Poppy's Paperbacks 2010

[poppyshake]

 

Lost in a Good Book - Jasper Fforde

 

Waterstones Synopsis: Thursday Next, literary detective and newlywed is back to embark on an adventure that begins, quite literally on her own doorstep. It seems that Landen, her husband of four weeks, actually drowned in an accident when he was two years old. Someone, somewhere, sometime, is responsible. The sinister Goliath Corporation wants its operative Jack Schitt out of the poem in which Thursday trapped him, and it will do almost anything to achieve this - but bribing the ChronoGuard? Is that possible? Having barely caught her breath after The Eyre Affair, Thursday must battle corrupt politicians, try to save the world from extinction, and help the Neanderthals to species self-determination. Mastadon migrations, journeys into Just William, a chance meeting with the Flopsy Bunnies, and violent life-and-death struggles in the summer sales are all part of a greater plan. But whose? and why?

 

Review: Excellent. If anything I loved this more than the first book. I think they get more and more addictive. Extremely inventive writing, I just loved Jasper's version of Miss Havisham, who, when no-one is looking, dons her training shoes and listens to her walkman. In this story Miss Havisham is acting as mentor to Thursday as she attempts to enter fiction without the Prose Portal. Full of puns, wit, running gags and wonderful imagery, Jasper's Nextian world is somewhere you can happily lose yourself in and it was great too to read about these slightly surreal versions of places that are so familiar to me such as Swindon, South Cerney, Stratton and Cirencester (which is actually where I'm moving to.) It helps to have a good knowledge of literature as there are so many references. I haven't particularly so I probably missed some of the subtleties. But great stuff like petitions for Tess Durbeyfield to be acquitted and Maxim de Winter to be convicted, a character assessment of Mr and Mrs McGregor (Beatrix Potter) and a delicious piece of nonsense concerning Thursdays ancient granny and the ten most boring classics that she has to read before she is allowed to die (only one problem, she doesn't know which they are and so is canvassing opinions.) Thursday engages in some book-jumping and along the way bumps into (amongst others) Marianne Dashwood, the Cheshire Cat, the Red Queen and Miss Havisham of course. If you read 'The Eyre Affair' then you will know that Thursday had to defeat the evil Acheron Hades and in this book his sister Aornis is seeking revenge. Also in the last book Thursday imprisoned Goliath Corporations Jack Schitt in Edgar Allen Poe's 'The Raven', they want him back and until Thursday can return him they have deleted Thursday's husband Landen from his current timeline, so, for the time being, he lives in her memory only. Reminiscent of the glorious wordplay and humour in Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams books and equally as fantastic.

 

9/10

Edited October 1, 2010 by poppyshake

[Kylie]

Great review Poppy. I agree that the books get better and better as they go along. I recently finished Something Rotten and thought it was brilliant.

[lopeanha]

Do you think it would make sense to read these books (Thursday Next)without knowing the classics?

[poppyshake]

Do you think it would make sense to read these books (Thursday Next)without knowing the classics?

You can read them without having read the classics but you're going to miss some of the enjoyment of the books (but then if you've watched any of the film or TV adaptations of the classics then you'll know the basic plotlines anyway.) In a way the books encourage you to read some of the classics that you haven't already read, for instance I'm not that that familiar with Edgar Allen Poe's 'The Raven' or Kafka's 'The Trial' and I'm intrigued to look into them now (but I am a scaredy cat so Edgar Allen Poe is not exactly my sort of preferred reading) but then you can always read a plot summary online of any book referenced that you're not familiar with .. it's not the same but it will serve it's purpose in this case. I read and understood it without having read all of the books mentioned so I don't think it matters all that much, but it's a bit like being in on a joke .. or not, it's much more enjoyable when you do know what they're on about.

Edited August 13, 2010 by poppyshake

[poppyshake]

Great review Poppy. I agree that the books get better and better as they go along. I recently finished Something Rotten and thought it was brilliant.

 

Thanks Kylie, I've already been on the hunt for 'The Well of Lost Plots' .. my local library doesn't have it (boo) but, rather relevantly, Swindon has and so I've just reserved it .. yay

Edited August 13, 2010 by poppyshake

[poppyshake]

 

Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro

 

Waterstones Synopsis: In one of the most acclaimed and strange novels of recent years, Kazuo Ishiguro imagines the lives of a group of students growing up in a darkly skewered version of contemporary England. Narrated by Kathy, now 31, "Never Let Me Go" hauntingly dramatises her attempts to come to terms with her childhood at the seemingly idyllic Hailsham School, and with the fate that has always awaited her and her closest friends in the wider world. A story of love, friendship and memory, "Never Let Me Go" is charged throughout with a sense of the fragility of life.

 

Review: I loved every page. You begin this book by thinking you are reading about a fairly normal girl at a fairly normal boarding school. Kathy's schooldays at Hailsham sound pretty idyllic and from the way she eulogises about it you think that Hailsham must be pretty special and it is, just not in the way you were thinking. Bit by bit she drops snippets into her recollections that make you think that all is not as it seems and fairly soon you know that something fairly disturbing is occurring. This is not Malory Towers! You get to know the characters very well, Kathy and Tommy in particular, but there is always a slight detachment. Kathy is not emotional in the way that we perhaps expect her to be, and she accepts her situation with a kind of docile resignation. All the same her narration draws you in. In some respects Kathy and her schoolfriends are not entirely clued up about their situation, they know about it, they've always known about it, but somehow it hasn't entirely registered. You hope at some point the penny will drop and she'll rebel because you don't want her to suffer the same fate as the others, you feel it would be easy for her just to run for the hills but these children/young adults have been conditioned to accept their destiny. Haunting and beautifully written, it keeps you turning pages even though it is extremely slow paced. Some people feel that the science doesn't add up, it probably doesn't but I don't think it matters. It's thought provoking, you hope such horrors could never occur, but the unacceptable often becomes acceptable without you quite knowing how it happened.

 

10/10

 

[chesilbeach]

Interesting review - I read my first book by Ishiguro a short while back, Nocturnes. It was a collection of short stories which I don't think worked, but he's been recommended to me for his novels, so I still want to try some of those. This one is probably one I'll read sooner rather than later, as there's a film of it coming out shortly and they filmed some scenes in my home town, so I want to see the film which means I have to read the book first (hate doing it the other way round, despite being able to disassociate one from the other). So, I'm really glad you loved it, as it makes me feel less apprehensive about starting it after the disappointment of Nocturnes.

[poppyshake]

I hope you like it Chesil. I picked up 'Nocturnes' in Waterstones this week but I didn't buy it because although I like short stories I have to be in the mood for them and I wasn't particularly .. sounds like I had a lucky escape I didn't know there was a film in the offing, I'll look out for it, thanks for the info.

[Weave]

Great review poppy of 'Never Let Me Go', I enjoyed it too, it stays with you doesn't it?

[Kylie]

I've kept this book at the back of my mind as a potential buy for a while, but now I definitely have to add it to the wish list.

[poppyshake]

Great review poppy of 'Never Let Me Go', I enjoyed it too, it stays with you doesn't it?

 

Thanks Weave yes it does stay with you definitely, I thought it was just mesmerising.

 

I've kept this book at the back of my mind as a potential buy for a while, but now I definitely have to add it to the wish list.

 

Great, I'm sure you'll like it Kylie , I hope you will anyway

[poppyshake]

Well I'm off for a month, I can't move into my new house until 3rd September and so have got to live in all sorts of weird places until then. I probably won't have internet access for most of it so will not be able to visit Will be able to do lots of reading though and so, in theory, I should have a long list of books to add to my August list.

 

Happy reading

[chesilbeach]

Doesn't your library offer free internet access? In ours, you just have to get the PIN number that goes with the number on your library card and you can get access then. I think it might be limited to 30 minutes at a time, but it's better than nothing. Although, having said that, if you're anything like me, I never use public machines or networks for sites I have to logon to.

 

Edit: Meant to say, hope the move goes well, and see you when you get back

Edited August 14, 2010 by chesilbeach

[Kylie]

Oh no! I'll miss you Poppy.

 

I hope all goes well with your move, and I look forward to reading all your reviews once you're back with us.

[poppyshake]

Thanks Kylie and Chesil Didn't get as much reading done as I thought I would, did pop in from time to time and view the forum (from the library and my Mum's) .. to see what I was missing out on. The house is a real tip and every waking minute has been spent on cleaning and tidying it so not much time to read which has left me with the grumps.

I'm going to try and remember which books I read whilst in the caravan etc and write some short reviews. September has just been a wash out from a reading point of view, fingers crossed that October will be better.

 

 

Labyrinth - Kate Mosse (Unabridged) read by Maggie Mash

 

Waterstones Synopsis: When Dr Alice Tanner discovers two skeletons during an archaeological dig in southern France, she unearths a link with a horrific and brutal past. But it's not just the sight of the shattered bones that makes her uneasy; there's an overwhelming sense of evil in the tomb that Alice finds hard to shake off, even in the bright French sunshine. Puzzled by the words carved inside the chamber, Alice has an uneasy feeling that she has disturbed something which was meant to remain hidden...Eight hundred years ago, on the night before a brutal civil war ripped apart Languedoc, a book was entrusted to Alais, a young herbalist and healer. Although she cannot understand the symbols and diagrams the book contains, Alais knows her destiny lies in protecting their secret, at all costs. Skilfully blending the lives of two women divided by centuries but united by a common destiny, LABYRINTH is a powerful story steeped in the atmosphere and history of southern France.

 

Review: I didn't really enjoy this story, I practically gave up after listening to the first two sides, it seemed long and convulted and a bit clunky. I found I wasn't really interested in the modern day story of Alice but did get more intrigued by Alais's tale and that kept me listening. Nearly all the revelations were second guessed by me which means they must have been pretty obvious to begin with. The story didn't seem to gel or connect .. there was no 'skilful blending' ... and incredulity was stretched too far. Some stories have you suspending disbelief willingly .. I'm happy to imagine a hobbit in a hole or envisage an orangutan librarian but this was more of the 'you're having me on .. right?' sort. If I had had to read it instead of listen to it, it would definitely have been abandoned, lifes too short to turn that many pages of uninteresting, laboured prose. Perhaps I'm being harsh, it has a heavyweight reputation but it just didn't entertain me at all.

 

A generous 6/10

Edited September 21, 2010 by poppyshake

[poppyshake]

 

Cranberry Queen - Kathleen DeMarco

 

Amazon Synopsis: Diana Moore is 33 and about, so her Aunt Margaret predicts, to have the best three years she's ever had. Which is a relief since tomorrow she's facing The Biggest Day of her Life so far. A friend's wedding, to which her ex (aka The Monster) complete with New Girlfriend, is also invited. And Diana, brown of hair, nine of foot and wide of thigh is going - alone. But somehow Aunt Margaret's got it wrong. And next day all thoughts of weddings, exes and New Girlfriends seem absurdly irrelevant. For Diana is really alone. The car containing her mother, father and only brother has collided with a large truck on a small road. And from that moment on everything she's know is changed. Including Diana...

 

Review: This was a bit of a book of two halves and the first half I really enjoyed. Diana is steeling herself to attend a wedding of some so called friends who think it's about time she moved on and started socialising with her ex and his impossibly gorgeous girlfriend. There's lots of self deprecation, sarcasm and Bridget Jones style humour and even when tragedy strikes and Diana .. at 33 .. is left an orphan, there's plenty of wry observational humour mixed in with the pathos. There is a realness to the writing and a warmth about Diana that makes you take to her within about two pages. She has an alter ego which she calls 'Foxhole Girl' ... this is her true self buried deep beneath her public persona (or 'Smiling Idiot' as Diana refers to herself .. she's too willing to please and bend to other people's wishes) and it's Diana's fear that 'Foxhole Girl' will always remain buried.

With her friends and extended family trying their best to support her and stop her being eaten by alsatians (they don't actually say that, that would be plagiarism,) Diana feels stifled and she takes herself off on a roadtrip of sorts. It's here that she meets Louisa, who in contrast to Diana is a thoroughly unlikeable self absorbed character, I found myself irritated by her and the story went off in unenjoyable directions that seemed a bit cliched. I did love all the descriptions of the New Jersey cranberry bogs though, I could really envisage the beauty of the place.

It's not Proust but it's not lightweight either .. although I think I've managed to make it sound as if it is. For the most part it was very enjoyable and funny.

 

8/10

Edited October 12, 2010 by poppyshake

[poppyshake]

 

The Wives of Henry Oades - Johanna Moran

 

Amazon Synopsis: In 1890, Henry Oades decided to undertake the arduous sea voyage from England to New Zealand in order to further his family's fortunes. Here they settled on the lush but wild coast -- although it wasn't long before disaster struck in the most unexpected of ways. A local Maori tribe, incensed at their treatment at the hands of the settlers, kidnapped Mrs Oades and her four children, and vanished into the rugged hills surrounding the town. Henry searched ceaselessly for his family, but two grief-stricken years later was forced to conclude that they must be dead. In despair he shipped out to San Francisco to start over, eventually falling in love with and marrying a young widow. In the meantime, Margaret Oades and her children were leading a miserable existence, enslaved to the local tribe. When they contracted smallpox they were cast out and, ill and footsore, made their way back to town, five years after they were presumed dead. Discovering that Henry was now half a world away, they were determined to rejoin him. So months later they arrived on his doorstep in America and Henry Oades discovered that he had two wives and many dilemmas ! This is a darkly comic but moving historical fiction debut about love and family, based on a controversial court case from the early 1900s.

 

Review: I Liked this one, it has the sort of absurd humour that appeals to me. Immensely readable it tells the story of Henry Oades, who is seeking his fortune (and that of his wife Margaret and four children) in New Zealand in 1890. I believe the tale is based on a true story but Johanna Moran has given it flesh and bones. When Henry returns from work one evening he finds his home a smouldering wreck and the unrecognisable body of a woman amongst the ashes. he searches high and low for his family but cannot find them or news of them. Eventually, believing them to be dead, he sails to San Francisco where he eventually meets, falls in love and marries Nancy. The reader knows all along that his first wife and children (all except one) are still alive, they have been captured and imprisoned by a local Maori tribe (with the body back at the homestead being that of a visiting friend) and you know it's only a matter of time before they all meet up (the title is a bit of a giveaway in that respect.)

Again it's a book that makes you laugh a lot but you also care about the characters .. Margaret in particular. It's a situation nobody would want to find themselves in, it's humiliating and degrading but Margaret is made of stern stuff and she's determined to make it work. That's not to say that Nancy is unlikeable, both women try and work things out so that they can all live in peace together but of course it's not as easy as that. They never descend into Krystal/Alexis catfighting as you might expect, there's a mutual respect and understanding of each other's position but they both harbour regrets and resentments as would be only natural. Watching them cope with each other and the situation they find themselves in is fascinating.A great story told with warmth and humour, I couldn't put it down.

 

9/10

[poppyshake]

 

Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen

 

Waterstones Synopsis: When Jacob Jankowski, recently orphaned and suddenly adrift, jumps onto a passing train, he enters a world of freaks, grifters, and misfits the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth a second-rate travelling circus struggling to survive during the Great Depression, making one-night stands in town after endless town. Jacob, a veterinary student who almost earned his degree, is put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie. It is there that he meets Marlena, the beautiful young star of the equestrian act, who is married to August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. He also meets Rosie, an elephant who seems untrainable until he discovers a way to reach her. Water for Elephants is illuminated by a wonderful sense of time and place. It tells a story of a love between two people that overcomes incredible odds in a world in which even love is a luxury that few can afford.

 

Review: Firstly thanks to Bookbee8 whose book this is and to Tunn for sending it on to me as part of the 'Water for Elephants' bookring. Jacob is ninety (or ninety three .. one or the other, he's not sure) and he's living in an old people's home. When a circus comes to town it starts Jacob reminiscing about his younger days as a veterinary surgeon in charge of the animals in a travelling circus during the Great Depression in America (the rather optomistically and undeservingly named Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth.) The author does a great job of bringing all the circus characters to life .. the beautiful, the daring, the vulnerable, the villains, the sinisters and the freaks ... she paints them so vividly that instantly you're interested in them and hooked into the storyline. Jacob especially is thoroughly endearing, I think I loved the parts about him in the home even more than I did those concerning his circus adventures, he's a bit cantankerous, he's fed up with being treated like an imbecile, he's fed up with the nursery food and the mountains of pills and he can't always remember which relative is visiting him. He's always been a fairly placid person but has just begun to behave just a teeny bit badly. I also loved Rosie the elephant, but then I love a story about an elephant, there's something about them that pulls at the heartstrings immediately. I did think the ending was a bit far fetched and it has 'movie adaptation' written all over it but for all that it was still really enjoyable .. a real adventure story with a thoroughly likeable main character.

 

9/10

[poppyshake]

 

Little Hands Clapping - Dan Rhodes

 

Waterstones Review: In a room above a bizarre German museum, and far from the prying eyes of strangers, lives the Old Man. Caretaker of the museum by day, by night he enjoys the sound of silence, broken by the occasional crunch of a spider between his blackened teeth. Little Hands Clapping brings together the Old Man with the respectable Doctor Ernst Frohlicher, his greedy dog Hans and a cast of grotesque and hilarious townsfolk, all of whose lives are thrown together as the town uncovers a crime so outrageous that it will shock the world. From its sinister opening to its explosive denouement, Little Hands Clapping blends lavishly entertaining storytelling with Rhodes's macabre imagination, entrancing originality and magical touch.

 

Review: Thanks to Tunn for pointing out that this was available in the Lads Lit section of Swindon Library, I overcame my aversion to hardbacks and bought it home with me. You know you're going to be in for something different with Dan's books, they are never predictable and this was something different again. This one reminded me of Neil Gaiman's writing, especially his more sinister short stories. The humour is very, very dark and the tale is disturbing and bizarre yet compelling. I found a lot of it extremely distasteful and yet I couldn't stop reading it or laughing from time to time, he's so good at mixing the sick and twisted with funny observational comedy.

It's very gothic in feel with more than a nod to Grimm and he doesn't worry about making his main characters loveable .. for the most part they're all either despicable or absurd but there's usually always someone to care about and in this book it's tragic Madalena who cannot bear the loss of her childhood sweetheart and is making her way towards the macabre German museum in which much of the story is set. I liked the ending, it seemed to tie up all the ends neatly with everyone getting their just desserts which makes a change for Dan's books. I'm intrigued to see what he comes up with next, I like everything I've read of his but I have avoided reading 'Anthropology' ... most of the reviews for it have been bad. This one won't be for everyone, it's a bit grim and gruesome but in an adult fairytale kind of way.

 

9/10

[frankie]

An excellent review, thanks poppyshake! It does sound like a really intriguing read, I simply have to get the book asap and read it!

[poppyshake]

An excellent review, thanks poppyshake! It does sound like a really intriguing read, I simply have to get the book asap and read it!

 

As always I hope you enjoy it Frankie

[poppyshake]

 

Anansi Boys - Neil Gaiman

 

Waterstones Synopsis: Fat Charlie Nancy is not actually fat. He was fat once but he is definitely not fat now. No, right now Fat Charlie Nancy is angry, confused and more than a little scared -- right now his life is spinning out of control, and it is all his dad's fault. If his rotter of an estranged father hadn't dropped dead at a karaoke night, Charlie would still be blissfully unaware that his dad was Anansi the spider god. He would have no idea that he has a brother called Spider, who is also a god. And there would be no chance that said brother would be trying to take over his life, flat and fiancee, or, to make matters worse, be doing a much better job of it than him. Desperate to reclaim his life, Charlie enlists the help of four more-than-slightly eccentric old ladies and their unique brand of voodoo -- and between them they unleash a bitter and twisted force to get rid of Spider. But as darkness descends and badness begins is Fat Charlie Nancy going to get his life back in one piece or is he about to enter a whole netherworld of pain?

 

Review: Another one that I liked a lot, though perhaps not as much as 'Neverwhere' or 'Stardust'. This book is a little bit different from Neils other work, it's a lot more funny and less dark but it still has all of the magical, mystical elements that you expect from his work. Fat Charlie Nancy is a great character, a bit hapless and 'ordinary', but someone that you immediately warm to. The story starts with him attending his fathers funeral. He didn't know much about his father except for the fact that he used to embarrass him to death when he was a kid so he's surprised to learn, not to say incredulous, that his father was actually a God .. the trickster spider God Anansi in fact. He also discovers for the first time that he has a twin brother .. Spider ... who is also a God. Spider comes to stay at Fat Charlie's flat and basically sets about unintentionally ruining his life. Charlie loses his job and finds that his fiancée Rosie has taken more than a shine to Spider who she actually thinks is Charlie, only a new improved and much more interesting Charlie. The trouble is that Spider is everything that Charlie is not, handsome and gregarious with all the inherited smooth tongued charm of his father. Fed up with this intrusion, and more than a little envious of his brother, Charlie seeks to banish Spider, only he finds that a few subtle hints not to say downright commands to get lost aren't having any effect. Exasperated he turns to his father's old acquaintance Callyanne Higler and her three equally eccentric friends for help. During a seance at Mrs Higlers house Charlie encounters the malevolent Bird Woman who says she can banish Spider but in return she wants Anansi's bloodline. Without knowing what this means Charlie agrees, and although he's at first inclined to think that he's imagined it all, he soon realises that something more sinister is afoot. There are plenty of delicious secondary characters, Rosie's mum is a gem and I also loved Charlie's boss - the despicably corrupt, murderous, irritating twerp, Grahame Coats.

There's a lot to enjoy here, some great plot twists and revelations and really enjoyable Carribean dialogue and humour. I was slightly disappointed that it wasn't quite up to the standard of 'Neverwhere' but that's just nit picking .. it was still a fantastic read.

 

9/10

[poppyshake]

 

Mr Rosenblum's List - Natasha Solomons

 

Amazon Synopsis: List item 2: Never speak German on the upper decks of London buses. Jack Rosenblum is five foot three and a half inches of sheer tenacity. He's writing a list so he can become a Very English Gentleman. List item 41: An Englishman buys his marmalade from Fortnum and Mason. It's 1952, and despite his best efforts, his bid to blend in is fraught with unexpected hurdles - including his wife. Sadie doesn't want to forget where they came from or the family they've lost. And she shows no interest in getting a purple rinse. List item 112: An Englishman keeps his head in a crisis, even when he's risking everything. Jack leads a reluctant Sadie deep into the English countryside in pursuit of a dream. Here, in a land of woolly pigs, bluebells and jitterbug cider, they embark on an impossible task.

 

Review: A very enjoyable read and a great mixture of comedy and tragedy. I really, really took to Jack Rosenblum, he infuriated the life out of me and I couldn't believe what he was willing to risk in order to become the perfect (in his eyes) English gentleman but he was so well intentioned and naive that I couldn't dislike him. Likewise poor Sadie who never quite settles in her adopted home and misses her family terribly to the point of seeing visions and trying to re-create the scents of her mothers kitchen by marathon baking. They're both at times extremely irritating, Jack is stubborn and obssessive and Sadie is resentful and unsupportive but there's something undeniably likeable about the pair of them. Jack is determined to become a very English Gentleman, he's written a list on the subject, and so far he's done well. He has set up his own very successful carpet business, he reads The Times, buys his suits from Savile Row and knows how to adjust his hat to the correct angle. The one thing he hasn't yet managed to do is become a member of an English golf course, however much money he makes, or whoever nominates him, his requests are always refused. Daunted but undeterred Jack decides that he will build his own golf course in the grounds of his new house in Dorsetshire and have a grand opening on Coronation Day. Sadie finds that this new home deep in the countryside reminds her even more of her native Germany and she begins making a list of her own, a list of things she must remember in order to keep the past alive. I loved the description of the Baumtorte which is a sort of remembrance cake, made by ladling the batter into the tin one layer at a time and grilling it before adding the next layer so that your finished cake resembles the rings of a tree, each layer representing the memory of a loved one or special occasion. Sadie makes a spectacular version of this, several feet high, in order to remember her loved ones but all this reminiscing is making her sadder and more isolated. Jack is so obsessed by his golf course that he doesn't notice just how lonely Sadie has become. He has worries of his own, for one thing getting the golf course ready in time (he has no experience, he's never even played golf and the terrain is all wrong.) I loved his unpretentious newsy letters to American golfing legend Bobby Jones who designed the course at Augusta, despite never hearing back from him he writes weekly telling him about his progress or lack of it, and all in the wild hope that Bobby will impart some of his knowledge and perhaps even be there for the opening. It's a story where you long for a happy outcome. A gentle read, both funny and sad. If you enjoyed 'The Guersey Literary Potato Peel Pie Society' then you'll enjoy this.

 

9/10

[Kylie]

Great review Poppy. Is this your first time reading Mr Rosenblum's List? I have it on my wish list and I thought I had added it because you recommended it, but maybe not...

[frankie]

Excellent review poppyshake! I really want to read this book, I already have it on my wishlist but now I'm all the more keen on reading it. Kylie, I added this novel to my wishlist after reading Janet's review on it, maybe that's how you spotted the book as well?

Edited October 19, 2010 by frankie