I wasn’t really vibing with this one, I didn’t really get into the writing style or the characters & found Freckles to be peculiar & frustrating. I honestly never really took a shine to her. I feel bad admitting that I really, really didn’t like this book, possibly my least liked book of the year! I loved Ps. I Love You!, so I feel that this just wasn’t a match for me.

This book covers a whole new story about the aftermath of the fall of Troy. The women are captives, the men killed, the city in ruins, Achilles dead & his 16 year old son Pyruss, leader of the Greek camp.
It’s mostly told from the perspective of Briseis, & this is not the Hollywood version! It was so interesting to read this after all the other “versions” I’ve read, it was such a different story.
I’ve found Barker’s writing to be brutally descriptive at times, but she does write a good story!

This was a short, enjoyable read. I’ve been so busy & not able to read as much as usual lately, so this was perfect.
There was some dark moments in this one, the dismissal of women over time is depressing. It was an interesting look into the past & what was historically the story for too many women. In saying that it was well written & I enjoyed the way the story played out.
I also discovered that this is a French translation that is being made for the screen & I look forward to checking that out too.

I was immediately captivated by this title, the idea of real love stories being told & memories relived was such a draw card for me. I LOVE love!
A big chunk of love got destroyed in me this year. It broke me. My heart hurt, I thought I’d never feel okay again. But this book reached into the darkest depths of my sad little heart & I felt warmth begin to bloom. I started to feel like I would actually one day not feel sad anymore. Hope became possible. And I was reminded of all the love that fills my life, has filled my life for my whole life. I have been so, so loved, & I have loved hard in return. And it is the most beautiful gift.
It was the perfect note to end this year on.

It’s always so interesting to read a book based in a town you’re actually familiar with, & Kiama is familiar territory to me. It’s especially odd when the book is mysterious like this one, like where the heck did this story come from? What inspired this? You can bet your book stack I was on the Google Earth app, searching for landmarks.
The story itself takes a bit to get the adrenaline rushing, but once it does it sends you pummeling down the twistiest roller coaster of “whodunnits” I think I’ve ever experienced. I was second guessing myself until the very end.
The main character Lo was an interesting personality from the get-go. Not exactly likable to be honest, I just couldn’t connect with her, but then thrillers would probably makes less sense if people were more… normal.
A cracking start to the year. Now I need to calm myself down if I hope to actually sleep tonight!!

I did not enjoy this book. I really did not enjoy this book. I kept persevering to reach the parts that “brim” with “humour, warmth & character”, but I did not find them. It just made me feel angry, sad, frustrated &….bored. I hate not liking a book enough to say something positive about it, but this was not the book for me.

I am an absolute nerd for this kind of stuff. Organization is my jam! So, not gonna lie, having lots of these boxes ticked did give me a smug ego boost, but it was also a good reminder of what I needed to go back & refocus on. Life has been ridiculously busy these past few months so this gave me the little burst of energy I needed to tackle things more efficiently & look at the things I needed to take care of in 2022.

Being a big reader myself, I want to encourage my kids to get into reading however I can. Two of my kids have gravitated to graphic novels, & I do a silent happy dance just to feel the satisfaction of seeing their noses buried in a book.
Heartstopper is my eldest’s favourite. I’ve seen it’s popularity on Instagram over the past few years also & being in a bit of a reading rut I decided to give it a go myself.
This kind of story didn’t exist when I was growing up! I never had access to this kind of romance, and it is beautifully done. So stupidly cute that you can immediately tell why this is such a popular series. As a teen, I would have loved this too.
Light, cute & a sweet take on young love.