BOOKS AND GOOFY

On the currently reading list,  All the Light We Cannot See  by Anthony Doerr. I'm liking this so far. An easy book to read with 2 main characters. Book blurb on Goodreads is  here .

Blurb (from Amazon): After a long and eventful life Allan Karlsson is moved to a nursing home to await the inevitable. But his health refuses to fail and as his 100th birthday looms a huge party is planned. Allan wants no part of it and decides to climb out the window... Charming and funny; a European publishing phenomenon. Sitting quietly in his room in an old people's home, Allan Karlsson is waiting for a party he doesn't want to begin. His one-hundredth birthday party to be precise. The Mayor will be there. The press will be there. But, as it turns out, Allan will not... Escaping (in his slippers) through his bedroom window, into the flowerbed, Allan makes his getaway. And so begins his picaresque and unlikely journey involving a suitcase full of cash, a few thugs, a very friendly hot-dog stand operator, a few deaths, an elephant and incompetent police. As his escapades unfold, Allan's earlier life is revealed. A life in which - remarkably - he played a k...

Another instalment of Reading week in pictures . I was so entranced by The Night Circus  by Erin Morgentsern that I didn't take any pictures :( This is A Hundred Foot Journey  - continuing the journey through the iPad. Michelle Phan's recently published Make Up . I also managed to fit in an excellent production of Wicked , the musical. It was fantastic - definitely a recommend! It wasn't what I was expecting. And a beautiful rendition of The Nutcraker  by the Australian Ballet.

My reading week in pictures. Currently reading The Hundred Foot Journey  on the Kindle and A Storm of Swords I: Steel and Snow  in physical copy. Loving both at the moment. The Hundred Foot Journey Goofy and A Storm of Swords

If you're wondering, yes, I have readjusted my reading challenge goal down to 30. I doubt I'll be able to meet by the end of the year though... Yes, sad face 😢 I'll try my best though!

Blurb (adapted from Amazon): If you had a second chance at first love… would you take it? It's been three years since Adam's love saved Mia after the accident that annihilated life as she knew it… and three years since Mia walked out of Adam's life forever. Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Julliard's rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia's home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future - and each other. My say: Oh-My-Gosh… I LOVED this book! It just drew me in like no book recently has. I actually am quite perplexed because this style of writing wouldn't normally be my cup of tea. But Gayle Forman really went all out in this sequel to If You Stay. Where She Went is written from A...

Blurb (adapted from Amazon): For seventeen-year-old Mia, surrounded by a wonderful family, friends and a gorgeous boyfriend, decisions might seem tough, but they're all about a future full of music and love, a future that's brimming with hope. But life can change in an instant. A cold February morning… a snowy road… and suddenly all of Mia's choices are gone. Except one. As alone as she'll ever be, Mia must make the most difficult choice of all. My say: I picked up this book after seeing the movie trailers on tv. I'm always intrigued when popular books are made into movies. But weird as it maybe, instead of enticing me into watching the movie, the movie trailer made me want to read the book! And I'd have to say I was happy I did. I thought the story writing was unique. The present day follows Mia's accident and her time in hospital. But while she is unconscious, she has an out of body experience, be...

Blurb (adapted from Amazon): Avicenna Crowe's mother, Joanne, is an astrologer with uncanny predictive powers and a history of being stalked. Now she is missing. The police are called, but they're not asking the right questions. Like why Joanne lied about her past, and what she saw in her stars that made her so afraid. But Avicenna has inherited her mother's gift. Finding an unlikely ally in the brooding Simon Thorn, she begins to piece together the mystery. And when she uncovers a link between Joanne's disappearance and a cold-case murder, Avicenna is led deep into the city's dark and seedy underbelly, unaware how far she is placing her own life in danger. My say: This review will be a little disjointed. I read The Astrologer's Daughter a while ago but haven't had the time to write this but here goes… "Only the strong-willed can change what's in the stars. It's always, and only ever, up to you". I liked thi...

Brief blurb: The Husband's Secret  follows a few characters intrinsically linked by a secret from the past. Cecelia Fitzpatrick finds a letter addressed to her by her husband, John Paul, which is only to be opened after his death. Cecelia is curious but John Paul's reaction is even more bewildering. What is he hiding?  To read the Goodreads blurb, click here . My say: I really wanted to like this book. But it just didn't click for me. In the beginning, I thought this was because I couldn't make the connection between all the characters. What does Cecelia have in common with Rachel? How does Tess fit in? Needless to say, it is John Paul's secret that link the three women in a way that they wouldn't have dreamed of. When everything starts to fall into place, I however started to feel even more disconnected. While I understood why the story unfolded like it did, it just felt like all rationality broke loose. None of the characters had the strength or res...

Brief blurb:   The Messiah Code by Michael Cordy is a thriller that brings together science and religion. On one hand you have an ancient brotherhood awaiting a new messiah. On the other side of the spectrum, you have Dr. Tom Carter who is revolutionising the science world with his new DNA technology. In an assassination attempt gone wrong, these two worlds are brought crashing together. Can Tom's work help find the new messiah? Can Tom discover a miracle to save his dying daughter? To read the blurb on Goodreads, click here . My say: I like a good thriller.  While there were a few parts of the story that had me thinking " really? ", I was happy in the most part to ignore those little holes and enjoy the story-telling. I really enjoyed the science side of the story. There has already been a great leap in understanding the human genome and the part certain genes play, but is it possible that miracles aren't random, that they are due to your genetic make...

Has anyone read the book The Hundred-Foot Journey  by Richard C. Morais? I recently watched the movie starring Helen Mirren, Manish Dayal, Om Puri and Charlotte Le Bon. It has got to be my favourite movie this year and one of my favourites of all time. I absolutely loved it! I loved the storyline and the moral behind the story. It's not just about food, but also the clash and coming together of different cultures. The characters were excellent. You will laugh but love Om Puri's Papa and his thriftiness or stubbornness. Helen Mirren plays an excellent Madame Mallory. And Hassan and Marguerite (Manish and Charlotte), I could just watch their chemistry sparkle over and over again. So, has anyone read the book? I bought it on my kindle so it is on my reading list (which is currently really long!). If you've read it, I'd like to know what you think. If you've read it and watched the movie as well, what did you think? Does the movie compare with the book? Please ...

My say: I first heard of this book from one of Ingrid Nilsen's  monthly favourites and I was curious to learn more. Read the blurb on Amazon and bought this for my Kindle right away! Sam Kingston is popular. She's 18 years old, loves to party, has a popular/cute boyfriend. Then on a rainy Friday night in February, she dies in a car accident. "They say when you die, your whole life flashes before your eyes, but that's not how it happened for me." Like a recurring nightmare, Sam "wakes" up on the morning of her accident. Each time she does something different, changes an outcome, but each day ends the same. Initially, I have to admit, I didn't quite like Sam. I found her shallow and irresponsible. But perhaps that was Lauren Oliver's plan all along because as the story moved along, I came to like and even admire Sam. Each time she relives that fateful day, she learns more about herself and the people around her. She come...

My say: I had read many good reviews of the book and I told myself I'll buy it when I've gone through my stack of to-reads, which realistically could have taken forever. Then the movie came out. While I knew the basic analogy, the advertisements for the movie moved me - I wanted to watch this. "But, in fact, depression is not a side effect of cancer. Depression is a side effect of dying." I'm not sure about you, but I find it difficult watching a movie after reading the book. Often, the book is so much better than the movie. The plot. The portrayal of the characters. You build a picture in your mind of what the characters look like. You take to heart the storyline. Then you watch the movie and everything falls to pieces. The characters are nothing like you imagined. The movie is missing bits and pieces of your favourite scenes (I understand some things or feelings cannot be portrayed the same way in a movie but don't you still feel betrayed?!). So...

My Rating:  3/5 Finding Emma is about 3 year old Emma being taken from her family. Without giving away too much of the storyline, Finding Emma  essentially follows  Emma's family as they deal with her loss. It is now 2 years since Emma had been taken. Her mother, Megan, won't give up hope, seeing Emma everywhere. Her dad, Peter, is trying to find peace by, what I personally perceive, as giving up. One sister is regretful, believing Emma's disappearance is her fault. The other is struggling to find attention. The story also follows Emma (or Emmie) and the older couple she's been living with. Whilst guilty of taking her, you cannot help but feel for the older couple as their circumstances unravel. Regardless of the circumstances, they really do love her and have taken good care of her. The story ends with Emma being reunited with her family. While I found myself immersed in this book, there were a few things that bugged me. The relationshi...

Book 1 of the A Song of Ice and Fire  series down and onto the second volume! My rating:  5/5 My say : This really was a surprise. With all the hype behind the tv series, I thought I would read the books before I watched the series. I always feel a little apprehensive reading a hugely popular series. One part of me is so keen to jump onto the band wagon while the other me is very critical. Just because it is so popular, doesn't mean it's for me... The first book however didn't disappoint! It was well written and not too difficult to follow, despite the complex and layered storyline and the many characters. The characterisation itself was wonderful. There's a character for everyone - someone to hate, someone to love, someone to admire. Personally I loved young Arya Stark, who is feisty and strong-willed, and her step-brother Jon Snow, a strong character who is an outsider despite being of Stark descent. Also can't help liking Tyrion Lannister. A warning to...