Reading Three Popular Thrillers

 Before I started reading predominantly romance, I used to read a decent amount of thrillers. Whether they were YA or Adult, I found myself reaching for them regularly but started to get annoyed with them being so hit or miss. I have only read a handful of thrillers over the past couple of years so I thought, given the time of year, I would give a few popular thrillers a go. I decided to pick up three books that I have heard a lot of great things about and see if I could find the book to make me fall in love with thrillers again. I decided it might be interesting to share my thoughts before, during and after reading to see how my feelings changed throughout.

The Guest List by Lucy Foley

Initial Thoughts: This is a thriller that has been so hyped in the book community, both by thriller readers and those who don’t typically read this genre, so I’ve been a bit scared to pick it up. I have had it on so many TBRs but just kept putting it off. It takes place on a secluded island during a wedding where someone is found dead. I love the idea of a wedding party on a secluded island, it has the potential to be so atmospheric and intense. This is probably the one I’m most excited about. 

50% Thoughts: I am completely hooked. This book sucked me in straight away with the atmospheric setting and flipping between the wedding night and the days before. I really enjoy the various POVs, I think it makes for such a fast read. The mystery is still so unknown at this point, we don’t really know much about what has happened yet. I like that as I can’t make any guesses, which is usually what ruins a mystery/thriller for me if I manage to guess correctly. I’m really enjoying this so far and I just hope nothing happens to change my thoughts. 

Final Thoughts: I am happy to say that this is a thriller that was worth the hype for me. It was full of twists that kept me reading on and I just loved the way it was written. We are following the bride, groom, various members of the wedding party and the wedding planner in the days leading up to the wedding and the wedding night. The multiple POVs made for such a fast paced read and kept the mystery going as you didn’t know who you could trust, as did the jumping between past and present timelines. I enjoyed how the ending was set up as even though I did manage to guess who the killer was, the journey to get to the reveal was still so intense and intriguing. This was exactly the kind of thriller for me and I will definitely be looking for more like this in the future.

Rating: ★★★★

Final Girls by Riley Sager

Initial Thoughts: This has been on my TBR for the longest time! I remember seeing the synopsis for this book and being instantly interested. It follows a group of women who are all the sole survivors of horrific events. When one is found dead, the others’ lives start to get more complicated. This just sounds like such an interesting premise and I’ve heard that it gets really intense. 

50% Thoughts: The first half of this book was boring. I hate to say that as it was not what I was expecting from this. All I have heard is how thrilling and intense this book is but I haven’t felt any of that so far. Despite the slow start, the characters are interesting and the plot still has potential so I am hoping it picks up a bit from this point. I’m pretty sure I’ve guessed the twist though, I hope I’m wrong. 

Final Thoughts: I wasn’t wrong. I guessed the twist the second a character was introduced. It doesn’t bother me too much when I guess the twist if getting to it is exciting and the reveal is worth it. Sadly, this was a bit disappointing. It wasn’t a bad book, it just didn’t live up to the hype for me. It did pick up a bit in the second half and things got more exciting and intense but never enough for me to be all that invested. As I said before, the characters were interesting and just as twisted as I like to see in my thrillers. While the pacing was slightly off, the plot itself wasn’t bad. It was a unique concept and the author did a great job of throwing in red herrings and keeping you guessing; It’s just a shame that I made a good guess early on. Although this one was a bit of a disappointment for me, I would be interested in reading more from Riley Sager now as I did enjoy the writing.

Rating: ★★★

Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh

Initial Thoughts: I would probably say this is the book out of the three that I am most unsure about. I picked this one up before I had heard anything about it because the tagline ‘the serial killer isn’t on trial...he’s on the jury’ had me hooked when I read it. I then saw a lot of people rave about it but just never got around to reading it. I think this is more of a legal thriller, which I don’t think I’ve ever read before. I have no idea what to expect going into this one.

50% Thoughts: This one has been a bit of a surprise for me because so far I am really enjoying it! It is unlike anything I have read before and has me completely hooked. This is following a high profile murder trial of a movie star following the murder of his actress wife and their head of security and is told from two perspectives. The first is of the lawyer who becomes involved in the case, the second is that of the killer who has gotten himself on the jury. I am so in awe of how cleverly written this is. Maybe it is just because I don't read a lot of books like this but I don't think I have ever been this hooked when reading a thriller. It is intense and pretty graphic and gory, which are not things I really love to read, but it is all just so intriguing. The twists keep on coming, I have no idea where this is going and I can't stop reading. I really am loving this so far!

Final Thoughts: In a surprising turn of events, this was my favourite of the three and probably the best book I have read in months. I loved it! I am now questioning my reading tastes; am I actually a romance reader or should I now be reading legal thrillers and crime novels? My final thoughts are pretty much the same as my thoughts from the half way point. This book just continued to keep me interested and shock me with the twists it took. I never knew what would come next, it was so cleverly written. It was intense and gripping, I was completely immersed in this story and couldn't put the book down. I'm a lover of true crime documentaries and this read in a similar way, to me at least. I will definitely be reading more from this author and I might have to start asking my family for some book recommendations as they are all big crime readers. 

Rating: ★★★★★

This was something a little different for me as I have been reading so much romance this year. Even though I love romance, I was starting to get a little burnt out and found myself getting slumpy and rating everything around the 3 star mark. This has definitely gotten me out of my reading slump and I even found a new five star book. 

If you have any thriller recommendations based on my thoughts on these three books, please let me know so I can find some more new favourites.

What is your favourite type of thriller?

Sophie :)

Reading Booktube's Favourite Romances Of 2020

 I discovered in 2020 that I didn't really know exactly what I loved in my romance, as I am relatively new to the genre, and so was finding my romance reads to be a bit hit or miss. One of my unofficial goals of 2021 is to try and find out a bit more about what I love in romance, and I have been figuring out a few different ways to do that. I decided the best place to start would be to try out other people's favourites. I picked out three of my favourite booktubers and chose one book from each of their favourite romance books of 2020 to try out.

One To Watch by Kate Stayman-London - Favourite of Heather from Bookables

This is one that has been on my radar since it's release but I have heard a lot of mixed things about it. Some of those I follow, like Heather, absolutely loved it, while others, including people I have taken recommendations from for these books, had to DNF. I love fiction that deals with reality TV, so I am definitely intrigued by the synopsis, as this follows a woman who is asked to be the first plus size contestant on a Bachelorette style TV show. 

Heather is someone I have watched for years and have taken a lot of recommendations from in that time. We do enjoy a lot of the same books, but also have very differing opinions on others. It will be interesting to see which way this one goes.

My Thoughts: This had so much potential! As I said, it follows Bea,  a plus size fashion blogger who is approached by the producer of Main Squeeze, a bachelorette style reality show, and asked to be the show's first plus size 'Main Squeeze'. Despite her reservations, and the fact she is still trying to get over a recent heartbreak, she agrees, and we follow her journey on the show. It is told in chat conversations, interview transcripts, tweets and news articles, alongside regular prose, which made it a fun reading experience as I love that kind of thing. 

I really enjoyed Bea as a main character, for the most part. She was a very real character with very real and relatable struggles and fears. A lot of the negative reviews I have seen for this book are from people who felt this book did not portray a body positive main character, as you are lead to believe from the synopsis. Bea loves her body, but she is very aware of how society perceives her and her size. She has struggle and insecurities, just like every person, and I loved reading her journey with those throughout this book. Bea overcomes a lot of her self-doubt and I found that added a whole other layer to her character. She was just a great main character to follow. What I didn't like about her, however, was the fact she knowing slept with an engaged man and the fact he was engaged to someone else was just brushed under the rug and she felt no guilt.

The story itself was a lot of fun. We follow Bea throughout her time on the show, getting to know the guys fighting for her attention, going on fun dates. While her time on the show wasn't all fun, there is a lot of blatant fatphobia so be aware of that, it was mostly enjoyable to read about. I do wish we had gotten to know the men a little bit more as they were all quite similar to me and I struggled to work out who to root for. In the end, I just didn't really care who she ended up with. Everything started going downhill in the later part of the book and the ending was just a bit meh.

My only other issue with this book was the way the diversity of characters was written. On paper, this book had a very diverse cast of characters. However, they were thrown in almost as if to check off boxes, as though race, sexuality or gender identity of characters were just added in as an afterthought to make the book a bit more diverse. It just didn't come off as genuine to me.

Overall though, this book was a pretty good read. As I said, I enjoyed Bea as a main character and the discussions around body positivity and how society views plus size individuals. I enjoyed the reality TV storyline. However, I got bored towards the end and didn't care who she ended up with. It was an average read.

Rating: ★★★

Inevitable Conclusions by Christina C Jones - Favourite of Jessica from PeaceLoveBooksxo

I had never even heard of this book until Jessica mentioned it in her favourites video, which is why I knew this is the one I wanted to choose from her. This is a friends to lovers, second chance romance with, it seems, some secrets and dramas in their past. I have also been following Jessica for years, her channel is the first romance channel I ever found and has been one of my top places to get recommendations from since I started watching her videos. I'm not really sure how our tastes align, so it will be interesting to see if one of her favourites is also going to be one of mine.

My Thoughts: This book follows Kora, a single mother of a teenage daughter, and her best friend since childhood, Tariq. When the book begins, they have a friends with benefits arrangement going on and you get thrown right into that from the first chapter. This books starts STEAMY, which caught me off guard a bit, and that steam level stays throughout. This was my introduction to Christina C Jones, and boy can she write a steamy scene.

This was a really adorable friends to lovers romance and I especially loved the fact that they were so close, despite having tried to have a relationship when they were younger that didn't work out. With friends to lovers, I often find it hard to believe when the reason a couple have for not being together is not wanting to risk their friendship. However, in this book you could see just how important their friendship was to the both of them, and how much they would be risking by getting together. I also really loved the fact we had older characters to those you usually see in romance, both in their late thirties, which made for a more mature feel to the book without any childish drama. 

As well as the relationship between the main characters, I loved all the other relationships in the book. Both Kora and Tariq's relationships with Kora's daughter were so great to read about, particularly how fatherly and protective Tariq is. We also get some really healthy and supportive friendships within this book as well, which I loved. 

Both main characters are dealing with, and supporting each other through, traumatic pasts and difficult family circumstances. Trigger warnings for sexual assault and attempted suicide, there may be others but those are the things that stick out in my memory. 

There were a couple of things that stopped me from completely loving this book. The first was the kind of cheating. They make a point of stating that their friends with benefits arrangement only happens when they are not in relationships, but the two do sleep together while Tariq is seeing someone, which I wasn't really on board with. The other issue was that it is a bit forgettable. Just a week after reading it I am struggling to remember what happened. That doesn't make it bad in any way, I'm just disappointed that I can't fully remember why I enjoyed it so much at the time.

Rating: ★★★★

Dear Ava by Ilsa Madden-Mills - Favourite of Chandler from Chandler Ainsley

This is a book I have seen a lot around the book community in 2020. A lot of people have read and loved this book in the past year, so I have high hopes. Not only was this on Chandler's favourites list, Jessica from PeaceLoveBooksxo also gave it an honourable mention on her list. Chandler is someone I discovered in 2020 and really enjoy her videos. She reads such a variety of books and I don't think our tastes are all that similar, but I am really intrigued by this book.

My Thoughts: This is a New Adult high school enemies to lovers romance, following Ava, who is sexually assaulted at a party by one of the popular guys in the school, though she doesn't know which one, and is now returning to school a year later. Upon her return to school, she finds a note from a secret admirer in her locker, and then is forced to pair up with the most popular guy in the school, Knox, who she hates, on a class project. 

There were a lot of things I liked about this book. I liked Ava as a main character. She has had a really rough childhood and is now essentially an orphan looking after her younger brother, and is at this prestigious school on a scholarship. Despite the horrific treatment she gets at school, both from being the 'charity case' and for having reported her sexual assault, she returns to the school in order to give her brother the best chance. She is incredibly brave, but also takes no shit. I enjoyed the banter between her and Knox, though they didn't quite have the enemies to lovers relationship I was looking for. They were really good together and I loved how they could both be themselves around each other. I also really loved the way Knox stood up for Ava whenever anyone spoke badly about her in relation to her sexual assault. He was one of the few people who always believed her. The family aspect of the book was one of my favourite parts. Both Ava and Knox have such close relationships with their brother's and would do anything for them. 

As for things I didn't like, there were a few of them too. As I said already, it wasn't really an enemies to lovers relationship. They were never really enemies and that aspect was a bit disappointing to me. I didn't see the point in the secret admirer storyline, which seemed so prevalent from the synopsis. It seemed like an afterthought and was only really brought up on the few occasions it would help explain a plot hole. It just seemed really unnecessary, especially as the identity wasn't much of a secret. In fact, nothing about this story was surprising. It was so clear where this book was going from the first few chapters and it meant I got kind of bored. I also really didn't like all of the epilogues. I will put up with one epilogue, any more than that are just not needed.

Overall, while I loved the main characters and enjoyed their relationship, everything else about this book was a bit disappointing. I was sure this one would be my favourite of the three but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. That being said, it wasn't a bad book and I did enjoy it for the most part.

Trigger warnings for sexual assault, suicide, suicidal thoughts, drug use and addiction, bullying, assault, I'm worried that I'm missing things but that's all I can remember. 

Rating: ★★★

I'm quite disappointed that I ended up with two books that were just average, since that's what I was trying to avoid. I guess I can't love everything. I did find a new author I am definitely reading more from in Christina C Jones, and may try out some more from the other two authors at some point. Hopefully the more of these experiments I do, the more new favourites I will find.

What was your favourite romance book of 2020? If  you've read any of these three books, what were your thoughts?    

Sophie :)

The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary Review

 

The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary

First Published: 2019

Publisher: Quercus/Macmillan Audio

Format: Hardcover/Audio

Narrator: Carrie Hope Fletcher & Kwaku Fortune

Source: Bought/Audible

Genre: Romance

Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads

This was pretty much everyone’s favourite romance of 2019 so it has taken me far too long to get around to reading it. It follows Tiffy and Leon, two complete strangers who share a bed but have never met. They share a flat but never at the same time; Tiffy gets nights and weekends in the flat while Leon, who works night shifts, gets it during the day. Despite never meeting, the two develop a friendship through notes, and, of course, feelings develop. 

This ended up being more than I expected it to be. I was intrigued by the synopsis and how the romance would develop despite the pair not meeting. What I didn’t expect was the more serious side stories. Tiffy has recently come out of a pretty toxic relationship and Leon is dealing with his brother being wrongly imprisoned. Those aspects added so much to the story and I loved how the difficulties in their lives and issues they are trying to overcome brought them together. I also really enjoyed the development of the relationship through notes. I love an epistolary romance and this had aspects of that. I think is much harder to develop a relationship with convincing chemistry through notes and without the characters actually meeting, but I was completely convinced by the chemistry between these two characters before they ever met. 

The friendships in this book are really great. Tiffy’s friend group are a great example of supportive friends who will drop everything to be there when she needs them. They had such a mix of personalities as well and each one was really well developed. Their interactions made me laugh so many times and I found them to be the perfect comic relief in some of the more serious times. Leon’s brother was also really great and I was so impressed by how well his character was developed when all we got to see of him was through phone calls and letters. 

My one issue with this book was the way Leon’s chapters were written. I listened to this on audiobook and read the physical copy and found those chapters difficult to read and follow in both formats. I found it to be very jumpy and almost threw me around a bit while I was reading. I didn’t like the way the dialogue was written either. It just took me out of the story quite a bit. 

Overall, this was a really sweet romance with some interesting added layers. I was impressed by how much I found myself rooting for these characters and seeing their chemistry before they met, and then they were even better together once they were with each other in person. I loved them as a couple and how Leon was so respectful of Tiffy’s past and the struggles she was going through. I loved the little side stories like Leon’s search for his patient’s long lost love and Tiffy’s crocheting superstar author. This was just the perfect balance of fun, adorable romance and more serious, hard-hitting topics.

Have you read The Flatshare? I would love to know your thoughts.

Sophie :)

Long Shot by Kennedy Ryan Review

Long Shot by Kennedy Ryan

Series: Hoops #1

First Published: May 20, 2018

Format: Audiobook

Published By: Tantor Audio

Narrator: Sean Crisden & Jo Raylan

Source: Scribd

Genre: Romance

Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads

Long Shot follows NBA star August West ant the mysterious and beautiful Iris DuPree, who meet in a bar one night and can't deny their instant chemistry. The only problem is, Iris is already another 'baller's girl.

This is not at all what I expected. I went into this book knowing very little; just that it was a basketball sports romance. As it turns out, this was so much more. It was a truly heart-breaking, at times difficult to read, story, which dealt with some very hard topics.

HUGE trigger warnings for domestic violence and sexual assault, both of which are shown on page and in graphic detail. I don't have triggers myself, but even I struggled with a lot of the content in this book.

This book is incredibly dark. A few times I had to put it down and take a break from it. At one point, I put it down for two whole days, simply because I was scared for what was to come. This is one of the most atmospheric books I have ever read. I really felt like I was right there with these characters, experiencing not only their highs, but also the lowest of lows. It was just so well written, especially the way the darker topics were handled and discussed. I thought the discussion regarding domestic violence and victim blaming was particularly interesting and presented a lot to think about. It was clear that Kennedy Ryan didn't simply throw this topic in to make the story more interesting. She did her research and made sure to present an impactful and important take on the topic, to bring more awareness and potentially help those affected.

All of the characters in this book were very well developed and real rounded characters with such distinct personalities. I particularly loved Iris and Lotus and their relationship. Their backstories were interesting to read about, and I hope to learn more of Lotus' backstory in the third book in this series. August was an incredibly sweet hero; I just loved him and his devotion to Iris, no matter what. I also loved his relationship with his family. Although we didn't see too much of his family interactions, what we did get to see was just so wholesome and lovely. Even Caleb was such a well-developed character.

I think the thing I appreciated most about this book was the fact that it didn't do what it so easily could have. The hero did not swoop in and save the girl. August didn't suddenly appear and fix all of Iris' problems. So often in romance, the hero saves the day, Iris was a prime example of an incredibly strong, independent woman, and it made me happy and proud to see that was not taken away from her at any point.

I loved pretty much everything about this book. All that is stopping me from giving this book 5 stars is the fact it took me some time to get in to. I struggled at the beginning of the book to understand this infatuation that August and Iris seemed to have with each other after just a few hours in a bar. Although I obviously fell in love with their relationship as the book progressed, I did struggle with it at first.

This was my first book by Kennedy Ryan but I can guarantee it won't be my last.

Review | Roar by Cecelia Ahern

Roar by Cecelia Ahern
Published On: November 1, 2018
Published By: Harper Collins
Genre: Adult, General Fiction, Anthology
Pages: 352
Format: eBook
Source: Netgalley
Rating: ★★★★
Amazon | BD | Goodreads

I am woman. Hear me roar. 
Have you ever imagined a different life? 
Have you ever stood at a crossroads, undecided? 
Have you ever had a moment when you wanted to roar? 
The women in these startlingly original stories are all of us: the women who befriend us, the women who encourage us, the women who make us brave. 
From The Woman Who Slowly Disappeared to The Woman Who Was Kept on the Shelf and The Woman Who Returned and Exchanged her Husband, discover thirty touching, often hilarious, stories and meet thirty very different women. Each discovers her strength; each realizes she holds the power to make a change. Witty, tender, surprising, these keenly observed tales speak to us all, and capture the moment when we all want to roar.

*A copy of this book was provided by the published via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

It is no secret that Cecelia Ahern is a favourite author of mine. In fact, I think I start every review of one of her books with that exact sentence. Of course, being one of my favourite authors, I was very excited to get to her newest release. I was unsure about the premise, but I trusted I would enjoy it as I have never not enjoyed a Cecelia Ahern book. 

This is unlike anything I have read before. It features thirty short stories, many only a few pages in length, each following an different woman. These stories take common issues and prejudices facing women in the world today and give them a fantastical twist by taking them very literally. For example, The Woman Who Had A Ticking Clock deals with the societal pressures on women over a certain age to have children and features a woman with a literal ticking clock. I found it incredibly clever and unique.

While I did enjoy this book and all of the stories within it, I didn't feel this was Cecelia Ahern's best writing. The stories were clever in content but the writing felt quite basic at times. I also found myself getting a little bored at times as the stories felt quite similar. However, these are my only complaints. I generally really enjoyed it and took a lot of great messages from the stories.

Overall, I think this is a very good collection of short stories. The stories are unique, I have never read anything like them before, and all contained an important message. I found this book to be quite powerful as a whole and I would definitely encourage you to pick it up if you want to feel good about being a woman, or if you want to look at current issues facing women but in a very different way.

Mini Review | The Language Of Kindness by Christie Watson

The Language Of Kindness: A Nurse's Story by Christie Watson
Published On: May 3, 2018
Published By: Chatto & Windus
Genre: Non-Fiction, Memoir
Pages: 336
Format: eBook
Source: Netgalley
Rating: ★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

Christie Watson was a nurse for twenty years. Taking us from birth to death and from A&E to the mortuary, The Language of Kindness is an astounding account of a profession defined by acts of care, compassion and kindness. 
We watch Christie as she nurses a premature baby who has miraculously made it through the night, we stand by her side during her patient’s agonising heart-lung transplant, and we hold our breath as she washes the hair of a child fatally injured in a fire, attempting to remove the toxic smell of smoke before the grieving family arrive. 
In our most extreme moments, when life is lived most intensely, Christie is with us. She is a guide, mentor and friend. And in these dark days of division and isolationism, she encourages us all to stretch out a hand.

*A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

This is my kind of book.
I feel like everyone has that one very specific type of book that they can never pass up and for me that is medical non-fiction or memoirs. I find different healthcare systems and the experiences of people working within them so interesting that I could read these types of books forever. If you are one of these slightly odd people like me, this book is definitely for you.

I loved so much of it.
If I was rating this book purely on the information within it and what I took from it, it would easily be a five star read. There is so much really great information about what it takes to be a nurse and how much the job takes from you. These are things I already knew, but reading about a person's real experience of their job and how the challenges of nursing made a real impact on their life made it all the more real. This is a perfect book for anyone in the nursing or healthcare field.

It is not for everyone.
Being in this field, I found this book so interesting and helpful. However, I don't think those outwith the field will be able to take the same from it. It is not a memoir filled with funny stories of interesting patients, it is a real, raw look at nursing and everything nurses face. There is a lot of nursing theory and almost academic discussion, which I learnt a lot from but is not likely to be the most interesting thing for non-nurses to be reading about.

The writing was hard to follow.
While the content was great, the writing didn't flow making it a little difficult to follow. We jumped from one story to the next without transition and it was often unclear when these stories took place in relation to the point in her career. This did not take away from the content but was a little confusing.

A must-read for anyone considering nursing.
I think this book should be compulsory reading material for anyone considering nursing as a career. I know many student nurses who could have benefited from this kind of insight into the career before starting their studies. It is a true representation of life as a nurse, warts and all, and emphasises the true fundamental aspect of nursing; kindness.

Overall, I think this is a great nursing memoir for those in the healthcare field but may not be the most accessible, easy to read book for others. Personally, I took a great deal from this book and have learnt things that I know I will put into practice in my own career. I would definitely recommend it to anyone in the field or considering nursing as a career, but it is not a book for everyone.

Review | The Last Laugh by Tracy Bloom

The Last Laugh by Tracy Bloom
Published On: February 23, 2018
Published By: Bookouture
Genre: Adult, Chick-Lit
Pages: 294
Format: eBook
Source: Netgalley
Rating: ★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

‘I’ve googled it, how to die,’ Jenny says to Maureen. ‘It was full of climbing this mountain, swimming that sea, becoming a marathon runner and raising millions for charity.’ 
‘Sounds like bloody hard work. You can make it more fun than that surely?’ 
Jenny discovers her days are numbered at the same time she discovers her husband is having an affair… 
Frankly, her life was tough enough already. Two tricky teenagers, her mother’s constant complaints, friends who aren’t up to the job and a career which has been spiralling downwards since she won ‘Sunseeker Tour Rep of the Season’ twenty years ago. 
And now this: a cheating husband and a death sentence. 
Enough is enough. Jenny vows to keep both catastrophes a secret. She takes her life – and death – into her own hands and decides to live as she did when she was happiest… in 1996. She plans a spectacular 1990’s themed party in place of a wake that she herself will attend. But will she be able to keep her secrets for long enough to have the party of a lifetime?

*A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

Tracy Bloom is one author I have a bit of a hit or miss relationship with. I have read two of her books before, one of which I really enjoyed, the other I didn't like so much. However, as her writing is usually pretty hilarious, I wanted to give her another chance, which is why I picked up her new release. Like I said, her writing is usually hilarious so I was interested to see how she would take such a serious topic and make it laugh out loud funny.

Now, don't get me wrong, this book was funny, but, as it turns out, it was not laugh out loud funny. Perhaps that was a bit much to ask of a book dealing with terminal illness and a husband having an affair. Tracy Bloom did a great job of mixing humour and serious topics, however some aspects of the book that I feel were meant to be humorous just seemed downright bizarre.

In fact, much of this book seemed bizarre; sometimes in a good way, other times not so much. The plot is very unique. Never before have I read a book about a terminally ill woman finding out her husband is having an affair and deciding to deal with it all by throwing a party. It was all very strange and I found it hard to understand any of the reasoning behind many decisions Jenny makes. It all just seemed very irrational and a little bit crazy.

Despite a rather crazy plot, the characters were pretty average. For me, Tracy Bloom tried too hard to make the characters, Jenny in particular, quirky and interesting and it didn't really work out. The only character I really enjoyed, who felt authentically quirky, was Maureen. Maureen is a truly great character who, despite being a little bit mad, was hilariously funny and really made the book for me.

One thing I really liked about this book was that it featured a character with anxiety. Jenny's son really struggles with anxiety and this became quite a big aspect of the book. There were points throughout the book in which I really did not like the way he was being spoken to and about; however, this did improve as the book went on and I really liked how his part of the story wrapped up.

Overall, this book was enjoyable but nothing particularly special. The plot was interesting, if at times difficult to fathom, and did have me laughing at times, despite the serious subject matter. The bland characters were somewhat disappointing but mad Maureen made up for it. While not my favourite of the Tracy Bloom books I have read, this has definitely encouraged me to give some of her other books a go.

Review | Some Kind Of Wonderful by Giovanna Fletcher

Some Kind Of Wonderful by Giovanna Fletcher
Published On: November 16, 2017
Published By: Michael Joseph
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Chick-Lit
Pages: 389
Format: eBook/Hardcover
Source: Netgalley/Bought
Rating: ★★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

Lizzy and Ian have been a couple since their first day at university. Now, after celebrating a decade together, everyone thinks they're about to get engaged. A romantic escape to Dubai is the perfect moment, but instead of the proposal Lizzy hopes for, Ian reveals he's not sure he even wants her anymore. 
Lizzy is heartbroken. But through the tears, she realises this is her chance to seize the opportunities she missed as Ian's other half. But what does she want? How much of her is really Lizzy, and how much was Ian's influence? Determined to discover who she is at heart, Lizzy sets out to rediscover the girl she was before - and in the meantime, have a little fun . . .

*A copy of this book was (initially) provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review (but it was so good I bought my own copy anyway)*

I had been wanting to read a book by Giovanna Fletcher for far too long before I picked this one up, I even owned all of her published works, however, I had never gotten around to reading them. As soon as I read the synopsis for Some Kind Of Wonderful, I knew this was going to be the one I picked up first as it sounded exactly like something I would enjoy. I love Giovanna as a person (her Youtube channel is one of my favourites) so, of course, I really wanted to love this book. To my relief, I really did love this book.

The story follows Lizzy who, after a ten year relationship with her university boyfriend, finds herself back in her family home with a broken heart and no idea who she is outwith the relationship. While this isn't the most unique story, it felt like I was reading this situation for the first time. There was something new and fresh about the way the story was told that stopped this from becoming just another version of the many similar books out there. 

This was not a particularly plot-driven book, there wasn't a lot of action and adventure, but it kept my attention and made me want to keep reading. For me, it was a very chilled, relaxing read. The plot kept moving but at a steady pace with the characters driving the story, and some interesting subplots thrown in along the way to keep things interesting.

Lizzy goes on such a journey throughout this book that it's hard not to connect to her character. She is an average woman struggling with the no longer being 'Ian's girlfriend' and having to discover how to be Lizzy, which is a struggle many, myself included, can relate to. Her character growth was incredible - from being so insecure while in her relationship and hiding behind her boyfriend to learning to be comfortable in her own skin and confident as herself - and it was something I found so inspiring. I wish I had read this book when I was in Lizzy's situation as I think it would have been exactly what I needed to read.

The characters were the real highlight of this book. Not only was Lizzy a great main character, every other character in this book was great. There were no unlikeable characters, even the ex-boyfriend and the, sometimes rather annoying, younger sister had their redeeming qualities. We had a great cast of characters, a lovely family dynamic and a hilarious friendship, I couldn't have asked for anything more.

Overall, this book just made me want to read everything else Giovanna has ever written. I was so relieved to discover I loved her writing as much as I love her as a person but I shouldn't be surprised. This book was just as beautiful and inspiring as the author herself and I would urge anyone who has struggled, or is struggling, through a difficult breakup to pick up this book. I related so much to the story and it was one of those books that really made me think and has stayed with me long after I finished the last page.

Mini Review | Bridget Jones' Baby: The Diaries by Helen Fielding

Bridget Jones' Baby: The Diaries by Helen Fielding
Series: Bridget Jones #4
Published On: October 11, 2016
Published By: Knopf
Genre: Chick-Lit
Pages: 219
Format: Hardcover
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

8:45 P.M. Realize there have been so many times in my life when have fantasized about going to a scan with Mark or Daniel: just not both at the same time. 
Before motherhood, before marriage, Bridget with biological clock ticking very, very loudly, finds herself unexpectedly pregnant at the eleventh hour: a joyful pregnancy which is dominated, however, by a crucial but terribly awkward question - who is the father? Mark Darcy: honourable, decent, notable human rights lawyer? Or Daniel Cleaver: charming, witty, notable fuckwit? 
9:45 PM It's like they're two halves of the perfect man, who'll spend the rest of their lives each wanting to outdo the other one. And now it's all enacting itself in my stomach. 
In this gloriously funny, touching story of baby-deadline panic, maternal bliss, and social, professional, technological, culinary and childbirth chaos, Bridget Jones - global phenomenon and the world's favorite Singleton - is back with a bump.

Completely exceeded my expectations.
I read the first book in the series last year and wasn't a huge fan (review here) so decided not to continue with the series. However, having seen the movie, I thought I would skip the two previous books in the series and give this one a go. I was very pleasantly surprised as I enjoyed it much more than the first book in the series.

Interesting that the book is based on the film.
As far as I am aware, this book was written following the film of the same name. I found that quite interesting as is different from the normal book to movie adaptations. I did prefer the film to the book, the film was absolutely hilarious, but I did really enjoy the different take on the story. There were a lot of things written differently in the book than the movie but also a lot of similarities, both of which I think worked very well.

No focus on weight.
One of my biggest issues with the first book was the constant discussion about weight and how, as a woman of a relatively good weight, Bridget was "fat". I was very uncomfortable with this aspect of the book. For obvious reasons, weight is not discussed in the same way in this instalment. I was very relieved to discover this as it made my reading experience much more enjoyable.

Great mix of funny, serious and sweet.
As you would expect from a book in this series, this definitely had some laugh out loud moments. I really enjoyed the humour in this instalment, more so than in the first book, and found it great fun to read. It wasn't all humour as we had some more serious topics being discussed, including the stigma around single parenting and pregnancy outwith marriage/long-term relationship. I think these were important things to discuss within the book. There were also some incredibly sweet moments that just added to the perfect combination of emotions.

This is a one-sitting book.
I don't know if this is due to the diary format of the book or just because it was so good but I flew through it. I read it all in one sitting and just didn't want to put it down. I was having so much fun reading that I wanted to immerse myself in it.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable instalment in the Bridget Jones series. It completely redeemed the series for me and I may consider picking up the books I missed out in future. I do still prefer the movie to the book, which is probably a lot to do with Patrick Dempsey, but would definitely recommend it to fans of the movie.

Mini Review | Heart Of The Matter by Emily Giffin

Heart Of The Matter by Emily Giffin
Published On: May 11, 2010
Published By: Orion
Genre: Chick Lit
Pages: 358
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★

Amazon | Goodreads

Tessa Russo is the mother of two young children and the wife of a renowned pediatric surgeon. Despite her own mother's warnings, Tessa has recently given up her career to focus on her family and the pursuit of domestic happiness. From the outside, she seems destined to live a charmed life. 
Valerie Anderson is an attorney and single mother to six-year-old Charlie—a boy who has never known his father. After too many disappointments, she has given up on romance—and even to some degree, friendships—believing that it is always safer not to expect too much. 
Although both women live in the same Boston suburb, the two have relatively little in common aside from a fierce love for their children. But one night, a tragic accident causes their lives to converge in ways no one could have imagined.

Maybe I expected too much.
I have read tow of Emily Giffin's books before and really enjoyed both of them. Despite having this book on my shelf for about 5 years before actually picking it up, I was expecting to enjoy it. I was wrong, it seems. I expected more and was left disappointed.

I was bored.
I felt as though there was very little to the plot and nothing really happened. You have this big 'scandal' and that is literally the only thing going on in the whole book. I found myself getting bored while reading so I just didn't want to keep picking it up.

I couldn't deal with the cheating.
I used to be the person that hated any kind of cheating in books but I have since changed my opinion on that. However, I could not tolerate the cheating aspect of this story. Not only was it pretty unrealistic, it was unethical and a complete abuse of power. I also had a very hard time with the 'single parents can't handle things on their own and need a partner' mentality that seemed to be quite prominent.

The characters were the worst.
It is rare that I hate ever single character in a book but I just couldn't like any of them. They were dull and annoying, I didn't want to read about their lives at all. I felt no sympathy for either of the women, even when it was clear that's what the author had intended me to feel.

The Dex & Rachel cameo, though!
There is only one thing I liked about this book and that was the inclusion of Dex and Rachel, from Emily Giffin's Something Borrowed. I loved that book so to get a glimpse into their life a few years on from the end of the book was great.

Overall, I was very tempted to DNF this book but I felt some kind of obligation to finish it since it had been sitting on my shelf for so long. Honestly, I wish I hadn't bothered. I may pick up some of her other work in future but Heart Of The Matter is definitely not the Emily Giffin book I would recommend.

Review | How I Lost You by Jenny Blackhurst

How I Lost You by Jenny Blackhurst
Published On: October 9, 2014
Published By: Headline
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Pages: 352
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

They told her she killed her son. She served her time. But what if they lied? 
I have no memory of what happened but I was told I killed my son. And you believe what your loved ones, your doctor and the police tell you, don't you? 
My name is Emma Cartwright. Three years ago I was Susan Webster, and I murdered my twelve-week-old son Dylan. I was sent to Oakdale Psychiatric Institute for my crime, and four weeks ago I was released early on parole with a new identity, address and a chance to rebuild my tattered life. This morning, I received an envelope addressed to Susan Webster. Inside it was a photograph of a toddler called Dylan. 
Now I am questioning everything I believe because if I have no memory of the event, how can I truly believe he's dead? If there was the smallest chance your son was alive, what would you do to get him back?

I seem to have been stuck in a bit of a rut when it comes to mystery/thriller novels recently. Everything I read just seems to be average and I'm waiting for something to blow me away. I was so hoping this would be the one to do that, especially as the synopsis was so intriguing, but sadly not. This was another decent, average mystery/thriller novel. It wasn't bad but it wasn't amazing, it didn't blow me away as I had hoped.

It started off well, I was completely sucked in from the first few pages and just had to know what was happening. However, as the book went on I started to lose interest. I'm not sure if this is because I was didn't have much time to read so ended up having to read this over the course of a month, which could easily make me lost interest. I think it could be a combination of that and the book itself, I did find it a bit slower towards the middle.

A stand-out difference with this book, for me, was the main character. More often than not in these kinds of books, the main character is not a likeable character at all, that's what I've come to expect when I pick up a book like this. That wasn't the case with this book though, I actually found myself liking our main character Susan/Emma. While she isn't a typically likeable character, considering she was convicted for killing her child, and I got the impression the author was trying to make her an untrustworthy, suspicious character, I was rooting for her through everything.

I really didn't like the flashback chapters. Although I can completely see why they were there and the purpose of them, I just didn't like them. I found them a distraction from the main story and it would often result in me putting the book down because I didn't care about what was happening then. Maybe if they had been incorporated differently I would have liked them more.

The main reason this book was just average for me and not anything special was because it was quite predictable at times. There were a lot of little twists and reveals that I could definitely see coming and wasn't shocked or surprised in any way by them. For a lot of the book I found that I was sure I could see something coming and was hoping to be proven wrong, but it didn't happen. There were some things that I didn't see coming at all, but even then I wasn't so much shocked as confused.

While a lot of aspects of this book were predictable, the ending definitely wasn't. I did not predict the main reveal at all. I obviously don't want to say too much because of spoilers but I seem to always work out what happened or who done it, not this time. However, again it didn't shock me. When everything was revealed there was no gasp of surprise, I had more of a 'yeah, that makes sense' reaction.

I also had some issues with the epilogue. I obviously can't go into details but there were some things that I don't think were dealt with very well. I understand why the author did what she did with the epilogue, but considering how certain things were done I think it would have been better not to have included it.

Overall, this was a decent book. It didn't blow me away and I'm finding now that it is a bit forgettable. I only finished it a few days ago and was struggling to remember details of the book as I was writing this review. The premise of the book was great and it initially really drew me in so I do think this author has potential. I definitely wouldn't rule out reading more from her.

Mini Review | Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding

Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding
Series: Bridget Jones #1
Published On: June 1, 1998
Published By: Picador
Genre: Chick Lit
Pages: 288
Format: eBook
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

Bridget Jones' Diary is the devastatingly self-aware, laugh-out-loud daily chronicle of Bridget's permanent, doomed quest for self-improvement — a year in which she resolves to: reduce the circumference of each thigh by 1.5 inches, visit the gym three times a week not just to buy a sandwich, form a functional relationship with a responsible adult, and learn to program the VCR.

Quick, fun read.
This is no literary masterpiece but it was fast-paced, funny and just generally fun to read. I read the majority of this book on a train journey and had to try very hard to stop myself laughing out loud in front of a very full train of complete strangers, it was a struggle.

I wasn't sure of the way it was written.
As the title suggest, this book is written in diary format. I usually really love that but I had some difficulties with it in this book. It was written very informally, as if it was actually a diary. I understand that its meant to add to the story and make it seem as though you are actually reading Bridget's diary but I found it very difficult to read. I particularly disliked the fact the way that words were missed out of sentences. For example, "Cannot face thought of going to work" is one sentence in the book. I really struggled to read a whole book written like that.

Major issues with weight discussions.
Bridget's weight is a large focus of much of this book and it is often discussed that she believes herself to be very fat and very much needing to loose weight. We then learn of her current weight...9 stone. In what universe is 9 stone "fat"? That is my current weight and I would definitely not consider myself to be overweight at all, so that aspect of the book actually made me quite angry. I'm sure that won't be at all helpful in promoting positive body image.

I prefer the movie.
I had seen the movie multiple times before reading the book, but I don't think that affected my enjoyment of the book at all. However, I think this is one of the few cases in which I prefer the movie. There is much less emphasised placed on weight in the movie so, as that is the one thing I had a major issue with in the book, that is a big influencer in my preference for the movie.

Overall, this was a very quick read and I did enjoy it for the most part. I did have some issues with it, which definitely affected my rating, but if you can overlook those aspects then it is an enjoyable read. I may try to read further books in the series at some point but there's a good chance I'll just stick to the movies from now on.

Mini Review | Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
Series: Me Before You #1
Published On: January 5, 2012
Published By: Penguin
Genre: Chick Lit, Realistic Fiction
Pages: 481
Format: Audiobook
Source: Audible
Narrated By: Jo Hall, Anna Bentinck, Steve Crossley, Alex Tregear, Owen Linsday, Andrew Wincott
Rating: ★★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

Lou Clark knows lots of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in The Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick. 
What Lou doesn't know is she's about to lose her job or that knowing what's coming is what keeps her sane. 
Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he's going to put a stop to that. 
What Will doesn't know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they're going to change the other for all time.

Oh man, this book!
I really like this book and I wasn't sure I would. I was so put off by the hype that I was starting to question whether I wanted to read it or if I should just watch the movie. I'm so glad I read it as I liked it so much more than I was expecting to.

These characters stole my heart.
I really enjoyed reading about these characters and particularly enjoyed how completely different Lou and Will were. I loved Lou's quirkiness and how just plain odd she was, she was such a fun main character. I also really loved Will, how rude, blunt and sarcastic he was for much of the book.

I laughed out loud.
All everyone says about this book is how much it made them cry, so I was not expecting to be full on laughing out loud and getting strange looks from passers-by while I was listening to this in my car. It is a sad book overall but there were so many really hilarious moments.

Can I join the Clark family?
I absolutely loved Lou's family dynamic. I loved reading about her family in general but in particular I loved her relationship with her parents and her sister. I thought they added a lot to the story, especially having Treena help Lou to deal with such a difficult situation.

Some aspects made me uncomfortable.
As a healthcare professional, I did find the whole 'carer'/'patient' relationship a bit uncomfortable to read about. I know that wasn't exactly what this relationship was as Lou wasn't technically Will's nurse or official carer but as I have been trained to see that situation as wrong, it was difficult to read about at times.

This is such an important topic.
I don't want to go into specifics as I'm not entirely sure what is and isn't considered a spoiler. However, I think the main theme of this book is something that needs to be talked about more and I really appreciated the fact that this could encourage some very important conversation.

I didn't ugly cry.
Almost every review I have read for this book has mentioned something about ugly crying but it just didn't have that impact on me. I am the kind of person that cries at books, and I did get a little teary, but I just didn't get as emotional as others seemed to.

Audiobook was great.
I really loved listening to this on audiobook. I thought the narrator was great and actually sounded exactly as I would expect Lou to. I think it really added to the whole experience of reading this book.

So much criticism.
Upon finishing this book, I came across so much criticism for it. I can understand a lot of where that criticism is coming from and I really wanted to address that in my review but really I just have too much to say on the matter, so I have posted a separate discussion on my thoughts surrounding that, which you can find here.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and was glad I didn't let the hype put me off. Although it is a predominantly quite sad book, it was written in a way that allowed for a lot of very funny, light-hearted moments that I really enjoyed. There is a sequel, which many people say was a bit unnecessary, but I am interested in checking it out in the future.

Review | PS I Love You by Cecelia Ahern

PS I Love You by Cecelia Ahern
Published On: September 1, 2004
Published By: Harper Collins
Genre: Chick Lit
Pages: 470
Format: Audiobook
Source: Audible
Narrated By: Amy Creighton
Rating: ★★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

Holly couldn't live without her husband Gerry, until the day she had to. They were the kind of young couple who could finish each other's sentences. When Gerry succumbs to a terminal illness and dies, 30-year-old Holly is set adrift, unable to pick up the pieces. But with the help of a series of letters her husband left her before he died and a little nudging from an eccentric assortment of family and friends, she learns to laugh, overcome her fears, and discover a world she never knew existed.

I have mentioned quite frequently that Cecelia Ahern is probably my favourite author. She wrote my favourite book of all time and I have loved everything I have read by her. PS I Love You is her first novel and probably the most popular due to the success of the movie. I will admit I probably wouldn't have liked this book as much has it not been written by Cecelia Ahern, and it is quite likely that I added an extra star or half star just because of the author.

I wanted to adore this book as I have every other Cecelia Ahern book I have read. I was expecting to easily give it 5 stars. I did really enjoy it, but I had a few issues with it that I wasn't expecting. There is also the fact that I had seen the movie so many times before reading the book that I knew much of the story. I probably would have enjoyed the book more had I not seen the movie first.

I loved the idea of this story, in particular the letters from Gerry. I thought it was a very unique take on the death of a loved one and an interesting look at grief. The letters were a nice insight into Gerry and Holly's marriage and I enjoyed seeing their relationship and love for each other through them. Holly's dependency on the letters really showed her dependency on Gerry throughout their life together and I loved the way that was portrayed. It was a great premise and I think it was executed very well.

Another of the most important aspects of the book, and another thing I really loved, was the importance of friendship and family. I really liked the friendship between Holly, Sharon and Denise, and some of my favourite parts of the book were the times it was just the three of them together. I did have my problems with them, like I did with all of the characters, but I will get to that. I think their friendship really emphasised the importance of sticking by your friends in the worst times of their lives but also not pushing them away during the worst times in your own life. The family relationships were probably one of my favourite things about this book. I loved Holly's interactions with her siblings and the way her relationships changed with various members of her family throughout the book. I thought it was important that Holly learnt to turn to her family for support, but also to support them in whatever they were going through.

The only relationship I didn't really like in this book was that of Holly and Daniel. I really like their friendship but I was always suspicious of where the relationship was going. I loved seeing them spend time together and I thought Daniel was a great support for Holly but I really didn't want anything romantic there. In the end, I thought the way their relationship developed was interesting but I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it. To me, there was just something not right about the two of them.

The main issue I had with this book was some of the actions of the characters. For the most part, I really liked the characters. Then they would do or say something unbelievably selfish or thoughtless or just plain immature and I just go so annoyed at them. Holly, for example, spent much of the book being extremely selfish and justifying it by the fact her husband had died. While I did accept that for the most part, there were times when I just couldn't let her away with being so downright selfish and not thinking about anyone but herself. I had similar problems with almost all of the characters at some point throughout the book. What I did appreciate, however, was that most of the time the characters themselves realised the flaws in their actions and rectified the situation or apologised for it. While it frustrated me to no end that they had done the specific thing in the first place, I did like the characters more for their acknowledgement of their crappy behaviour.

Overall, I definitely enjoyed this book and as a debut novel I think was very well done. The premise is very interesting but also well-executed and definitely worth a read. Though I love Cecelia Ahern, I would say this is my least favourite of her books so far. However, as it is her first published novel I think we can let her off, she has definitely improved over time.

Review | No-One Ever Has Sex In The Suburbs by Tracy Bloom

No-One Ever Has Sex In The Suburbs by Tracy Bloom
Series: No-One Ever Has Sex On A Tuesday #2
Published On: June 23, 2015
Published By: Lawsome Books
Genre: Chick Lit
Pages: 337
Format: eBook
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★½

Amazon | Goodreads

Ben and Katy haven't had sex since Ben found out about her one-night stand with her childhood sweetheart, Matthew. 
Not only that but the arrival of a new-born baby has blown their relationship apart like a hand grenade. 
Drastic measures are required, so they swap roles hoping that everyone will be happier... Only it’s not as easy as they thought. When a desperate Ben starts secretly accepting help to solve his childcare disasters – from Matthew’s wife – it could mean the end of everything. Can their relationship survive the lies and suspicions and will they ever have sex again?

No-One Ever Has Sex In The Suburbs is the sequel to a book I really enjoyed back in 2015, No-One Ever Has Sex On A Tuesday. I thought the first book was a lot of fun so when I discovered that there was a sequel I was excited to dive back into the lives of Katy, Ben, Matthew, Alison and all of their friends. I really hate to say it but this was such a disappointment for me. I was expecting it to be just as good as the first book and it really didn't live up to that standard at all.

After reading my review of the first book, this second book just seemed to be the complete opposite from everything I love in the first book. The only thing I did like in both books was that they were both fast-paced and the humour was still there in the second book. The plot did keep moving along quickly so although I wasn't necessarily enjoying it, I wasn't getting bored as things kept happening. The plot was a bit predictable though, nothing that happened surprised me at all. As I mentioned, this book did have the same humour as the first and I found myself trying not to laugh out loud in public a few times, though not as much as I had expected.

My favourite thing about the first book was the characters and I couldn't wait to be re-introduced to them. However, having children seemed to drastically change these people as I ended up hating almost all of the characters. I just couldn't stand they way they were behaving for the majority of the book. I thought Ben, who was one of my favourite characters, was incredibly immature. Alison annoyed me more than I can even put into words, I wanted to hit her at various points, and I'm not a violent person. And then we had Katy and Matthew, who were just boring and didn't really do much or bring a lot to the book at all. I still loved Daniel though, he had me cracking up and kept me sane while the other characters made me want to tear my hair out.

It really annoyed me while reading this that all of the big problems or issues seemed so trivial. I'm getting to tired of reading about characters that could solve all of their issues by having a decent conversation with their partner, and that was a major theme of this story. I'm not sure if I just don't fully understand the position these characters are in, having not yet had a baby or had to learn how to parent my child. Maybe I'm just not the right person to be reading this. As well as easily solved problems, a lot of the problems seemed very unrealistic to me. The main focus of the story is Ben struggling with being a first time father and being pretty clueless. As far as I am aware, every first time parent has those times where they feel like they don't know what they're doing and that's a pretty common knowledge thing. However, it was as though Ben was the only parent in the world to ever feel clueless. It just seemed stupid.

My other main problems with this book was that the relationships seemed unhealthy to me. I'm no expert on relationships but I often found myself thinking 'surely this isn't healthy in a relationship' multiple times while reading this. Surely it's not normal to just not talk to your partner about problems you have or how you're feeling? That was portrayed as completely normal in this book. I also couldn't understand why Ben felt the need to prove his ability as a father to such an extent. I can appreciate that he wanted to show Katy he could do it, but surely the first person you would go to with a parenting problem would be the other parent of the child? Again, this could be just because I don't have children yet and don't fully understand. Also Alison not letting Matthew parent his own children in any way seemed very odd to me! I couldn't get past that at all.

Overall, this book was sadly just a disappointment. Like I said, I'm not sure if I just didn't fully grasp the story due to having not yet had the experience of being a first time parent. I'm possibly not the right person to be reading this book, but from my inexperienced point of view I just found it to be quite problematic. To me, this was a case of a really good book that did not need to be ruined by an unnecessary sequel. I do still enjoy Tracy Bloom's writing and her humour so I will be picking up her other books at some point.

Review | The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins

The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins
Published By: Random House
Published On: January 15, 2015
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Pages: 319
Format: Hardcover
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

Rachel takes the same commuter train every morning. Every day she rattles down the track, flashes past a stretch of cozy suburban homes, and stops at the signal that allows her to daily watch the same couple breakfasting on their deck. She’s even started to feel like she knows them. “Jess and Jason,” she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. Not unlike the life she recently lost. 
And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Unable to keep it to herself, Rachel offers what she knows to the police, and becomes inextricably entwined in what happens next, as well as in the lives of everyone involved. Has she done more harm than good?

This book was a bit of a struggle for me to begin with, it took me a bit of time to get into. I can't 100% blame that on the book itself as I was very slumpy when I first picked this up. However, it did take a bit of time to really get into the story which I found a little bit boring if I'm being honest.

Despite the slow start, as soon as it got into the action and mystery I was completely hooked. The mystery aspect was so well written that I just couldn't put it down. I was so thrilling and intense that I just had to know what was going to happen. I was definitely very impressed with the writing.

Again in reference to the writing, the plot twists were great. I can't say they were all huge surprises, I did have my suspicions as you always do, but there was definitely a lot that I didn't see coming. It was written so well that there was a lot of arousing suspicion but not too much given away. I was constantly kept on my toes and definitely on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen.

One of the greatest things about this book was the characters. Rachel was a fantastic main character. She was so unreliable, and we all love a good unreliable narrator, which really added to the mystery of the story. You never knew what to believe or what areas of her story were true, which I enjoyed. On top of this, despite her many faults, I really enjoyed Rachel's character in itself. I really didn't expect to like her but she definitely quickly grew on me and became quite a likeable character.

My biggest worry about this book was the ending. I always seem to be disappointed with the endings in this type of novel and was almost setting myself up to be disappointed. However, that was not the case and I was very satisfied by this ending. The ending was so thrilling and not at all what I expected so it definitely kept me on the edge of my seat, and I was not at all disappointed.

Overall, this was one of the better mystery/thriller novels I have read recently. It was extremely well written and very thrilling. It kept me on the edge of my seat throughout and, other than the slightly slow start, there was not a dull moment. I would highly recommend this book, and already have to various people.

Review | Confessions Of A Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

Confessions Of A Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
Series: Shopaholic #1
Published By: Black Swan
Published On: March 1, 1999
Genre: Chick Lit
Pages: 320
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★

Amazon | Goodreads

Becky Bloomwood has what most twenty-five-year-olds only dream of: a flat in London's trendiest neighborhood, a troupe of glamorous socialite friends, and a closet brimming with the season's must-haves. The only trouble is, she can't actually afford it --- not any of it. Her job writing at Successful Saving magazine not only bores her to tears, it doesn't pay much at all. Still, how can she resist that perfect pair of shoes? Or the divine silk blouse in the window of that ultra-trendy boutique? But lately Becky's been chased by dismal letters from Visa and the Endwich Bank --- letters with large red sums she can't bear to read --- and they're getting ever harder to ignore. She tries cutting back; she even tries making more money. But none of her efforts succeeds. Her only consolation is to buy herself something ... just a little something ... 
Finally, a story arises that Becky actually cares about, and her front-page article catalyzes a chain of events that will transform her life --- and the lives of those around her --- forever.

This book, and the rest of the series, are so well loved that I was absolutely sure I would love it too. Unfortunately, this was a huge disappointment for me! I really hate to say it but I absolutely hated it, which I can't understand considering the huge popularity of the series. Everyone has different opinions I guess.

The one thing I did like was Sophie Kinsella's writing style. I really enjoyed her humour especially and often throughout the book it was the one thing that made for a more bearable read. I have definitely not been put off reading her other books, just this particular series is not for me.

So why is this series not for me? I HATED the main character. I don't use the word hate lightly but I honestly couldn't stand Becky Bloomwood. I found her to be extremely materialistic, immature are just plain stupid. She made incredibly stupid decisions and spent her time lying to everyone about any little thing. Seriously, half of her problems could have been solved by her telling the truth! It irritated me no end.

My main issue with this book was that huge issues were treated as trivial. Debt is a very serious issue that affects so many people around the world, a lot of whom have had their lives ruined by their circumstances. However, it was made to seem like something that could easily be avoided if you just ignore the problem and keep making excuses to the bank, while continuing to make excessive and unnecessary purchases. There are people who are in debt simply by trying to keep their family fed and a roof over their head and the way this issue was treated like some kind of joke made me quite angry. I think it was meant to be light-hearted and a joke but I, for one, definitely did not find it funny.

To end my review on a positive note, some of the side characters were good. There were those few side characters who spoke a lot of sense and had some funny moments which kept me going a bit while I tried to get through it.

Overall, this series just definitely is not for me. I will try some of Sophie Kinsella's other work as I enjoyed her writing, but Becky Bloomwood is not someone whose story I wish to read more of.