This one was a bit of 👎🏻 for me. My main gripe was the way the author constructs their sentences, I found the tone was hard for me to enjoy.

The story itself was odd to read, I felt like an intruder into someone’s very secret thoughts. The intensity of the love the mother feels towards her child is uncomfortable, it was obsessive. 

The ending felt unfinished & while I wasn’t enjoying reading this, I did want to see if there was more to the story… something significant, answers, but I closed the book with very unresolved feelings. 

This book was on my #TBR for a while. I wasn’t sure how I would go, I tend to get a bit nervous about plot lines revolving around kids, but this one just had such an interesting concept. The Chain is a kidnapping ring that goes way back. The idea, you get “chosen” to pay a ransom & kidnap a kid, if successful *your* kidnapped child gets returned alive. 🙍🏻‍♀️ It went against every moral fiber of my being as a person & as a parent… it was one of those books that kept me on an anxious precipice, but I was unable to step away from the edge. 

I didn’t dislike the second part the way some seemed to. It was predictable, but it didn’t take away from the book for me. 

I decided to try another Bridgerton novel, but somehow ended up choosing the 4th in the series… which I then decided to just roll with. I actually enjoyed this one much more than the 1st, but I always kind of liked Penelope’s character anyway. Loved that the wallflower got her man! Looking forward to watching the screen adaptation of this one. 

I got really invested in the two stories & timelines within this book. Both characters were deeply interesting & I enjoyed the way they intersected. This wasn’t a heavy book, there wasn’t graphic violence or intense scenes that made it hard to read, they were touched on without receiving the full impact, which made this a very easy book to read. 

This is a story about rebuilding, healing, fighting for yourself & others. It’s about friendship, growth and magic. 

Not really sure what led me to pick this one up, but it somehow came home from the Library with me. I found it ticked boxes that felt like they’d make it a great read. The pace made it a struggle to really get invested in the story, but I persevered because I desperately wanted & expected to get something out of it. I love a reflective story & I expected this would be a good one…. and it was. It ended up being such a gorgeous reminder of the deliciousness in the slowing down, the savoring of the observing & the beauty in allowing new people to impact your world. This book was such a pleasant, heart-warming little surprise. 

Favourite quote: “But what does that mean?” asked Eve. “Does being grown up mean we are all doomed to be ordinary?”

“No,” said Anastasia. “It means accepting we are all extraordinary in ordinary ways.”

This book wasn’t even really on my #tbr I’d seen it floating about #bookstagram & then found it at my local op-shop & decided, on a whim, to give it a go.
I spent half my childhood in this area, during this exact time, & was so oblivious to any of this. It’s a life I cannot wholly relate to, so the storyline of the murder & figuring it all out become almost secondary to that side of the book for me. I really enjoyed the different perspectives & people that brought the story together & the topics that were covered, things I grew up so ignorant to. I feel like I actually learnt something more about Asian Australians, the history of that time, the expectations that these kids were raised with, the way they would have felt about Australian “white” kids in comparison & the vast differences in the way we were raised. The clash of cultures was just so eye-opening. I’m glad I decided to give this one a go.

This was such an interesting concept for a story. I really enjoyed the heart involved in what Clover did for a living. This book made me smile, it made me cry… it made me reflect on those I’ve had to say goodbye to. It was just a lovely story that I enjoyed reading. 

I mostly enjoyed this coming-of-age story of two Pakistani girl’s from Karachi, experiencing the changes in the political climate during the 80’s & on into their adult years. 
The second half of the story, or the adulthood of the two characters just didn’t really captivate me, unfortunately. While I enjoyed the characters as children & could appreciate the strength of them as women…. it plot got kind of boring.