A Quick Bookish Survey.

I saw this survey over on The Broke and The Bookish and thought it looked like fun.
So here it goes :)

1. The book I am currently reading: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. This has been on my TBR list for months and months, and I am finally getting around to reading it. It is rather enjoyable so far although I find the character of Elizabeth extremely annoying and hypocritical.

2. The last book I finished: Beautiful Days by Anna Godbersen. This is the second book in the Bright Young Things Saga and I loved it. The whole 1920's world is so interesting to read about and the characters are really likeable.

3. The next book I want to read: Oh that is a tough one, but it would probably have to be The Help by Kathryn Stockett. 

4. The last book I bought: Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. I was recommended this book as my cousin, as she knew that I loved dystopian literature. I am really looking forward to reading it.

5. The last book I was given: Gosh, I haven't been given a book in a while. I think it was so far back as Christmas. It was A Tiny Bit Marvellous by Dawn French. Yet to have read it.

That was fun.
If you do the quiz please comment and post your links. Would love to read your responses.

Happy Reading!

Emma

TBR Tuesday #1

I've seen many a TBR been done on different blogs and YouTube channels and thought I would get in on the act.

Even if it is just for me to keep track on what I have and haven't read. As well as the growing list of books that I accumulate into my pile of books that I want to read.

So here is my TBR pile as of Tuesday 21st August 2012.

Bearing in mind that this not all the books I have in my possession, but books that I intend on reading in the near future.

1. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

2. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov

3. The Help - Kathryn Stockett

4. A Game of Thrones - George R.R. Martin

5. The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkein

1. I have been meaning to read this book for years, literally. It's been in my sight for so long I am not sure why I haven't just picked it up and read. This will be rectified soon!!

2. Lolita is a controversial choice. Due to it's sordid subject a lot of people cast it aside as being far too disturbing, but that's what books are for. They are meant to challenge and make people feel emotions that they would not normally feel. It's supposed to be a rather good read, and I am excited to explore it.

4. Having watched a couple of episodes of the tv show I know what I am getting into with regards to AGOT. Excellent characters and back stories with a mystical and enchanting setting. I've heard great things about it, but realise that it will not be an easy and quick read.

5. Such a classic. A book, or should I say books?, that every has to read apparently. I have seen and enjoyed the movies so after seeing this on sale at my local library for 25p!!!!!! I just could not refuse such a bargain. Wish me luck as this book is MAMMOTH.

What books are in your TBR pile? 

Have you read any of the books I have mentioned?

Did you enjoy them/love them/hate them/not finish them??

I would love to know your thoughts.

Happy Reading.

Emma :)

Book Review: Cinder - Marissa Meyer

Cinder is the first book in The Lunar Chronicles and my goodness it is a thrilling read.

Loosely based on the classic Cinderella story, it follows the life of Cinder, a cyborg mechanic trying to make a better life for herself. Then the handsome Prince Kai comes along, and her life changes in a way that she could never imagine. 

The book has so many twists and turns you won't ever want to put it down.

It's every bit of a pantomime, with evil step-mothers and the wicked Queen Levena who threatens the peace between the Earth and Levena's home planet. The moon.

It's modern, innovative and exciting. The Cinderella story has been done and re-done, but Meyer has given it a new lease of life and brought the classic fairy tale into the 21st century and beyond.

I have noticed in a lot of book series that stories are often spread thinly just to make it stretch to more than one book, but the story in Cinder is so perfectly managed that it ends on such a cliffhanger. The characters are exciting, enigmatic and likeable. It's sad, heart-warming and above all unputdownable. 

I for one am certainly looking forward to reading the next one, Scarlet, which is set to release early next year. 

Star Rating: *****

Happy Reading

Emma 

Book Review - Bright Young Things - Anna Godbersen

This book has come up on so many reviews, hauls and TBR piles that I was overjoyed to find it in my local library.
I have recently become a member, so I am super excited to get to grips with all the new books I will be able to read. They also don't tell you that libraries often have cheap books for sale, and I mean really cheap. I bought the complete Lord of The Rings bind up for 25p!!!! What a bargain. Ok, so it may be rather tattered and torn, but that shows that it was loved by its previous owner. That can only be a good thing.
Anyway, back to the review.

The main thing that caught my eye with this book was it's cover.

The interesting font, to the beautiful girl in 1920's garb, this book oozes elegance and intrigue. It sets the scene to the story and engages the reader to read the blurb.

Now, I am all for nostalgia and the "good ol' days". So the dates in which the story is set grabbed my attention immediately. The fact that it's set in New York City makes it a whole lot better.

You are emerged into a different world during the prohibition, where alchohol was banned and the rich and the privileged were forced underground to explore their darkest desires. Young girls craved fame and fortune on the stage, whilst the men aimed to lure and exploit the girls to meet their needs. 

In the first book in the series we are introduced to three girls, with three different aims in life.

Cordelia - an orphan looking for more and most of all her long lost father.

Letty - her best friend, who dreams of being a star of the stage, but unable to fulfil her dreams due to her strict father.

Astrid - an up and coming "it girl" who desperately seeks the attention of her sometimes un-interested boyfriend Charlie.

The story takes us from a sleepy and backwards town in Ohio, to the bustling and exciting Big Apple. Each girl's story is intertwined in a way that is not confusing, and the author successfully changes the narrative between our three protagonists with such ease and grace.

It is so easy to get swept up in the glamour of it all, which makes the read an easy and exciting one.

Definitely a must read for those who loved to get transported to another world in a book, and those who love the 1920's. 

I haven't read the Luxe series written by Anna Godbersen, but might have to after reading Bright Young Things. Really looking forward to seeing how the characters progress and what happens to the likeable and relatable girls in NYC which continues in the second book Beautiful Days

Star Rating: ****

Happy Reading.

Emma

Emma Reads Potter.

Hello Readers,

The next sentence you read may come as a shock to you. You have been warned in advance.

I have not read the Harry Potter series.

-cue fainting, gasping and splutters.-

I guess it all boils down to this. When J.K. Rowling first came out with the series I would have been 10, perhaps 11, years old. Back then I was not into books, reading or literature so I guess I just never got sucked into it. As the years went on, and the other books were released, the phenomenon never grabbed me in a way in which it encouraged me to start reading the books. Perhaps I was just stubborn, and didn't want to be part of the growing fandom. Or maybe the story did not interest me.

Every time I mention the fact that I am not indeed a fan of the series, nor have I read the books, it always comes with the same reply. "what?...are you mad?" Especially in the USA. You guys are crazy for the HP over there, and think that every one and their mother has read the books. Which may be true, as the percentage of people who have not read the series to that of those who have is ever shrinking.

I have decided to change this though.
I am going to read the series and review each book individually. I have seen all the movies, so I will try and look at the literature rather than the movie story. I want to provide a "non-fan" perspective of the books, and review them as impartially as possible. It is easy for fans to be all obsessive and protective over their story, so hopefully I can share my views in a way that is both interesting and thought provoking.

I'm nearly finished Harry Potter and The Philosopher's (known as the Sorcerer's in the USA I am told) Stone, so expect a full review in the next coming days.

Happy Reading!

Emma