Nightwish's Reading List 2010

[Nightwish]

I quite enjoyed doing last years reading list (even though I started half way through the year) as it was a place I could keep tabs on what I have read and what I thought about the books so I have decided to keep another one for 2010!

 

Currently reading: The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer

Edited July 2, 2010 by Nightwish

[Nightwish]

Books that I have waiting to be read:

 

Arthur Golden - Memoirs of a Geisha

Bram Stoker - Dracula

Cathy Kelly – Once in a Lifetime

Cecelia Ahern - The Gift

Charles Dickens - A Christmas Carol

Charles Dickens - Little Dorrit

Charlotte Bronte - Jane Eyre

Dan Brown - Deception Point

Dan Brown - The Lost Symbol

David Ebershoff – The 19th Wife

Elizabeth Kostova – The Historian

Elizabeth Noble - The Girl Next Door

Emily Bronte - Wuthering Heights

Eoin Colfer – Artemis Fowl

Helen Fielding - Bridget Jones's Diary

Helen Fielding - Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason

Jane Austen – Emma

Jane Austen – Lady Susan

Jane Austen – Mansfield Park

Jane Austen – Northanger Abbey

Jane Austen – Persuasion

Jane Austen – Pride and Prejudice

Jane Austen – Sense and Sensibility

Jeffery Deaver – The Bone Collector

Jodi Picoult – Change of Heart

J.R.R Tolkien – The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Karen Joy Fowler – The Jane Austen Book Club

Kelley Armstrong - Bitten

Koushun Takami – Battle Royale

L.J. Smith - Nightworld Volume One: Secret Vampire

L.J. Smith - Nightworld Volume One: Daughters of Darkness

L.J. Smith - Nightworld Volume One: Enchantress

L.J. Smith - Nightworld Volume Two: Dark Angel

L.J. Smith - Nightworld Volume Two: The Chosen

L.J. Smith - Nightworld Volume Two: Soulmate

L.J. Smith - Nightworld Volume Three: Huntress

L.J. Smith - Nightworld Volume Three: Black Dawn

L.J. Smith - Nightworld Volume Three: Witchlight

Marian Keyes – This Charming Man

Mary Shelley - Frankenstein

Paullina Simons – The Bronze Horseman

P.C. and Kristin Cast – Marked

P.C. and Kristin Cast – Betrayed

P.C. and Kristin Cast – Chosen

P.C. and Kristin Cast – Untamed

P.C. and Kristin Cast – Hunted

P.C. and Kristin Cast - Tempted

Raymond Khoury - The Sanctuary

Sebastian Barry - The Secret Scripture

Stephen King - IT

Stephen King - Just After Sunset

Stephen King – The Gunslinger

Stephen King – The Stand

Stephenie Meyer - The Host

Terry Brooks – Armageddon’s Children

Trudi Canavan – The Magicians’ Guild

Edited February 22, 2010 by Nightwish

[Nightwish]

Books I have read in 2010:

 

January:

Stephenie Meyer - New Moon - 8/10

Stephenie Meyer - Eclipse - 9/10

Stephenie Meyer - Breaking Dawn - 8/10

 

February:

Stephen King - The Shining - 9/10

Jane Green - Second Chance - 7/10

Jane Green - The Beach House - 6/10

 

March:

Anne Rice - The Vampire Lestat - 9/10

 

April:

Terry Goodkind - The Law of Nines - 7/10

 

May:

Belle de Jour - The Intimate Adventures of a London Call Girl - 8/10

Charlaine Harris - Dead as a Doornail - 9/10

Charlaine Harris - Definitely Dead - 7/10

 

June:

Charlaine Harris - All Together Dead - 8/10

Charlaine Harris - From Dead to Worse - 10/10

 

July:

Charlaine Harris - Dead and Gone - 10/10

 

Edited July 2, 2010 by Nightwish

[Nightwish]

Books I have read in 2010:

August:

September:

October:

November:

December:

 

[Nightwish]

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

Synopsis from Waterstones:

I stuck my finger under the edge of the paper and jerked it under the tape. 'Shoot,' I muttered when the paper sliced my finger. A single drop of blood oozed from the tiny cut. It all happened very quickly then. 'No!' Edward roared ...Dazed and disorientated, I looked up from the bright red blood pulsing out of my arm - and into the fevered eyes of the six suddenly ravenous vampires. For Bella Swan, there is one thing more important than life itself: Edward Cullen. But being in love with a vampire is more dangerous than Bella ever could have imagined. Edward has already rescued Bella from the clutches of an evil vampire but now, as their daring relationship threatens all that is near and dear to them, they realise their troubles may just be beginning ...

My Thoughts:

This is another re-read. This is my favourite book in the Twilight series and it is still up to standards the millionth time I have read it ! This book focuses mainly around my favourite character in the whole series, Jacob Black. I love reading the parts with Jacob in because he seems to be the only real character in the book, for me he brings life to the series and is a breath of fresh air from the Bella/Edward love which can get a bit sickening at times.

With what happens at the beginning of this book I do start to feel sorry for Bella

as I know how hard it is to lose somebody that you love,

but the ending yet again just made me more annoyed at her. The whole

oh I must be dreaming or dead and refusing to believe Edward was really there just bugged me, made her sound like a total idiot and was one of the worst most cringe-worthy piece of writing!

Something else that bugged me about the writing was the chapter titled 'Paris'. I just don't like how Stephenie feels the need to use this chapter as her essay and thoughts of Romeo and Juliet, to me that came across as quite arrogant of her.

The story overall isn't bad, I just wanted there to be more Bella/Jacob time ! But a New Moon from Jakes point of view, his feelings,

becoming a werewolf,

etc would be quite interesting.

 

Rating: 8/10

[Kell]

Ooh, I hope you'll enjoy Bitten by Kelley Armstrong - it's the start of one of my favourite series!

 

Also, I hope you'll add your thoughts on the Jane Austens to the Reading Circle threads on them - he read one every other month over the course of a year.

 

And The Stand is one of my all-time favourite books - I hope you have the unabridged version because it has so much that is missing from the shorter version.

[Nightwish]

Thank you.

 

I actually put Bitten on my Christmas list of books my nan was to buy for me by seeing so much good reviews of it here on the forum .

 

The Jane Austen books I am looking foward to starting soon, I've felt a bit nervous, I have a big book of all her works together and I have never actually read a classic before so looking at it I feel a bit nervous.

 

I've already read my first King book so I look foward to starting The Stand after hearing so much good things about it, and yes I have the unabridged version, another monster book on my bookcase!

[Nightwish]

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

 

Synopsis from Waterstones:

'Bella?' Edward's soft voice came from behind me. I turned to see him spring lightly up the porch steps, his hair windblown from running. He pulled me into his arms at once, and kissed me again. His kiss frightened me. There was too much tension, too strong an edge to the way his lips crushed mine - like he was afraid we had only so much time left to us. As Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge, Bella once again finds herself surrounded by danger. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward and her friendship with Jacob - knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the ageless struggle between vampire and werewolf. With her graduation approaching, Bella has one more decision to make: life or death. But which is which? Following the international bestsellers Twilight and New Moon, Eclipse is the much-anticipated third book in Stephenie Meyer's captivating saga of vampire romance.

 

My Thoughts:

Out of the series Eclipse is one of my favourite books. What I enjoyed more about this book was the history as there was

Rosalie

[Nightwish]

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

Synopsis from Waterstones:

To be irrevocably in love with a vampire is both fantasy and nightmare woven into a dangerously heightened reality for Bella Swan. Pulled in one direction by her intense passion for Edward Cullen, and in another by her profound connection to werewolf Jacob Black, she has endured a tumultuous year of temptation, loss and strife to reach the ultimate turning point. Her imminent choice to either join the dark but seductive world of immortals or pursue a fully human life has become the thread from which the fate of two tribes hangs. Now that Bella has made her decision, a startling chain of unprecedented events is about to unfold with potentially devastating and unfathomable consequences. Just when the frayed strands of Bella's life - first discovered in TWILIGHT, then scattered and torn in NEW MOON and ECLIPSE - seem ready to heal and knit together, could they be destroyed...forever?

My Thoughts:

I know a lot of people don't seem to give this book a positive review but I actually enjoy this book. The first part of the book is all about Bella and Edward

getting married.

It only lasts for 138 pages but it is a very fast read, there is a lot going on what with

the wedding itself, some background story between this book and Eclipse, and the honeymoon itself.

Bella seemed to annoy me more in this part of the book though...more than usual...it was the

constant need for sex, it seemed so out of character and came across as quite desperate.

The second part was all Jacob! My favourite part of the book, the chapter names were hilarious, just so Jacob! I love the Jacob parts and exploring the packs mind, the typical humour of Jacob and to see the story through somebody else's mind rather than Bellas. The third part is

when Bella FINALLY becomes a vampire...of course due to stupid reasons such as getting pregnant...just don't want to think about that!... Bella 'giving birth' was disgusting...the blood, the broken bones.

I did like this book a lot more because of Jacobs part and Bella

becoming a vampire but I don't feel as disappointed with it as others seem to be, I quite liked the tension towards the end and the almost fight and even though yes it was a let down it was what was to be expected really...I can't imagine Meyer killing her vampires off.

One thing that I didn't like was

Nessie! I refuse to call her by that stupid name she was given I don't know it was all 'awww she's just so perfect' like everyone else is and everyone loves her. I don't have anything against babies and children by the way, it is just this was almost sickening.

I liked this, I liked Twilight, I liked the others, shoot me!



Rating: 8/10

[Nightwish]

The Shining by Stephen King

Synopsis from Waterstones:

Danny is only five years old, but he is a 'shiner', aglow with psychic voltage. When his father becomes caretaker of an old hotel, his visions grow out of control. Cut off by blizzards, the hotel seems to develop an evil force, and who are the mysterious guests in the supposedly empty hotel?

My Thoughts:

This is the second book by Stephen King I have read and before I started I admit I wasn't that excited about it because even though I have heard he is a good author, the previous book of his that I had read, Gerald's Game, was a disappointing read. This book surprised me as I actually really enjoyed it. It took a while to read due to me being quite a slow reader anyway but once I got reading I found it hard to put down. King's writing can be too descriptive in places but he knows how to hold an audience. I don't tend to get scared by books, I think there has only ever been one that has scared me before, but this book sure did make me jump when

it wasn't clear where Jack was and when there was violence.

What I really loved about this book is the characters history! This is the reason I love books more than films and that is because when writing the author can ramble on for ages about each characters history with it still being relevant to the plot so you as a reader can enjoy the book more as you have a better understanding of the characters.

I have decided I will start to read more by Stephen King now!



Rating: 9/10

[tunn300]

The Shining is definitely my favourite Steven King book. About 5 years ago I read pretty much everything King had bought out one after the other and after a while grew tired of not only King but the horror genre in general. Am currently reading the Little Stranger by Sarah Waters and this has inspired me to go back to the genre and King and read some of his newer work. I highly recommend Cujo, Carrie and Dreamcatcher as further King reading.

[Nightwish]

The Shining is definitely my favourite Steven King book. About 5 years ago I read pretty much everything King had bought out one after the other and after a while grew tired of not only King but the horror genre in general. Am currently reading the Little Stranger by Sarah Waters and this has inspired me to go back to the genre and King and read some of his newer work. I highly recommend Cujo, Carrie and Dreamcatcher as further King reading.

 

I find thats the reason I try not to read too much of one author or one genre in one go because after a while I do get bored and find myself wanting to read something different . How are you finding The Little Stranger? That is one book I'm thinking about buying.

[BookGeek20]

Hey,

I have to say that i love Twilight too! but anyway, You will really enjoy Marian Keyes- This Charming Man. I read it around this time last year and i really got into it after watching a her in a TV interview. It is really interesting how all the characters connect in the book and how all the different plots are interwoven to make a very good read. I might just have to re-read it!

Oh and i am a huge fan of Trudi Canavan's books. The Magicians Guild trilogy is by far one of my favorite trilogies and she really inspired me to start writing. So best of luck with your reading list!

Edited February 11, 2010 by Chrissy

[Nightwish]

Second Chance by Jane Green

Synopsis from Waterstones:

Holly Macintosh is sitting round her kitchen table with her oldest friends - friends she hasn't seen since school - now reunited by an unexpected tragedy and catching up on the past 20 years. On the surface, they are all successful and happy. But scratch a little deeper after that extra glass of wine and it's not quite so straightforward: Paul and Anna are struggling to have a baby, Saffron the actress is still waiting for that really big break that - at 39 - is looking less and less likely, and Olivia, always the wallflower of the group, is newly single and mourning her lost love. And what about Holly Mac? Can she and her husband Marcus get their marriage back on track for the sake of the children? Or has someone just come back into her life who will change everything forever?

My Thoughts:

I did enjoy this book as it was just normal chick-lit, something you can easily sit back and relax while reading. I say the word easily....the writing is rather poor but that does not bother me a great deal as I did want an easy read having just got through a Stephen King book!

The characters seemed quite stereotyped which annoyed me a fair bit, but to an extent they were likable

with the exception of Marcus!

Jane did bring some good questions along at the

death of Tom, a reflection on what he could be thinking before he died, etc. These are thoughts that are not pleasant to think about but these are often thoughts that you do think about when you read about tragedies in the news.

I have to say I did like Will, and I really wanted

Holly to get together with him so I admit I was disappointed at the end when it turns out she got together with someone who was never introduced into the story until it was announced she was together with him.

This was good because it didn't make the story as predictable but it is rather annoying thinking you know what is going to happen and then end up being totally wrong .

I will continue reading some more books by Jane Green, but I think more of a light relief to my small brain in-between reading the longer, more well written books...



Rating: 7/10

[Nightwish]

Hey,

I have to say that i love Twilight too! but anyway, You will really enjoy Marian Keyes- This Charming Man. I read it around this time last year and i really got into it after watching a her in a TV interview. It is really interesting how all the characters connect in the book and how all the different plots are interwoven to make a very good read. I might just have to re-read it!

Oh and i am a huge fan of Trudi Canavan's books. The Magicians Guild trilogy is by far one of my favorite trilogies and she really inspired me to start writing. So best of luck with your reading list!

 

My brother is currently reading a series by Trudi Canavan, I think the series is called The Age of Five. He is enjoying them a lot and luckily I do trust his judgement so I think I will bump Canavan's books up the list !

 

I can't wait to start reading This Charming Man as well, I've heard nothing but good things about Marian Keyes .

[Nightwish]

The Beach House by Jane Green

Synopsis from Waterstones:

One summer a group of strangers - each with their own reason for wanting to step out of their busy life - meet at rented beachouse in sunny Nantucket. There's Daniel, who's causing heartbreak for his wife Bee; recently divorced Daff, who feels she's lost touch with her daughter Jess; and Michael - son of the house's mischievous , free-spirited owner Nan - who is having an ill-advised fling with his boss. With so many lost souls gathered under one roof, very soon there are tears and laughter, friendship and - for some - even love. Each one of them is hoping for a new beginning. But will any of them find it?

My Thoughts:

I found this book really difficult to get into as I didn't like the characters at first. The first character introduced was Nan who the author would constantly call eccentric. This really bugged me as I didn't think she was really and it was like the author was trying really hard to apply this image to Nan that it was just annoying and didn't work. I'm sorry but

stripping naked and swimming in your neighbours pool

is trying too hard .

Some of the characters didn't bother me so much, like Daniel. I could honestly believe that

he was gay

so it was quite enjoyable watching him go through this journey of his life. In a lot of places this book was predictable and the main theme bugged me

yes everyone is having an affair:roll:...this also tied in with the other book I read by Jane Green.

Oh and I don't think the ending so was complete as

one of the characters cheated on her husband, left him, then thought she was pregnant, stalked Michael, the guy she cheated on her husband with, told him she wasn't pregnant anymore and left...her story wasn't completed. I wanted to know what she did after, if she went back to her husband and if she didn't how did she cope with running a business with him?

I don't think I will be running to buy another book by Jane Green so soon.



Rating: 6/10

[chesilbeach]

I'm sorry you didn't like The Beach House, Nightwish I enjoyed it a lot when I read it, and felt it was actually a return to form for Jane Green. I'd loved her first four or five books, but went off the next few, but this one was much better and more of the thing I wanted to read. I'm not saying it's a perfect book, but I certainly felt it was one of her better books of recent years, and I enjoyed it as a good holiday read.

[Nightwish]

I think what did it for me was reading one Jane Green book after the other. I was already used to the characters from the previous book and then to go ahead and read another book by her, the same sort of style but with different characters...I think that was a bit of a mistake. Maybe I would have enjoyed it more if I read something by somebody else inbetween.

[Nightwish]

The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice

Synopsis from Waterstones:

'Ah, the taste and feel of blood when all passion and greed is sharpened in that one desire!' Lestat: a vampire - but very much not the conventional undead, for Lestat is the truly alive. Lestat is vivid, ecstatic, stagestruck, and in his extravagant story he plunges from the lasciviousness of eighteenth-century Paris to the demonic Egypt of prehistory; from fin-de-siecle New Orleans to the frenetic twentieth-century world of rock superstardom - as, pursued by the living and the dead, he searches across time for the secret of his own dark immortality.

My Thoughts:

I wasn't really expecting much from this book. I read 'Interview with the Vampire' over a year ago and I found it to be a difficult and boring read as I was never fond of Louis much and I loved the film. I found this copy of 'The Vampire Lestat' in a second hand book store and got it because it was cheap and because I know my dad is a huge fan of the series so at least somebody would read it . I was actually really surprised when I read it as I loved it so much! Right from the beginning the characters felt familiar (even though it was a

different side of Lestat you see in this book

) and I liked how it started

just after 'Interview' took place.

I loved Lestat in this book, I liked seeing a different side from what was portrayed of him in 'Interview' and it was interesting to see how things he gets shown and told all fits in place, such as

him not telling Louis anything in 'Interview' because he was asked not to tell anybody about Akasha and the stories.

I like books that show the history of characters as I get a better understanding of them, and, well...I just like history . Loved this book and will be going to buy the next one soon!



Rating: 9/10

[Nightwish]

The Law of Nines by Terry Goodkind

Synopsis from Waterstones:

The #1 New York Times bestselling author delivers a stunningly original , high-octane thriller. They watch you through mirrors! 'Your mother was twenty-seven when it came to her. Now you're twenty-seven, and it's come to you.' The skin of Alex's arms tingled with goose bumps. By her twenty-seventh birthday insanity had come to his mother...Turning 27 may be terrifying for some, but for Alexander, a struggling artist in small-town Nebraska, it is cataclysmic. Inheriting a huge expanse of land in Maine should have made him a rich and happy man; but something about this birthday, his name, and the beautiful woman whose life he just saved, has suddenly made him -- and everyone he loves -- into a target. A target for extreme and uncompromising violence...Where do you turn when your own reflection spells doom? In Alex, Terry Goodkind brings to life a modern hero in a whole new kind of thriller.

My Thoughts:

This book took me ages to read, but mainly because of my lack of reading mojo. I thought the book took a while to get into as you was always wondering what was going on and nothing was making any kind of sense. This can really really annoy me! Once the story got going though it did get going and was action packed all the way through. The only thing I didn't really like about it was that it was too gory in places for me, the amount of

murder in most chapters of the book and going into detail about killing someone every few lines

spoilt it for me in a way as it wasn't something I really wanted to read about. The fast pace sometimes bothered me as it felt like

once they got away from one person who wanted them dead then another would turn up straight away

, even though this was annoying it did make it realistic.

Rating: 7/10

[Nightwish]

The Intimate Adventures of a London Call Girl by Belle de Jour

Synopsis from Waterstones:

Belle de Jour is the nom de plume of a high-class call girl working in London. This is her story. From the summer of 2003 to the autumn of 2004 Belle charted her day-to-day adventures on and off the field in a frank, funny and award-winning web diary. Now, in her Intimate Adventures, Belle elaborates on those diary entries, revealing (among other things) how she became a working girl, what it feels like to do it for money, and where to buy the best knickers for the job. From debating the literary merits of Martin Amis with naked clients to smuggling whips into luxury hotels, this is a no-holds barred account of the high-class sex-trade, and an insight into the secret life of an extraordinary woman.

My Thoughts:

I picked up this book because I loved the TV show that was based from these books. The book was what I expected, but with less sex which to be honest was a good thing. I won't go into too much here, but most of the sex parts did make me cringe! Just...ouch!

I did enjoy the book, I would enjoy reading more, but there was one thing that confused me and that was giving characters names such as A1 or N. I know this is based on her life so should be kept anonymous but she could have at least thought up some fake names. For some reason the names would have been easier to remember rather than a code.





Rating: 8/10

[Nightwish]

Updates will be coming soon, I've just been so very very busy lately what with doing all this overtime at work and finishing University. I finished Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris about a week ago now, I really did enjoy it and I am really happy to be back reading the Sookie Stackhouse books, a review should be coming soon .