NOS4R2 by Joe Hill.Review.

This is one of the most chilling books that I ever read, it left me so uneasy reading it and that feeling has lingered with me since I finished it. Joe Hill is an author I have not read before...I will now be looking out for any other books that he writes!
The story is a haunting story about a woman called Victoria(Vic) from childhood to womanhood and a serial killer  called Charlie Manx .. his gruesome house ...his Rolls Royce (that he used to kidnap children) and many of his victims. Charlie Manx is not the only monster , he has a pal called Bing ,the Gasmask Man, with the gingerbread smoke..... chilling!
I listened to this story through audible.co.uk and the voice of the narrator Kate Mulgrew made this story really stand out so much that I doubt I will ever forget it. Her voice captured each character clearly and the menace and fear she created through her voice made chills creep up my spine .
Victoria throughout the story is incredibly strong and resilient , although filled with so much fear throughout her life she never lets it beat her. Victoria is a fabulous main character and this is a hauntingly magical story.
Charlie Manx ...even typing his name gives me chills.... What Joe Hill did when he created this character was to instill incredible fear into the readers or listeners of the book.. I know this is fictional but it is fiction told so well as to be terrifying. Seeing through the eyes of twisted killers and see their warped  outlook on what they were doing...incredibly disturbing...
The Gas Mask Man is another character that will leave you running for the covers and his parts of the story will chill you to your very core.
This is not a story that is going to leave you with a warm cosy feeling inside. If you want chills and dare I say spills, vivid descriptions, violence, fear, terror, scares and a story that will stay with you the rest of your life then this is certainly the book for you.
If not then I beg you choose a lighter read....
For those of you who may not already know, Joe Hill is Stephen and Tabitha King's son. Can you imagine the wonderful ghost stories they could tell in their house at Halloween!!!!!!!!

Lockwood and Co , The Screaming Staircase by Jonathon Stroud.Review

I loved this book so much! It is brilliant when I can write that on the first line of a review!
Okay guys let the gushing begin.... Let's start with the characters..ohhh boy they are great ! I am specifically talking above the non ghost type characters .. You know the ones that have a pulse and have a fondness for bacon and eggs..
Anthony Lockwood, business owner ...not easily spooked .. good boss, avid tea drinker...
Lucy Carlyle , young girl..fearless...gifted... rapier carrying ghostbuster...
George...cranky know it all.. Untidy....but good at his job...
These characters all live together in Lockwood's house/offices
The setting for the story is London, here there is plenty of business for these ghost hunters as  all these supernatural beings seem to wander freely and it's up to this team of spirit hunters to track them all down and send them on their merry way.
This is a long book and that is awesome because the story is just so darn good. There is over 400 pages of wonderful story telling, and each chapter starts with a little picture which adds a little something special to the book.
The plot is really good, the story is a little eerie in some parts making this hard to put down as you really want to find out what's going to happen. I could not be more pleased that this was book 1 in a series. After reading this I could not be more pleased.
I am putting a link to the book down below where your can find this book on amazon and if you look at the kindle version of the book you can download a free sample.
To sum up.. Wonderful characters , great storyline, ghostly goings on...no dull bits..nail biting ending.
Go get this awesome book published by Doubleday!!
Amazon link:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lockwood-Co-The-Screaming-Staircase-ebook/dp/B00COMWJIS/ref=tmm_kin_title_0
You can also find it here on Goodreads.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13555073-the-screaming-staircase

Goodness,Grace and Me by Julie Houston. Review.

I was a very lucky when the wonderful author of this book gifted me a copy.. Ohhhh boy was I !!
Let me introduce you to the main character Harriet ,wife, mother, teacher, good friend, good daughter, funny , smart , and boy can this woman juggle all these roles and do it well.
She is married to Nick and thanks to his ambitious nature it's going to be up to her to manage all her roles while he leaves for foreign climates in search of better things for their future. Sound simple? Heck no, throw in some badly behaved friends and family members ,and many surprises ,and you have yourself one funny, plot driven story with Harriet  at the centre of it all.
This had me smiling so many times during the reading of it , even though this character has so much going on in her life she manages to maintain her wicked sense of humour almost all of the time , this makes her a very likeable character that you instantly become very fond off. The story keeps you interested throughout as there is always something going on, but it is not overwhelming , it merely makes you more excited to know more about what is happening.

I would recommend this to anyone , especially to the ladies, this would also make a wonderful gift .
I am going to leave a link to this book below where you can check it out on amazon and get a free sample for kindle. This book really leaves you with a cosy warm glow inside . So lovely! Go get it!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Goodness-Grace-Me-hilarious-Romantic-ebook/dp/B00DQBZLPY

Julie's Goodreads Page
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/238771.Julie_Houston

Julie's Gorgeous Website
http://www.juliehouston.co.uk/

Book Haul January 2014

 Lorna Barrett. Murder On The Half Shelf. This is an awesome sounding book which is part of the booktown mystery series.

 A Deadly Grind by Victoria Hamilton. This book is part of the kitchen mystery series.

 The Ghost Prison by Joseph Delaney. I love this author's series The Spooks Apprentice so I had to check out this book too. The illustrations inside the book are very good and the story is interesting . This is a short story.

 Frost Hollow hall by Emma Carroll . Love this cover and the book sounds wonderful too.

 Longbourn by Jo Baker. I fell in love with Pride and Prejudice and so I have been very excited about starting this.

 The Haunted Hotel by Wilkie Collins sounds wonderfully creepy. I have this on kindle but I managed to get this edition very cheaply.

 The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. This book looks really great and I have read a few pages already and I am loving the style of writing Maggie uses.

 The Diviners by Libba Bray. I have seen this book everywhere on book blogs and youtube and now I finally got my own copy.

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins. This writer has a huge fan base and I can't wait to get my hands on Anna and the French kiss.
Well guys have any of you read any of these books. If you have let me know in the comments. Have a lovey day xxxxx

January Glossybox 2014 Uk/Ireland Edition

Hi guys! It's the time of the month again.....Yep! Glossybox's  arrival!!!!

This month is the" Back to Basics "month with Glossybox and as you can see from the pictures below it is just that. Inside are practical items that I think most people will be able to get use from and enjoy and the new packaging feels extra decadent and very much a treat.

                                                         The outer packaging above

Loving the new Glossy box!

The Inside looks like this.

Loving the content! I will use almost everything.

 I have sensitive skin so I don't think I will be able to use this going by the writing on the back of the packet. The packaging is super cute though and I love this brand.

 I had never heard of this skin care brand before but I have tried this since it arrived and so far I am really enjoying the extra moisture it provides to my skin.

 The Vintage Company tweezers are so retro cool. Love them and all the products I have got in past boxes from this company.

                       A reliable brand , Fresh scent, gives great moisture, what's not to love!!!

I own this in the big size too but this one will be perfect for a travel bag. Lovely smell and great brand.

All in all I like this box a lot. Good products that do what they are supposed to with the minimum of fuss. Just what we all need!!! This has left me super excited for February 2014 Glossybox .Yay!!!

Mini Kindle Haul

 When I saw this book I could not resist the awesome cover. Seriously adorable and the blurb on the back sounds great. I will leave a link guys.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Library-Unrequited-Love-Sophie-Divry-ebook/dp/B00AKGPQ58/ref=tmm_kin_title_0

I was kindly gifted this book by the author. I thought last night that I would read a few pages, I read a quarter of the book in one sitting. Loving it! Funny and sweet . I am really enjoying this author's writing style, the main character is very witty. I will leave a link to the kindle book on Amazon where you can download a sample yourself and see how good it is.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Goodness-Grace-Me-hilarious-Romantic-ebook/dp/B00DQBZLPY/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1390428145&sr=1-2&keywords=goodness+grace+and+me+julie+Houston

Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott. Review.

Hi buddies, I have just finished the above book and I am  enjoying that lovely feeling you experience when you have just read something awesome and memorable. I loved the book Little Women!(see below)..... if you have followed me for even the shortest amount of time you will know this. Good Wives is the book after that and I put myself off reading it for the longest time because I loved the first book in this trilogy so much.

Lesley over on wordsofareader on YouTube convinced me to give it a go and so that is exactly what I did and now I am kicking myself that I left it so long to read it.
This book had everything you could want from a classic. There was love, romance, ambition, family dynamics , travel, loss , and a few surprises. This was one of those books I wanted to hug once I was finished. If you have seen the movie Little Women then this story will be no big surprise to you as the film combines  the books Little Women and Good Wives but it is still worth reading  them even if you have seen the movie because they are beautiful. I read this sobbing in parts, ohhh how I sobbed... Then at other times I was very excited and the entire story just lifted my heart. Would I recommend this ...ohhh yes friends , I certainly would.
My favourite character in the book is Jo , this young woman is awesome! She has drive and ambition and a love of writing and books in her heart  ..... and lots of ink on her fingers from scribbling away every chance she gets. I think apart from Beth she is one of the kindest sweetest characters in the book and when she is speaking with other characters I think her good qualities shine through and dazzle. I am really looking forward to finding out how this series will end when I read Little Men , I am not sure if Jo's Boy's comes after that or if they in face are the same book just with different titles. If you know can you tell me in the comments please. Perhaps the title may differ from country to country .......or maybe I have two more books in this series left...

Below is a book that combines both Little Women and Good Wives and I think it would make a beautiful present for someone .I was given Little Women by my grandmother many many years ago and I have cherished it ever since.





Here is a link to Lesley's channel on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/user/WordsofaReader
Here is a link to my own channel on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJWr18wAhkHUkL0CoL1bOGQ
This Little Women book contains Little Women and Good Wives.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13037305-little-women
 

Melting Ms Frost by Kat Black.Review.

This is an adult book about a young woman called Annabel Frost who manages Cluny's Restaurant. After coming back from a week off work she finds a new member of staff called Aidan Flynn who has more confidence in one finger then most people have in their entire body. Aidan works under Annabel but he is not very good at behaving himself in a work environment so this was a fun read especially reading how Aidan and Annabel butt heads a lot during their working day, and you are just waiting to see how long it is going to take them to get together. This was my first Kat Black book and I would  definitely read more by this author. This book is definitely for adults!

I won this book through a competition Avon Books .Below find a link to their Facebook page .
https://www.facebook.com/AvonBooksUK

The Ocean At The End Of The Lane by Neil Gaiman. Review.

I loved this so much!!!! The story is about a young boy who I became very fond of early on. Why you may ask...... Well he loves reading and is quite fond of adventure! A tragedy happens very near to where he lives that sets in motion a stream of events that he could not possibly imagine. Now, if you have read anything by Neil Gaiman before then you know how his imagination can take you out of this world completely into this wonderful fictional place where all your world fades away while you read. He really has a magical gift to completely submerge you into his world . I listened to the story on my kindle through Audible.co.uk and it was made extra special as it was read by Neil Gaiman himself !! Female or male characters Neil was able to make me forget that there was a man reading the story to me. That's a really good sign of an audible narrator when you just forget that little fact. There are also other wonderful characters in the book like Old Mrs Hempstock , Mrs Hempstock and her daughter Lettie  .Oh how I wish Mrs Hempstock's house was a real place that you could go to and have chats around the kitchen table and share meals with and have sleepovers. It was the prefect haven for this young character throughout the story and he felt very safe there.
The one character I hated in the book was Ursula Monkton ..ohhhhh she is evil and devious and if you read this book I can't wait for you to meet this horror that finds its way into out main characters family and life.  I will be reading this book again and again. Loved it!!!!!!!

The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick

This is the story about a man who is fighting a battle with depression. Anyone who has had this illness will know that it is a battle,  and you do have to fight it with all you have in you. When you have nothing  left in you  to fight with it is time to lean on those closest to you to hold you up until you can do it yourself, but do not give up.

I imagined that the story was going to be hard to read about somebody who is going through something so horrible but the story was so inspiring and optimistic in unexpected ways that I would recommend it for anyone who needs a feel good book.
Through the book we see depression from the side of someone with it who can verbalise in some ways what it is like day to day. An example would be having to explain to people why you don't drink in social situations. Another was having a way of finding a way to let the emotions out when you can't verbalise them by doing things like exercising.. Pat used this in the story as a way to get out strong feelings that he could not express. Pat felt left out of his family and tried very hard to find his way back in his family circle through sport. Medications and doctors 's appointments were other things that some people might not think about when they think about depression. It is an illness  , the story highlights a lot of the" behind the scenes moments" of depression. There are many moments in the book that cause you to sit back and think about  what we may think of depression or how we deal with it. Pick up this book if you get a chance. It is really worth reading.

Currently Reading

I am lucky enough to be reading some wonderful books right now. Here are some of the wonderful gems that have kept me occupied  recently when I can't sleep at night.

 James Martin. Slow Cooking.

 The Silver Linings Play Book by Matthew Quick

Inferno by Dan Brown

 Melting Ms Frost by Kat Black

G.P Taylor . Mariah Mundi ..The Midas Box.

Sweet Short Stories

Below you will find two books that were free on Amazon.co.uk. I am going to put links to these books as they may still be free . Both these stories are sweet little romances that are perfect when you don't have time for a longer story. Definitely check them out if you get the chance.

The First book is Christmas At Pebble Creek by Vannetta Chapman
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Christmas-Pebble-Creek-Short-Story-ebook/dp/B00FQQ1A8Y

Amish Summer by Kristina Ludwig
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Amish-Summer-Hearts-2-ebook/dp/B00GLSR5V2/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1390074259&sr=1-1&keywords=amish+summer+amish+hearts+2

Book Haul

Hi guys. I was in a bookstore that was having an awesome January book sale and I picked up some real bargains....Check them out!

 Monsieur Pamplemousse Hits The Headlines by Michael Bond

 Happy Accidents by Jane Lynch

 Death Cure by James Dashner

 The Scorch Trials by James Dashner

 Maze Runner by James Dashner

 The Necromancer

 Grave Minder by Melissa Marr

 Mariah Mundi The Midas Box by G.P Taylor

 Shakespeare's Trollop by Charlaine Harris.

 Murder on s Summer's Day by Frances Brody

Fourth Grave On The Right by Darynda Jones

The Hangman's Song by James Oswald. Review.

The Hangman's Song by James Oswald is book three in the Inspector McLean series and I adored every single page of it. What starts off as an apparent suicide turns out to be something an awful lot darker and frightening. This was an awesome book and from the very beginning you jump right into the story. It was a real grab you from the start and pull you willingly though type of book.
The story is set in Edinburgh, which I enjoyed, setting a book in a real place is fun especially if you are familiar with it.
The main character Inspector McLean is a hard working, laid back, likeable character who's  job is tough going right now and who's personal life is a bit hit and miss. Between McLean's private life and his job there is plenty to keep you interested in the story.
I really liked McLean, the rest of the characters are just as interesting and enjoyable to read about too. My personal favourite was Grumpy Bob.
The crime scenes were very descriptive and I had no problems visualising what the author was trying to say plus the plot kept me wondering just how it was all going to come together at the end. The ending was smart and I did not see it coming. This book would easily motivate me to go find the other books in the series.

I received this book for review from the lovely folks over at Lovereading.co.uk and you can find this book there if you follow the link below.
http://www.lovereading.co.uk/book/10331/The-Hangman-s-Song-by-James-Oswald.html
This book is due for release February 2014 and will be available from Lovereading.co.uk then as well as all other good bookstores.
I received an ARC copy so when the book is released it may have a different cover.

Mrs Palfey At The Claremont by Elizabeth Taylor. Review

This is the story of an older woman called Mrs Palfrey who has come to stay in the Claremont, this is a middle of the road hotel in London on the Cromwell Road.
Her room in the hotel is little to write home about but it has everything she needs and there are people there in a similar position as her, making her feel slightly less alone.
The hotel has a rather slow pace and it contains a few residents as well as the normal guests who come and go.

 A chance meeting with a young man called Ludovic Myers or Ludo for short quickly becomes a friendship that is cherished by both parties but by Mrs Palfrey in particular. It is a sweet relationship and it means a lot to Mrs Palfrey. You get the impression in the story that she has a very real need to reach out to someone before it comes to the end of her life. I did enjoy reading about all the characters and different personalities but there was  one character I really  did feel a lot of hatred for and he was called Desmond, when you read this book you will understand.What a louse!!!! 

The story is sad and touching and moved me to tears. Life is so fragile and reading this made that all the more real. There are many moments in this book that make you sit back and wonder what the future holds for you , how quickly is goes past and how it will all end. The story will leave you with a lump in the back of your throat. Loved it! Read with a tissue.
This is a VMC book and here is a link to this book on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mrs-Palfrey-At-The-Claremont/dp/1844083217

Zoo Station By David Downing. Review.

Zoo Station by David Downing is book 1 in the John Russell series .
The story is told in the run up to the war. It is 1939 and John Russell is in Berlin working as a news reporter for American and British papers. There are big changes happening there now and it is a worrying time for anyone who Hitler would disapprove off. John has a child and a girlfriend living there and I did feel sorry for them as he put himself in risky situations. I got a real sense of how tense it would have been living there at that time when war about to break out at any minute. John was a very brave character and you are rooting for him all the time. He is a good guy trying to make the best of a bad situation. The story flows steady throughout and finishes in a breath taking ending. Very satisfying! I would read more from this author after reading this book.

I received this book from the kind folks over at Lovereading.co.uk and you can see this book there if you follow the link below.
http://www.lovereading.co.uk/book/5235/Zoo-Station-by-David-Downing.html
This book has already been released and if you enjoyed this you may want to check out David's latest book in the series, book 6 , Masaryk  Station which is due to be released Mid January 2014.
Please find that link here:
http://www.lovereading.co.uk/book/9897/Masaryk-Station-by-David-Downing.html

A free excerpt is available for both these books. Yay!!!

Kindle Haul

Hi guys here are a few kindle books I have accumulated over the last week or so. All of these are at great prices so you may want to check them out on amazon.co.uk if you get a chance.

The Coldest Girl In ColdTown by Holly Black
Is this not one of the best covers! Simple but striking.

The Silver Linings Playbook
This has interested me since I saw the trailer for the film(I have not seen that yet and I will probably wait  until I have read this book).

Inferno by Dan Brown(Book 4 in the Robert Langdon series) This has been getting great reviews. Lets hope it is as good as his previous books. I have high hopes.

The Husbands Secret is another book I have seen very often on Goodreads and Amazon and now I finally have my own copy. If you have read any of these books I would love to know what you think of them.