Very Strange Doll's House by Jennifer Dussling & Simon Cooper

(64 pages)



Lucy's doll's house is very pretty, with green shutters and pink curtains, just like her own house. The dolls who live inside are like nothing you've ever seen before. They look just like Lucy's mum and dad, and one of them seems to be waving.

A really easy read that would've been pretty scary had I been 20 years younger :)

Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult

(500 pages)



The small town of Paradise, Pennsylvania, is a jewel in Lancaster County -- known for its picture-postcard landscapes and bucolic lifestyle. But that peace is shattered by the discovery of a dead infant in the barn of an Amish farmer. A police investigation quickly leads to two startling disclosures: the newborn's mother is an unmarried Amish woman, eighteen-year-old Katie Fisher. And the infant did not die of natural causes. Although Katie denies the medical proof that she gave birth to the child, circumstantial evidence leads to her arrest for the murder of her baby.
One hundred miles away, Philadelphia defense attorney Ellie Hathaway has achieved an enviable, high-profile career. But her latest court "victory" has set the sands shifting beneath her. Single at thirty-nine and unsatisfied with her relationship, Ellie doesn't look back when she turns down her chance to make partner and takes off for an open-ended stay at her great-aunt's home in Paradise.
Fate brings her to Katie Fisher. Suddenly, Ellie sees the chance to defend a client who truly needs her, not just one who can afford her. But taking on this case challenges Ellie in more ways than one. She finds herself not only in a clash of wills with a client who does not want to be defended but also in a clash of cultures with a people whose channels of justice are markedly different from her own.
Immersing herself in Katie Fisher's life -- and in a world founded on faith, humility, duty, and honesty -- Ellie begins to understand the pressures and sacrifices of those who to live "plain." As she peels away the layers of fact and fantasy, Ellie calls on an old friend for guidance. Now, just as this man from Ellie's past reenters her life, she must uncover the truth about a complex case, a tragic loss, the bonds of love -- and her own deepest fears and desires.
Moving seamlessly from psychological drama to courtroom suspense, Plain Truth is a triumph of contemporary storytelling. Jodi Picoult presents a fascinating portrait of Amish life rarely witnessed by those outside the faith -- and discovers a place where circumstances are not always what they seem, where love meets falsehood, and where relationships grow strong enough to span two worlds.

In true Jodi Picoult style this book had me gripped from the first page :) I simply couldnt put it down! Allthe characters were well rounded and significant, and every piece of information had a place in the story. There is the inevitable court case, which for Katie (being Amish) was very difficult. The whole subject matter was handled deftl with plenty of emotion and making you really care what happened to each of the characters. Jodi picoult told the story of the Amish without being patronising and very few sterotypes were used. All credit to her this was a greeat book :D

Never Fade Away: The Kurt Cobain Story by Dave Thomson

(170 pages)



Traces the life of Kurt Cobain, leader of the popular grunge group, Nirvana, and describes the events that led to his suicide at age twenty-seven

Well told and detailed, but lacks the personal insight of family and friends that would have made it really griping.

State of Fear by Michael Crichton

(600 pages)



The undisputed master of the high-concept thriller has written his most gripping and entertaining book yet In Paris, a physicist dies after performing a laboratory experiment for a beautiful visitor. In the jungles of Malaysia, a mysterious buyer purchases deadly cavitation technology, built to his specifications. In Vancouver, a small research submarine is leased for use in the waters of New Guinea. And in Tokyo, an intelligence agent tries to understand what it all means. Thus begins Michael Crichton's exciting and provocative techno-thriller State of Fear. Only Crichton's unique ability to blend scientific fact with pulse-pounding fiction could bring such disparate elements to a heart-stopping conclusion. This is Crichton's most wide-ranging thriller. State of Fear takes the reader from the glaciers of Iceland to the volcanoes of Antarctica, from the Arizona desert to the deadly jungles of the Solomon Islands, from the streets of Paris to the beaches of Los Angeles. The novel races forward on a roller-coaster thrill ride, all the while keeping the brain in high gear. Gripping and thought-provoking, State of Fear is Michael Crichton at his best.

I love Michael Crichton normally, having discovered "Jurassic Park" the novel as a teenager.
This did not disappoint... Whilst it was hefty in more ways than one, witha very serious plotline, i was compelled to keep reading and managed to finish it in 4 sittings :)
the characters were interesting, the plotline was fantastic, with plenty of opportunities to go hunting for the facts because of all the references provided both in the text and via footnotes.
my only complaint is that i felt the twist at the end coming :( maybe i am just too clever for my own good!!
Overall this was a really great thriller and i would recommend it to everyone :D

The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets by Eva Rice

(352 pages)



Set in the 1950s, in an England still recovering from the Second World War, The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets is the enchanting story of Penelope Wallace and her eccentric family at the start of the rock 'n' roll era. Penelope longs to be grown-up and to fall in love; but various rather inconvenient things keep getting in her way. Like her mother, a stunning but petulant beauty widowed at a tragically early age, her younger brother Inigo, currently incapable of concentrating on anything that isn't Elvis Presley, a vast but crumbling ancestral home, a severe shortage of cash, and her best friend Charlotte's sardonic cousin Harry... Eva Rice's novel is an utterly engrossing read

I found this quite enjoyable, but was slightly irritated by some of the characters, especially Mama. It is one I would read again, but not for a while.

Life Isnt All Ha Ha Hee Hee by Meera Syal

(333 pages)



Tania, Sunita and Chila have been close and somewhat unlikely friends since their schooldays. Sunita, a former law student and activist, married her university sweetheart Akash, and is settled, unsatisfied, into a life of overweight, underappreciated motherhood. Tania, top girl fighter at school, is a raven-maned beauty, who has rejected marriage and anything traditionally Asian, for a high-flying TV career and a compliant Indophile boyfriend called Martin. And then there's Chila. Innocent, kind, funny qualification-less Chila, with her glass animal collection, considered backward by her family, has just, to everyone's amazement, snared Deepak--the richest, most eligible bachelor within a 50-mile radius.
Writer, comedienne and actress Meera Syal, author of the prize-winningAnita and Me navigates her characters through the emotional rollercoaster of the coming-of-middle-youth--the time when the real growing up is done--with her trademark wit and sensitivity. From the bitching at the celebration--"Now the sister is howling. I'd howl if I had a moustache like hers ..." to the heavy embroidery and tears of a traditional Indian wedding, via the "artistic" wedding photos and "'about seventeen hours of video," Chila sighed, "all with Hindi love songs on them and those fancy Top of the Pops effects.'", through infidelity, TV documentaries and betrayal, Syal regales the reader with the strengths and limits of female friendship.

i really enjoyed this. I love Meera Syal and she did a great job of showing how difficult life can be when there is a clash of cultures, but of course she did it with amazing humour :D

Izzy, Willy-Nilly by Cynthia Voigt

(276 pages)



Izzy, a popular, active cheerleader, happily accepts a date with an attractive senior she doesn't know well, flattered to be noticed by him. At the party her date drinks too much, insists on driving her home anyway, and smashes the car into a tree. Marco suffers only surface wounds, but Izzy's leg is crushed and has to be amputated just below the knee.During her weeks in the hospital Izzy finds that not only is her whole physical orientation to the world required to change--she suddenly sees every path in terms of obstacles--but her relationship to family and friends changes, too. Her three closest friends begin to avoid her, uncertain what to say or how to include her in their plans. In the meantime Rosamunde, a marginal classmate whose slightly unkempt appearance and quirky behavior makes her entertaining, but excludes her from the "in" crowd, moves into Izzy's world with curiosity, frankness, inventive amusements and a steady, if offbeat compassion.In her impassive and demanding African American physical therapist Izzy discovers another unexpected source of comfort on terms she doesn't at first recognize as kind. As the story ends, Izzy is back at school, finding her way into a new, more challenging relationship to her body and her peers, and a friendship with Rosamunde unlike any she's known before.

I remember reading this book as a teenager and loving it, so I was excited to get the chance to read it again and pass it on to other people. I wasnt disappointed. As usual Cynthia Voigt has managed to tell a heartwrenching story with great flair and compassion, making it compulsive reading. Fabulous :D

The Closers by Michael Connelly

(464 pages)



After three years as a PI, Harry Bosch returns to the LAPD, working with his former cop ally and partner, Kizmin Rider. Harry and Kiz are assigned to the LAPD's Open-Unsolved Unit. These detectives are the Closers; they put a shovel in the dirt and turn over the past. Harry and Kiz are immediately thrown into a politically sensitive and dangerous case when a DNA match connects a white supremacist to the 1988 murder of a mixed race 16-year-old girl. As he navigates the case, Harry finds a police department far different from the one he left three years earlier. A new Chief has been brought over from New York to change the bad old culture of corruption - or that's the theory. But one thing hasn't changed - Harry's nemesis, Irving. The former Deputy Chief has been pushed from power and given a virtually meaningless new role. Full of vengeance, Irving calls Harry a 'retread'. He watches from the sidelines like an injured bear, hoping Harry will make a mistake ...

i really enjoyed this....the pages flew by without me realising it, and although the story is rather slow only picking up steam in the last third or so, at no point did I feel bored. All the details were there and it made me feel as though I was part of the investigation. I hadnt guessed whodunnit until Harry and Kiz worked it out and as for the ending... I thought it was great :D

Dance Upon The Air by Nora Roberts

(400 pages)



When Nell Channing arrives on Three Sisters Island, she hopes she has finally found refuge from her abusive husband. But even in this peaceful place, she feels haunted by fear. Then she discovers the island is suffering under a terrible curse and that she must find the power to save herself.

I enjoyed this quite a lot. I had admiration for Nell's determination, and a huge dislike for Evan. Zack was very likeable, but some of the other characters such as Lulu and Ripley, seemed a little shallow. Admittedly, this was the first in a trilogy, but it didnt leave me wanting to read the other two.
It was a good book as a stand-alone, and it didnt feel necessary for me to read the other 2 in the series. The only flaw was the ending, which felt a little rushed.

March by Geradine Brooks

(304 pages)



From the author of the acclaimed "Year Of Wonders", a historical novel and love story set during a time of catastrophe on the front lines of the American Civil War. Set during the American Civil War, "March" tells the story of John March, known to us as the father away from his family of girls in "Little Women", Louisa May Alcott's classic American novel. In Brooks' telling, March emerges as an abolitionist and idealistic chaplain on the front lines of a war that tests his faith in himself and in the Union cause when he learns that his side, too, is capable of barbarism and racism. As he recovers from a near-fatal illness in a Washington hospital, he must reassemble the shards of his shattered mind and body, and find a way to reconnect with a wife and daughters who have no idea of the ordeals he has been through. As Alcott drew on her real-life sisters in shaping the characters of her little women, so Brooks turned to the journals and letters of Bronson Alcott, Louisa May's father, an idealistic educator, animal rights exponent and abolitionist who was a friend and confidante of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. The story spans the vibrant intellectual world of Concord and the sensuous antebellum South, through to the first year of the Civil War as the North reels under a series of unexpected defeats. Like her bestselling "Year Of Wonders", "March" follows an unconventional love story. It explores the passions between a man and a woman, the tenderness of parent and child, and the life-changing power of an ardently held belief.


Whilst this was a very well written and touching story, it just didnt do very much for me. Perhaps I need to read it again when I am more in the mood for a bit of History.

Faking It by Jennifer Crusie

(340 pages)



A new masterpiece from the queen of smart, sexy female fiction Mural artist Tilda Goodnight is struggling to pay off the mortgage on the family art gallery to keep the lid on her family secrets. Her life was complicated enough when all she had to deal with were her daydreaming mother, her split-personality sister and her cross-dressing brother-in-law but when con-man, charmer and sex-on-legs Davy Dempsey enters her life things, begin to get really out of control. Suddenly everyone is faking something. What will happen when all the secrets are out?

this was the most fun i've had reading a book for ages. I mean there were hit-men, con men, gold-diggers people with split personalities fake paintings and FBI agents.
the story rattled on at a great pace, woth the plot becoming more convoluted and entangled by the page! the ending was great, and left me with a smile on my face.
I will definitely be reading more books by Jennifer Crusie.

The Other Woman's Shoes by Adele Parks

(496 pages)



Eliza and Martha are sisters. But that's where the similarity ends. Martha appears to have the perfect life: two lovely children and plenty of money. Eliza lives in a one-bedroom flat with her musician boyfriend Greg. When Eliza ditches Greg and turns up on her sister's doorstep, she expects to be swallowed into the sanctuary of Martha's warm loving home. But Martha's husband has just announced he's leaving. For good. Proving to both women that a wedding ring isn't a life raft. Then Martha meets Jack, who is everything she's never wanted, whilst Eliza is dating dozens of men in hope of finding the perfect husband. Suddenly the sisters are faced with the same challenge- is there such as thing as the perfect love? or the perfect life?

This was typical Adele Parks. That isnt a bad thing, but I have to admit that I have enjoyed some of her other books more than this. I found it really hard to identify with any of the characters, which meant that for me it wasnt an easy read. It was worth the effort, but it isnt one that i would read again.

Goodnight Nobody by Jennifer Weiner

(371 pages)



For Kate Klein, semi-accidental mother of three, the unsolved murder of a fellow mother is the most interesting thing to happen since the neighbours cracked their septic tank. Up until then life in suburbia has been distinctly underwhelming. Her once-loving husband is hardly ever home. The supermums on the playground routinely snub her and her days are filled with an empty routine. At night, most of her orgasms are of the do-it-yourself variety. So, from 8:45 to 11:30 am on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, when her kids are in nursery school, Kate launches a murder investigation of her own. With the help of her best friend, carpet heiress, Janie Segal, and former flame, Evan McKenna, she is drawn deep into the dead woman's double life. Suddenly suburbia is not so ordinary after all. Engrossing, suspenseful, and laugh-out-loud funny, "Goodnight Nobody" is another unputdownable, sparkling tale; a quick-witted mystery with a great heart and a narrator you'll never forget.

I enjoyed this, though not as much as i expected. Whilst it was fun, and i was chuckling aloud at some parts, there was also a huge air of sadness over it. it was well written, although some of the characters were a wee bit shallow. the first 2/3 were fantastic...getting you drawn into the murder mystery, but i feel the ending was a bit rushed and let the story down a little.

How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire by Kerrelyn Sparks

(371 pages)



Book Description
Kerrelyn Sparks introduces readers to a demon world that is curiously parallel to the human world. There are vampire cable channels that feature talks shows, soap operas and a celebrity magazine called Live! With the Undead. But as a human female crosses boundaries into this new reality, the results can be dangerous and hilarious...
So what if he's a bit older and usually regards a human female as dinner, not a dinner date? Yes, Roman Draganesti is a vampire, but a vampire who lost one of his fangs sinking his teeth into something he shouldn't have. Now he has one night to find a dentist before his natural healing abilities close the wound, leaving him a lop-sided eater for all eternity.
Things aren't going well for Shanna Whelan either…After witnessing a gruesome murder by the Russian mafia, she's next on their hit list. And her career as a dentist appears to be on a downward spiral because she's afraid of blood. When Roman rescues her from an assassination attempt, she wonders if she's found the one man who can keep her alive. Though the attraction between them is immediate and hot, can Shanna conquer her fear of blood to fix Roman's fang? And if she does, what will prevent Roman from using his fangs on her…

I have to admit that being a huge fan of shows like "Buffy" and "Angel", I have an increasingly large soft spot for vampire stories with heart rather than simply gore. So I decided to give this a go. I wan't disappointed. Whilst I could not describe this book as a literary masterpiece, as they say, it does exactly what it says on the tin!The title tells you exactly where the story is going, but it is the getting there that counts! What more could a girl ask for in a book?? Russian Mafia, handsome rich vampires, security guards in kilts, a dentist who is afraid of blood, specialist vampire television and a possible vampire war!!Full of action, some blood (mostly synthetic) and lots of massive laughs thanks to the female lead Shanna, this was a really enjoyable and unputdownable book, with a wide range of believable and likeable characters. Highly recommended to all those with a warm heart!!

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

(188 pages)



Winnie Foster, a teenage girl on the cusp of maturity, longs for a life outside the control of her domineering mother. When lost in the woods near her home, she happens upon Jesse Tuck, a boy unlike any she's ever met before. He and his family are kind and generous, and they immediately take her in as one of their own. However, the Tucks hold a powerful secret, and with the mysterious Man in the Yellow Suit tracking them down, they fear that the world as they know it could end. Ultimately, Winnie must decide whether to return to her life or stay with her beloved Jesse and his family forever.

This was an absolutely wonderful read. Having seen the fabulous movie adaptation (with William Hurt and Sissy Spacek) I felt it essential that I read this. I was not disappointed in the least. All the characters (the man in the yellow suit aside) were really likeable, and I had a tear in my eye at the end. This is one that I would read to my children (when I have some) to teach them about the importance of life and death. I think this is one of the best children's stories that I have ever read, and must recommend it to absolutely everybody!!

Starter for Ten by David Nicholls

(473 pages)



Amazon.co.uk Review
Is David Nicholls' Starter for Ten a throwback? Many readers look back with nostalgia to a recent golden age of comic writing, when David Lodge, Malcolm Bradbury and Tom Sharpe were producing some achingly funny work, with brilliantly realised characters. But Nicholls' sharp-as-nails novel has all the comic acumen of his great predecessors (along with their frequently-utilised university campus milieu) and, like Lodge and co., Nicholls writes real characters, not just boobies suitable only for pratfalls and sexual embarrassment. So even though the situations may often be ridiculous, we're still engaged by the protagonists.
Here, they are university student Brian Jackson and aspiring actress Alice Harbinson. Brian has arrived at his place of learning with a stronger desire than the acquisition of knowledge: he's going to be a star of TV's hottest quiz. But his progress on "The Challenge" is somewhat stymied by his growing desire for the beguiling Alice, struggling to make her mark as an actress. And as obstacles impede their affair, Brian becomes more and more convinced that only overwhelming success on the quiz show will win her.
What makes this novel such a delight, apart from the strongly drawn characters (both major and minor) is the coruscating dialogue: Nicholls writes comic dialogue like a dream, and his targets are many and varied: the idiocies of love and sex, the ludicrous pursuit of meaningless TV celebrity, fat cat businessmen lining their pockets--you name it, and it's probably here; Starter for Ten is a panoply of modern Britain with all its glories and excesses writ large. Nicholls wrote the third series of the hit TV series Cold Feet, which is as good a demonstration of his credentials as one could wish for. But Starter for Ten is his best work; there are no false notes struck by miscast actors, just prose that has a comic energy not often encountered these days.

Whilst this was great fun, I feel that I would have enjoyed it more if I had been 10 years older. You see I went to uni, when University Challenge was on the way out (mind you it;s back in again now). For me the thing that stood out was the odd selection of characters, some of whom did seem rather familiar. One that was worth the read, but not one I would read again in a hurry.

The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult

(448 pages)



How far would you go to protect the ones you love? Worldwide publication of Jodi Picoult's brand new hardback will be a major event. When Daniel Stone was a child, he was the only white boy in a native Eskimo village where his mother taught, and he was teased mercilessly because he was different. He fought back, the baddest of the bad kids: stealing, drinking, robbing and cheating his way out of the Alaskan bush - where he honed his artistic talent, fell in love with a girl and got her pregnant. To become part of a family, he reinvented himself - jettisoning all that anger to become a docile, devoted husband and father. Fifteen years later, when we meet Daniel again, he is a comic book artist. His wife teaches Dante's Inferno at a local college; his daughter, Trixie, is the light of his life - and a girl who only knows her father as the even-tempered, mild-mannered man he has been her whole life. Until, that is, she is date raped...and Daniel finds himself struggling, again, with a powerlessness and a rage that may not just swallow him whole, but destroy his family and his future.

As usual, Jodi Picoult has managed to tell a story with all the weight and emotion it deserve, without glamourising or over-sentimentalising a difficult and very emotive issue. She has made the characters like real people with a whole range of problems and flaws, not just caricatures of the perfect family. The journey Trixie goes through is heart wrenching and extremely believable, and the few incidents at the school make you realise just how horrible being a teenager can be. Daniel manages to contain himself extremely well but inevitably he, like everyone has a breaking point. But is he capable of the worst?? I didn;t think so and the last 100 pages flew by in a flurry as i was dying to get to the end to find out who was.
I would heartily recommend this to everyone especially those who enjoy Picoult's style. Yet again she managed to hit the nail right on the head!