009 Author Share Posted March 13, 2009 15. Knife Edge - Malorie Blackman Synopsis from Waterstones: Sephy is a Cross, one of the privileged in a society where the ruling Crosses treat the pale-skinned noughts as inferiors. But her baby daughter has a nought father - Callum. Eaten up with bitterness, Callum's brother Jude, blames Sephy for the terrible losses his family has suffered. Now Jude's life rests on a knife edge. Will Sephy be forced, once again, to take sides? Started: 10th March Finished: 11th March 346 pages Rating: 10/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 19, 2009 Author Share Posted March 19, 2009 16. Checkmate - Malorie Blackman Synopsis from Waterstones: Can the future ever erase the past? Rose has a Cross mother and a nought father in a society where the pale-skinned noughts are treated as inferiors and those with dual heritage face a life-long battle against deep-rooted prejudices. Sephy, her mother, has told Rose virtually nothing about her father, but as Rose grows into a young adult, she unexpectedly discovers the truth about her parentage, and becomes determined to find out more, to honour both sides of her heritage. But her father's family has a complicated history - one tied up with the fight for equality for the nought population. And as Rose takes her first steps away from Sephy and into this world, she finds herself drawn inexorably into more and more danger. Suddenly, it's a game of very high stakes that can only have one winner... Started: 12th March Finished: 18th March 511 pages Rating: 10/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 20, 2009 Author Share Posted March 20, 2009 17. Acid Row - Minette Walters Synopsis from Waterstones: Acid Row was the name the beleaguered inhabitants give to their 'sink' estate. A no-man's land of single mothers and fatherless children - where angry, alienated youth controls the streets. Into this battleground comes Sophie Morrison, a young doctor visiting a patient in Acid Row. Little does she know that she is entering the home of a known paedophile...and with reports circulating that a tormented child called Amy has disappeared, the vigilantes are out in force. Soon Sophie is trapped at the centre of a terrifying siege, with a man she has come to despise. Whipped to a frenzy by unsubstantiated rumour, the mob unleashes its hatred. Against authority...the law...and the 'pervert'. 'Protecting Amy' becomes the catch-all defence for the terrible events that follow. And if murder is part of it, then so be it. But is Amy really missing? Started: 19th March Finished: 20th March 475 pages Rating: 8.5/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 25, 2009 Author Share Posted March 25, 2009 18. The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom Synopsis from Waterstones: From the author of the phenomenal number one bestseller TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE, comes this enchanting, beautifully written novel that explores a mystery only heaven can unfold. Eddie is a grizzled war veteran who feels trapped in the toil of his father before him, fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. Then he dies in a tragic accident, trying to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakens in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a lush Garden of Eden, but a place where your earthly life is explained to you by five people who were in it. These people may have been loved ones or distant strangers. Yet each of them changed your path forever. As the story builds to its stunning conclusion, Eddie desperately seeks redemption in the still-unknown last act of his life. Was it a heroic success or a devastating failure? The answer is as magical and inspirational as a glimpse of heaven itself. Started: 25th March Finished: 25th March 208 pages Rating: 7.5/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted April 3, 2009 Author Share Posted April 3, 2009 (edited) 19. Petite Anglaise - Catherine Sanderson Synopsis from Waterstones: Living in Paris with her partner, the workaholic Mr Frog, and their adorable toddler, Tadpole, Catherine decides to alleviate the boredom of her metro-boulot-dodo routine by starting a blog under the name of Petite Anglaise. As she lays herself bare about the confines of her stagnant relationship with Mr Frog, about Paris life and about the wonder and pain that comes with being a mother, she finds a new purpose to her day. As Petite Anglaise, Catherine regains her confidence and makes internet friends, including one charismatic and single Englishman who lives in Brittany, James. And after meeting James one evening in a bar, Catherine feels she has regained her ability to fall in love, too. Petite Anglaise weaves together many strands which have already struck a chord with the thousands of readers who love her blog: a 'fish out of water' perspective of Paris life, the raw emotional drama of a whirlwind, adulterous romance and an honest appreciation of the hardships of single motherhood. Started: 30th March Finished: 3rd April 341 pages Rating: 7/10 Edited April 5, 2009 by rach.at.the.disco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 20. Who's That Girl? - Alexandra Potter Synopsis from Waterstones: If only you knew then what you know now! Imagine if you could go back ten years and meet your younger self -- would you recognise her? And what advice would you give? Wear sunscreen! Back away from those PVC trousers? DON'T give that idiot your phone number? Lemon juice won't bleach your hair -- it just attracts wasps! He's the one - don't let him go! For Charlotte Merryweather, there's no need to imagine. She's about to find out for real. With surprising consequences! Alexandra Potter's deliciously funny and enchanting romantic comedy looks at life, love and what might happen if you could turn back time. Started: 3rd April Finished: 5th April 320 pages Rating: 7/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucybird Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 I have a feeling I've read a book with that same plot...but it was by Jenny Colgan... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted April 7, 2009 Author Share Posted April 7, 2009 21. A Vintage Affair - Isabel Wolff Synopsis from Waterstones: Do fairytale dresses bring fairytale endings? Every dress has a history, so does Phoebe! Phoebe always dreamt of opening her own vintage dress shop. She imagined every detail, from the Vivienne Westwood bustiers hanging next to satin gowns, to sequinned cupcake dresses adorning the walls. At the launch of Village Vintage, Phoebe feels the tingle of excitement as customers snap up the fairytale dresses. Her dream has come true, but a secret from her past is casting a shadow over her new venture. Then one day she meets Therese, an elderly Frenchwoman with a collection to sell, apart from one piece that she won't part with! As Therese tells the story of the little blue coat, Phoebe feels a profound connection with her own life, one that will help her heal the pain of her past and allow her to love again. Started: 6th April Finished: 7th April 420 pages Rating: 8/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted April 15, 2009 Author Share Posted April 15, 2009 22. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J.K Rowling Synopsis from Waterstones: When a letter arrives for unhappy but ordinary Harry Potter, a decade-old secret is revealed to him that apparently he's the last to know. His parents were wizards, killed by a Dark Lord's curse when Harry was just a baby, and which he somehow survived. Escaping his hideous Muggle guardians for Hogwarts, a wizarding school brimming with ghosts and enchantments, Harry stumbles upon a sinister adventure when he finds a three-headed dog guarding a room on the third floor. Then he hears of a missing stone with astonishing powers which could be valuable, dangerous, or both. Started: 10th April Finished: 15th April 223 pages Rating: 8.5/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rawr Posted April 15, 2009 Share Posted April 15, 2009 I'm in a craze of re-reading the series again at ze moment, i'm going through Chamber of Secrets atm after finishing Half-Blood Prince and Prisoner of Azkaban Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted April 15, 2009 Author Share Posted April 15, 2009 Me too. I had no idea what to read next and they just jumped out at me, they're very eye catching on my bookcase;). I've never actually read the series in order one after the other, I just read them randomly or random bits I like. I read Half Blood Prince last year too, but that's one of my favourite ones so it's all good . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucybird Posted April 15, 2009 Share Posted April 15, 2009 wooo Harry Potter, must admit the first is my least favourite though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted April 15, 2009 Author Share Posted April 15, 2009 I see what you mean Lucy. There were bits I just thought "wtf", there were some bits I thought could have been written better and the story was a bit slow compared to the other books. Can't wait to re-read the Deathly Hallows, I read it so fast the first time . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rawr Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 I also read it a little too fast, i queued up and bought at midnight I agree with the covers being eye-catching, i'm attracted by colourful things a lot so i'm always like ah Harry Potter... again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BookBee8 Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 I also read it a little too fast, i queued up and bought at midnight I did this too . I can hardly remember it, I definitely need to do a re-read at some point too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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