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wordsofclover
This gave me all the squees and reminded me of being 15 and having a school crush, and how all those little moments are actually big moments and so terrifying, and lovely at the same time - and this was just so stinking cute. I totally get the hype about this now - it's well deserved.
I received a copy of this book via the author/publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This was a really expansive in-depth look at the rise and fall of both Kind Edward IV and his brother King Richard III, as well as some commentary around the history revolving the 'Princes in the Tower' and what could have happened to them. This book is about 70-80% King Edward IV, and the last 15% is King Richard III and the last 5% if even, looks at King Henry VII and Elizabeth of York with a brief paragraph on King Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I.
As someone already very interested in this time period and the York rulers, and I have read historical fiction in the time period before (mainly Philippa Gregory's The White Queen series) and so was aware of some major events and players and this certainly helped. I think this is a very dense, richly packed book and you would need to have a general interest in the subject and the families to get a good enjoyment out of it.
I'm a fast reader but this book slowed my reading down considerably but it wasn't one I wanted to rush. I wanted to take in the history and understand the events and the causes and repercussions of them.
I really enjoyed this and it's very obvious that a lot of time and effort went into this book. It's not written in a way that's inaccessible to those who may not be history buffs but is also quite conversation and pleasant to read as well without losing the poignancy of the historical twists and turns.
This was a really expansive in-depth look at the rise and fall of both Kind Edward IV and his brother King Richard III, as well as some commentary around the history revolving the 'Princes in the Tower' and what could have happened to them. This book is about 70-80% King Edward IV, and the last 15% is King Richard III and the last 5% if even, looks at King Henry VII and Elizabeth of York with a brief paragraph on King Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I.
As someone already very interested in this time period and the York rulers, and I have read historical fiction in the time period before (mainly Philippa Gregory's The White Queen series) and so was aware of some major events and players and this certainly helped. I think this is a very dense, richly packed book and you would need to have a general interest in the subject and the families to get a good enjoyment out of it.
I'm a fast reader but this book slowed my reading down considerably but it wasn't one I wanted to rush. I wanted to take in the history and understand the events and the causes and repercussions of them.
I really enjoyed this and it's very obvious that a lot of time and effort went into this book. It's not written in a way that's inaccessible to those who may not be history buffs but is also quite conversation and pleasant to read as well without losing the poignancy of the historical twists and turns.
3.5 stars
I received a free digital copy of this book from the publishers/author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Beth, Ruby and Lauren are all women who from the outside could possibly have it all. Good jobs, comfortable lives and in Lauren's case, a very successful social media career. However, each women is suffering; Ruby from a condition causing excess body hair that she's allowed to rule her life, Beth's husband doesn't appear to fancy her anymore and Lauren is struggling with anxiety yet is being told to hide it.
This book is comedic in nature, with some real laugh-out-loud moments but also covers some important topics such as PCOS, female sexuality and sensuality as well as hiding real females and struggles behind the perfect Instagram grid. I did like each woman (though this book mostly follows Beth and Ruby - we didn't get a true look at Lauren until the end), and though Ruby is a slightly unlikeable person because of her fears and struggles with her body hair, I also admired her attitude sometimes to say exactly what she was thinking, and not put up with anyone's bullsh*t.
There were some parts of the book that appeared a bit over the top but I also think this is partly Dawn O'Porter's style. She likes to go there and isn't afraid to put her characters in crazy situations. I did think some of Ruby's descriptions about her hair were very extreme and I wonder how that could effect someone else suffering from excess hair due to PCOS and if it could help or trigger them.
I did enjoy the book and I liked the occasional laughs it gave me. I will continue to read Dawn O'Porter's books as I love just seeing where she'll dare to go with her characters, and her books are always entertaining.
I received a free digital copy of this book from the publishers/author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Beth, Ruby and Lauren are all women who from the outside could possibly have it all. Good jobs, comfortable lives and in Lauren's case, a very successful social media career. However, each women is suffering; Ruby from a condition causing excess body hair that she's allowed to rule her life, Beth's husband doesn't appear to fancy her anymore and Lauren is struggling with anxiety yet is being told to hide it.
This book is comedic in nature, with some real laugh-out-loud moments but also covers some important topics such as PCOS, female sexuality and sensuality as well as hiding real females and struggles behind the perfect Instagram grid. I did like each woman (though this book mostly follows Beth and Ruby - we didn't get a true look at Lauren until the end), and though Ruby is a slightly unlikeable person because of her fears and struggles with her body hair, I also admired her attitude sometimes to say exactly what she was thinking, and not put up with anyone's bullsh*t.
There were some parts of the book that appeared a bit over the top but I also think this is partly Dawn O'Porter's style. She likes to go there and isn't afraid to put her characters in crazy situations. I did think some of Ruby's descriptions about her hair were very extreme and I wonder how that could effect someone else suffering from excess hair due to PCOS and if it could help or trigger them.
I did enjoy the book and I liked the occasional laughs it gave me. I will continue to read Dawn O'Porter's books as I love just seeing where she'll dare to go with her characters, and her books are always entertaining.
I received a free digital copy of this book from the publishers/author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Noah is 79 years old and trying to figure out what to do with his retirement now his wife, and his sister have both passed away when, unexpectedly, he receives a call to look after his great-nephew who has ended up in the care of a social worker. Noah takes on Michael for a week which means he needs to take the young boy to France with him, as Noah travels to his birthplace to find out more about his mother.
This was a really lovely book with a lovely friendship that blossoms between Noah and Michael, as well as some looks into the past and the history of Noah's family during WW2. This isn't a book full of rainbows and flowers as Michael, while loved, hasn't had things easy either and he has lots of opinions to share with Noah - normally full of cuss words. This book reminded me of an adult version of Up, but it was just as heartwarming.
I found myself rooting for the pair and I really wanted them to find happiness together while also a bit afraid because is, to be frank, fairly old. I enjoyed the bits of history in this book, and Emma Donoghue definitely had to put a lot of work and research into this story and you can really tell, and I appreciated it.
Emma Donghue always writes such interesting, different, books and as a reader, she keeps me on my toes and I don't know what to expect from her which I love.
Noah is 79 years old and trying to figure out what to do with his retirement now his wife, and his sister have both passed away when, unexpectedly, he receives a call to look after his great-nephew who has ended up in the care of a social worker. Noah takes on Michael for a week which means he needs to take the young boy to France with him, as Noah travels to his birthplace to find out more about his mother.
This was a really lovely book with a lovely friendship that blossoms between Noah and Michael, as well as some looks into the past and the history of Noah's family during WW2. This isn't a book full of rainbows and flowers as Michael, while loved, hasn't had things easy either and he has lots of opinions to share with Noah - normally full of cuss words. This book reminded me of an adult version of Up, but it was just as heartwarming.
I found myself rooting for the pair and I really wanted them to find happiness together while also a bit afraid because is, to be frank, fairly old. I enjoyed the bits of history in this book, and Emma Donoghue definitely had to put a lot of work and research into this story and you can really tell, and I appreciated it.
Emma Donghue always writes such interesting, different, books and as a reader, she keeps me on my toes and I don't know what to expect from her which I love.
Sisters Liba and Laya live on the outskirts of a forest in Ukraine with their mother and father, and neither have never felt like they truly fit in with the rest of the town. When a stranger appears at the door one night, both sisters find out some magical secrets about their parents and who they themselves truly are. Left alone for the first time, with dark magic and sinister strangers threatening them, the girls have to either fight or accept their instincts and truly transform.
This is a beautiful magical book set in a forest in our own world but infused with the magic of fairytales - particularly those of Russian, German and Yiddish origin. I really loved the subtle hints of magic in this book and the true strength it took both Liba and Laya to accept themselves, and the journey to get there.
The sisterly relationship is the strongest one in this book, and I did really love Liba's devotion to Laya though on the other hand Laya was quite annoying, selfish and rash a lot of the time. There really wasn't any time given to the girls' parents leaving and basically everything going crazy - I'm pretty sure it was literally the next day that Laya began moon eyes at Fedir. I did enjoy the slower, sweet relationship between Liba and Dovid.
The book felt quite slow for a while, and some scenes and problems appeared to repeat themselves constantly. I would have liked the swans and bears to come into the book a lot sooner as I would have just liked more time to get to know them.
Overall a nice book and an enjoyable read but I needed to have a bit more substance and meat to the story I think. I enjoyed the overall quality of writing and will read Rena Rossner again.
This is a beautiful magical book set in a forest in our own world but infused with the magic of fairytales - particularly those of Russian, German and Yiddish origin. I really loved the subtle hints of magic in this book and the true strength it took both Liba and Laya to accept themselves, and the journey to get there.
The sisterly relationship is the strongest one in this book, and I did really love Liba's devotion to Laya though on the other hand Laya was quite annoying, selfish and rash a lot of the time. There really wasn't any time given to the girls' parents leaving and basically everything going crazy - I'm pretty sure it was literally the next day that Laya began moon eyes at Fedir. I did enjoy the slower, sweet relationship between Liba and Dovid.
The book felt quite slow for a while, and some scenes and problems appeared to repeat themselves constantly. I would have liked the swans and bears to come into the book a lot sooner as I would have just liked more time to get to know them.
Overall a nice book and an enjoyable read but I needed to have a bit more substance and meat to the story I think. I enjoyed the overall quality of writing and will read Rena Rossner again.
I received a free digital copy of this book from the publishers/author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Sisters Willow, Pip and Ottie reunite a few months before Christmas when their father, the last knight of Ireland, dies suddenly. The girls end up being shocked when youngest daughter Willow is left in control of their father's failing estate and given the tough decision to sell the land or not. Each woman deals with their grief and new happenings in their life, as Christmas gets closer and a prospective new owner decides to throw a Christmas party in their childhood home.
First off, this isn't really a Christmas book so if you haven't got to this book yet and think you need to wait till festive season again, you don't have to - the cover and title make it seem like this is just a seasonal read but the story and the majority of it takes place in the months leading up to Christmas and Christmas isn't really a big deal in the story at all.
This is probably one of my favourite books from Karen Swan I've read so far - I think the story was written really well, and each character was given enough time so I didn't feel like one character was left behind. It took me a while to warm up to the sisters - I wouldn't say they are the most likeable characters I've ever read. Ottie is in a relationship with a married man, Pip is honestly just really weirdly rude to a really nice guy over a stupid slight from when they were teenagers and Willow is juts difficult.
But I did, by the end, end up liking each of the characters and admiring different things in each. There's nothing surprising in this book, you can pretty much predict everything that's going to happen if you read enough contemporary but I didn't mind that. I like knowing what will happen and just seeing how we'll get there.
Sisters Willow, Pip and Ottie reunite a few months before Christmas when their father, the last knight of Ireland, dies suddenly. The girls end up being shocked when youngest daughter Willow is left in control of their father's failing estate and given the tough decision to sell the land or not. Each woman deals with their grief and new happenings in their life, as Christmas gets closer and a prospective new owner decides to throw a Christmas party in their childhood home.
First off, this isn't really a Christmas book so if you haven't got to this book yet and think you need to wait till festive season again, you don't have to - the cover and title make it seem like this is just a seasonal read but the story and the majority of it takes place in the months leading up to Christmas and Christmas isn't really a big deal in the story at all.
This is probably one of my favourite books from Karen Swan I've read so far - I think the story was written really well, and each character was given enough time so I didn't feel like one character was left behind. It took me a while to warm up to the sisters - I wouldn't say they are the most likeable characters I've ever read. Ottie is in a relationship with a married man, Pip is honestly just really weirdly rude to a really nice guy over a stupid slight from when they were teenagers and Willow is juts difficult.
But I did, by the end, end up liking each of the characters and admiring different things in each. There's nothing surprising in this book, you can pretty much predict everything that's going to happen if you read enough contemporary but I didn't mind that. I like knowing what will happen and just seeing how we'll get there.
