Laura, a middle aged, overweight, academic, comes into an unexpected inheritance. As she is enthralled with the legends of Merlin and believes there is a chance he spent time in Scotland around the Loch Ness area, she decides to use the money to fund further research by leaving her job and moving to Loch Ness. Her daughter who is at university backs her project so off she sets.
On arrival at the wee cottage she has rented, she discovers there are a couple of groups of university people doing different studies in the area. In one group is an old friend, John, with whom she soon ends up in cahoots as strange things and strange people are spotted.
Being an outsider in the village, she soon comes to the attention of the local Laird, Henry, who lives in the Big House and has an extensive library which he makes available to her. And then more strange and disturbing events occur and you are drawn into the murder, mystery, myth, or is it magic???
I loved the book and could not put it down. I enjoyed having a main character who is nearer my own age, I enjoyed the story being set in Scotland (obviously) and I just found it to be so easy to read, from paragraph 1 of chapter 2, I was in that village with them and living the story. (chapter 1 was setting the scene from the past!!) It was one of those books you can’t stop reading, but don’t want it to end…….. Now Tabitca, please hurry up with book 2!!!!!
Wednesday 29 June 2011
Monday 27 June 2011
Divergent by Veronica Roth
After reading the blog by Pixie @The Bookaholic on her favourite books of 2011 so far, I found several of them to be exciting sounding, and right up my street. I got three of them on Kindle and 1 not on kindle is winging its way to me.
I started on this book yesterday, feeling quite excited, however when I started reading I felt a bit disappointed and was tempted to put it aside. Firstly because it felt a bit too much science fantasy and the main characters too young. However, feeling confident in Pixie’s recommendation I persevered.
It is set in a future Chicago where society is divided into 5 factions. Our heroine belongs to the faction, Abnegation, and has reached her 16th. At this stage the young adults, all on the same day, have to undergo some testing to see which faction they have the strongest tendencies for, and based on that knowledge and their own thoughts, they decide where they will go to spend the rest of their lives.
Our heroine, Beatrice, makes her choice, which entails leaving her peaceful faction for a much livelier one know for its bravery. She has to leave her family behind and set out on the road to a new life, knowing she may never see them again. Her new life is as different to her previous one as could be imagined, and she has a lot of adjustments to make, initiations to get through, new skills to learn, and new people to meet. She meets great new friends, nasty enemies, and even a touch of romance.
The book is fast and exciting and kept me guessing at every stage as I tried to work out what was happening and why, who was genuine and who was not, and most of all where it was all headed. I was sucked right in and found myself picking up my Kindle at every opportunity to just read a bit more………..
I really enjoyed this book, it was one of those books that made you think before you realised you were, it could be accepted as simply a great story or a bit deeper. I loved it, and I will be in the queue for the next book in the series which is out next year.
Thanks Pixie, if I hadn’t read your review I might never have read this book!
Divergent by Veronica Roth
After reading the blog by Pixie @The Bookaholic on her favourite books of 2011 so far, I found several of them to be exciting sounding, and right up my street. I got three of them on Kindle and 1 not on kindle is winging its way to me.
I started on this book yesterday, feeling quite excited, however when I started reading I felt a bit disappointed and was tempted to put it aside. Firstly because it felt a bit too much science fantasy and the main characters too young. However, feeling confident in Pixie’s recommendation I persevered.
It is set in a future Chicago where society is divided into 5 factions. Our heroine belongs to the faction, Abnegation, and has reached her 16th, at which stage all young adults have to choose the faction they wish to belong to.
Our heroine, Beatrice, makes her choice, which means her leaving the peaceful and selfless Abnegation, for Dauntless which is all about bravery. She has to leave her family behind and set out the road to a new life, knowing she may never see them again. Her new life is as different to her previous one as could be imagined, and she has a lot of adjustments to make, initiations to get through, new skills to learn, and new people to meet. She makes new friends and enemies (sometimes not sure which is which), and even a littel romance!
The book is fast and exciting and kept me guessing at every stage as I tried to work out what was happening and why, who was genuine and who was not, and most of all where it was all headed. I was sucked right in and found myself picking up my Kindle at every opportunity to just read a bit more………..
I really enjoyed this book, it was one of those books that made you think before you realised you were, it could be accepted as simply a great story or a bit deeper. I loved it, and I will be in the queue for the next book in the series which is out next year.
Thanks Pixie, if I hadn’t read your review I might never have read this book!
Sunday 26 June 2011
Bloodshot by Cherie Priest
I had picked this book up a couple of times to read it, but each time decided I wasn't in a vampire mood. However, the other day I decided it has been lying around long enough, I had bought it as I read a review of it and it appealed, so time to dive in.
So glad I did, I really enjoyed the book, I liked the character of Raylene, vampire and thief, as well as the various characters she met along the way on the case. The case being a fellow vampire who had been the subject of various experiments leaving him blind, he asked her to investigate the government department responsible for the experiments and find documentation detailing what exactly had been done to him so he could potentially be treated to regain his eyesight.The charming Ian, persuaded her to take on this very dangerous case, partly because of his charm, and partly because he knew she would be horrified to hear about the abduction of vampires so they could be experimented on.
Although she is a vampire, there is not a lot of "vampire" activity really, it became more of a conspiracy thriller, of which vampires play a part. It was fast and exciting and the ending leaves it open for more books about Raylene. I hope this is the case are there were several loose ends left in the book on both professional and personal levels.
If there is a follow up book, I will certainly read it.
So glad I did, I really enjoyed the book, I liked the character of Raylene, vampire and thief, as well as the various characters she met along the way on the case. The case being a fellow vampire who had been the subject of various experiments leaving him blind, he asked her to investigate the government department responsible for the experiments and find documentation detailing what exactly had been done to him so he could potentially be treated to regain his eyesight.The charming Ian, persuaded her to take on this very dangerous case, partly because of his charm, and partly because he knew she would be horrified to hear about the abduction of vampires so they could be experimented on.
Although she is a vampire, there is not a lot of "vampire" activity really, it became more of a conspiracy thriller, of which vampires play a part. It was fast and exciting and the ending leaves it open for more books about Raylene. I hope this is the case are there were several loose ends left in the book on both professional and personal levels.
If there is a follow up book, I will certainly read it.
Sunday 12 June 2011
The Sex Club by L J Sellers
I have just finished this book, the first in the Detective Jackson series, and started on book 2 "Secrets to Die for" - which tells its own story?
The books appealed to me as after I had chatted to the author on Twitter, I went off to read about her books. On reading the reviews of them, I was fairly certain I would enjoy them so I immediately went to Amazon and downloaded the whole series to my Kindle. I managed to read the 1st book in a very short time as I found myself picking it up at every opportunity, even when I woke up during the night I reached out for it.... It was easy to read and to follow the story. I like it when there are not too many characters so you don't have to keep trying to remember who they all are!
To be honest if I hadn't read the review I wouldn't have gone for this book because of the title, I found it a bit off putting. Having read the book, it makes sense, but I didn't care for it and I am just glad I had been directed to these books as I might not have found them on my own.
Detective Jackson, I liked. He was a normal guy with problems, both in the job and at home, and I found him to be very believable, and I cared about him pretty quickly. It was a delicate subject, yet it was handled well, I wont say any more as I don't want to give the plot away, but I shared the horror with Jackson as he began to realise what was going on and how close to home it might have been.
It was a roller coaster ride, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, I am now off for a fresh cup of coffee and continue with book 2, with that lovely feeling of having more waiting to be read!
The books appealed to me as after I had chatted to the author on Twitter, I went off to read about her books. On reading the reviews of them, I was fairly certain I would enjoy them so I immediately went to Amazon and downloaded the whole series to my Kindle. I managed to read the 1st book in a very short time as I found myself picking it up at every opportunity, even when I woke up during the night I reached out for it.... It was easy to read and to follow the story. I like it when there are not too many characters so you don't have to keep trying to remember who they all are!
To be honest if I hadn't read the review I wouldn't have gone for this book because of the title, I found it a bit off putting. Having read the book, it makes sense, but I didn't care for it and I am just glad I had been directed to these books as I might not have found them on my own.
Detective Jackson, I liked. He was a normal guy with problems, both in the job and at home, and I found him to be very believable, and I cared about him pretty quickly. It was a delicate subject, yet it was handled well, I wont say any more as I don't want to give the plot away, but I shared the horror with Jackson as he began to realise what was going on and how close to home it might have been.
It was a roller coaster ride, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, I am now off for a fresh cup of coffee and continue with book 2, with that lovely feeling of having more waiting to be read!
Tuesday 7 June 2011
Dorothy Koomson books
I was going to do a review of the books by Dorothy Koomson, and I had a quick look at them all to remind myself of the stories, and you know I have changed my mind.
I can say so little about the stories, as I see no point in simply telling you what you will later read, and I don't want to spoil anything for you. What I will say, is that I bought the 1st book The Cupid Effect in paperback thinking it would be a light frivolous read.I loved it, and it wasn't the simple frivolous read I thought it was going to be. From then on I bought each book in hardback as I couldn't wait for it to be published in a cheaper form. Each book is different, and I could see in each book the way the author was growing and maturing and the plots stayed fresh and complex and always a surprise.
I loved them, each and every one of them, I cannot recommend them highly enough. Having looked them over I find myself almost ready to read the 1st few again, as it has been some time since I read them originally.
Go on treat yourself to a great read, pick one, any one, and settle down for a quite a wee while as you wont be able to put it down, had a quick look and all on Kindle too.
I can say so little about the stories, as I see no point in simply telling you what you will later read, and I don't want to spoil anything for you. What I will say, is that I bought the 1st book The Cupid Effect in paperback thinking it would be a light frivolous read.I loved it, and it wasn't the simple frivolous read I thought it was going to be. From then on I bought each book in hardback as I couldn't wait for it to be published in a cheaper form. Each book is different, and I could see in each book the way the author was growing and maturing and the plots stayed fresh and complex and always a surprise.
I loved them, each and every one of them, I cannot recommend them highly enough. Having looked them over I find myself almost ready to read the 1st few again, as it has been some time since I read them originally.
Go on treat yourself to a great read, pick one, any one, and settle down for a quite a wee while as you wont be able to put it down, had a quick look and all on Kindle too.
Sunday 5 June 2011
Blood Faerie by India Drummond
When I saw this book was about the supernatural - faeries - and set in Scotland, it was a must for me! As I started to read the book I did not feel an immediate connection and I was a little concerned that it was going to be a disappointment, but no - by the second chapter I had bonded with the 2 main characters.
I enjoyed the mix of murder mystery with the supernatural and I can see the possibilities for future books in the series. The partnership of exiled faerie with the policeman just discovering his own powers as a Druid, provided an intriguing relationship with plenty of scope to come as his powers are fully discovered and their relationship grows. Will she be accepted back into the fold, will she want to be accepted? How their special bonding develop? Will they become a pairing who will continue to investigate rogues as they can move and live among humans, I cant wait to find out.
I see that India has written other novels, and I will be having a wee peak at them too, after enjoying this book so much. For anyone who enjoys this kind of subject matter I would recommend giving it a go.
I enjoyed the mix of murder mystery with the supernatural and I can see the possibilities for future books in the series. The partnership of exiled faerie with the policeman just discovering his own powers as a Druid, provided an intriguing relationship with plenty of scope to come as his powers are fully discovered and their relationship grows. Will she be accepted back into the fold, will she want to be accepted? How their special bonding develop? Will they become a pairing who will continue to investigate rogues as they can move and live among humans, I cant wait to find out.
I see that India has written other novels, and I will be having a wee peak at them too, after enjoying this book so much. For anyone who enjoys this kind of subject matter I would recommend giving it a go.
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