Gaspar and The Fantastical Hats (Gaspar The Thief 0.5) by David A Lindsay

 
I received this via Amazon and it was FREE! It was promoted to me as a suggestion but the front cover and title grabbed my attention enough for me to request it, plus did I mention it was FREE?! I am glad that I did! I am aware that some have derided this as being a Pratchett rip-off. I have read everything the the illustrious Sir TP has written and I disagree.Yes there are some similarities but that is like saying every book with elves in it is a Tolkien rip off. I would suggest that the author is more likely inspired by Sir TP but I personally feel that he has found his own niche within this genre.
Gaspar is a thief, his best friend Hubris a not-quite wizard. Gaspar is manipulated into stealing an artefact from the wizards to adorn a Hat but things do not go to plan........
I thoroughly enjoyed this prequel. I liked the narrative style, the wry observations and the character development. I will certainly be looking for more by this author.

A Place For Us (Part 1) by Harriet Evans

*I received this as an ARC from Netgalley*

This is the first part in a four part serialisation. The story centres around the Winter family, with each member having a voice in this initial part. Martha is planning a party and has invited all the family back to Winterfold (the family home) to celebrate her 80th birthday with her. Such a simple act it would seem but not when everyone in the family is keeping secrets. Attending the party for some would mean revealing that which they have sought to hide. No spoilers here however!
Harriet Evans has written realistic and interesting characters. Some of the secrets at the moment are yet to be fully explained as to why they are secrets, as families do keep things from each other for all sorts of reasons that may not always seem logical to others - the human condition etc - but this actually makes the characters more likable for me - there is a substance and credibility to them with their foibles and imperfections laid out for us as readers. The genuine affection between Martha and David is endearing, complete as it is with the realisation that the dynamics within their marriage are perhaps not quite as everyone else has always assumed. Martha's reminisces about her children are poignant as she grapples with the battle between heart and head; whilst as a mother she loves her children, she also has to recognise that Daisy has not perhaps been the mother she would have liked her to have been.
The pace of the book is judged well - you are taken on a journey to get to know the family that is slow enough to feel as though you are getting to know each of them but not so slow that you lose interest. This ensures that you are drawn into the unfolding tale of the Winter family and left wanting Part 2 - which I most definitely do after reading this! One of the reasons that I love Netgalley is that it brings you into contact with authors with whom you otherwise may not have engaged. I am glad that I was introduced to Harriet Evans - as someone who has enjoyed authors such as Titia Sutherland and Rebecca Shaw, Harriet Evans is most definitely on a par and someone whom I will be reading in the future!

A children's book this time.... Two Parrots by Rumi Rashin

 
*I received this as an ARC via Netgalley from the publisher, Smith Publicity*. There was some formatting errors in the e-version, on both my Kindle and my Kindle app via Android platform. This affected the first part of the story but not the illustrations. I was able to get the gist however and as I was reading it to my 20 month old (and he can't read!) it did not matter particularly. The story is a classic Persian fable about a merchant who tries to cage his parrot but learns that wild creatures are more beautiful and happy when they are free. The story is sweet and has a good moral to it but where this book really comes into its own is the illustrations. They are breathtaking and for them alone the book is worth buying in print! The originals must have been amazing. Although the story was not of huge interest to K compared to others, he loved looking at the pictures and that makes it a recommendation from us!

Addicted by (and to!) Nigel May

I loved Trinity and I generally love Nigel's way with words so I had high expectations for this book. Generally I enjoyed it: the sex scenes were well written, appropriate in length and frequency and not cringe-worthy in their description. The interconnecting plots were engaging and as usual, Nigel's description of locations is wonderfully visual. Before I go any further, firstly let me make it clear that this is a very enjoyable bonkbuster and secondly, there may be some spoilers in the next part! I promise honest reviews and whilst I adore Mr May in all his persona's, I am not going to just gush about his book if I don't mean it. So there were a couple of minor niggles for me. Firstly, the main characters Lauren, Martha and Kelly are all great friends one moment and the next Martha hates Lauren and has no hesitation in taking her husband. Whilst I know that women do this to each other, it just felt a little forced as to the level of hate Martha suddenly had for Lauren. I also struggled with Saul and Martha. Possibly because I don't believe in love at first sight and certainly don't believe in sex so amazing you fall for someone hook, line and sinker, I found their sudden love for each other after basically one flagellation and one shag, a little hard to comprehend! A little more development of their romance before they decided they were meant for each other would have sat better with me but this might be me rather than the book! These are however minor niggles and did not prevent me from enjoying this book at all - not quite as much as Trinity - but still very good and well worth reading.
4* rating

Books for Toddlers

As you can imagine, I hope that Little K shares my love of reading when he is older. He is currently 20 months and generally finds the Touch and Feel, mono-syllabic books boring now. His current favourites have just changed - it was "Me" by Emma Dodd for ages, alongside Tinga Tinga's Sunrise to Sunset collection. He has been less interested in these recently since the arrival of "Room on the Broom" by Julia Donaldson. I haven't reviewed any of his books before but this is the first so far:

Room on the Broom

by Julia Donaldson, Axel Scheffler

"The witch and her cat are happily flying through the sky on a broomstick when the wind picks up and blows away the witch's hat, then her bow, and then her wand!  Luckily, three helpful animals find the missing items, and all they want in return is a ride on the broom.  But is there room on the broom for so many friends?  And when disaster strikes, will they be able to save the witch from a hungry dragon?"

 My 20 month old loves this. So much so in fact, I virtually know it by heart, as I've had to read it so often! Fortunately it is very well constructed with lovely rhythm and rhyme so it's not as much of a chore as some previous favourites. Definitely one I'd recommend for babies/toddlers.

I have to share this in light of last post!

I realised on writing review for TGWATG that I had never actually reviewed The Enemy series by Charlie Higson - too busy devouring them! So I have just been onto Goodreads to add a review to my 5* rating:

"I took a punt at this because I had a Kindle token to spend. I am so glad that I did! I loved this book, in fact, I loved the whole series as I have bought them all to date! I know this is YA and I am 44, I just don't care - it is marvellous. We are introduced to a cornucopia of characters, some of whom we come to know and love, some of whom are just very dead very soon. I personally really admire someone who is not afraid to kill off characters and I think it particularly works in a dystopian novel. In reality, would someone survive just because they were popular or attractive or "nice"? Equally, less pleasant people do seems to have a habit of surviving in real life so that Higson employs this within this book just makes it more believable. If you haven't read this, you need to do so! If you have, then read the rest - you will not regret it I promise!"

Catching Up....

I have finally started overcoming BabyBrain and finding myself more able to read nearer the speeds to which I was always accustomed. Not quite at my usual pace but I was still delighted to read a book in a day last week (I say day, this means whilst K had morning and afternoon naps plus an hour at bedtime). So to recap then:
The Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
The first 3/4 of this book was just utterly sublime. The descriptions of Prague, of Karou and of her "family" were just breathtaking and transported me to another world. I was really excited by this book initially and felt like I had just fallen in love! The characters were well drawn generally and the plot was unfolding seamlessly. I did however find the tale of Madrigal a little predictable, not sure if it was meant to be but there were certainly no gasps of surprise here. I had been totally immersed in this book but somehow came adrift a little in the last part. That might have been due to the length of time before I picked it back up again (about 6 hours) however and therefore I do not wish to labour this point too much. Suffice it to say the book was enjoyable and compelling enough for me to have secured the second in the series.

The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R Carey
I started this with a  free sample on my Kindle and wanted more as a result. Now those who know me, know my love of zombies - The Enemy Series by Charlie Higson has to be one of my all-time favourites and I am a HUGE The Walking Dead fan. That said, zombies are a tried and tested genre and often fall into similar patterns. In this, as with The Enemy and The Cell (Stephen King), we see a different zombie to the usual mindless cannibals. These are not only sentient but are also children, a delightful twist. The main protagonist is Melanie and we learn about her world in a facility. The highlight for her are her lessons with Miss Justineau and she comes to have a huge significance for Melanie. I loved this book. The main characters were really well constructed and believable, the plot was beautifully unfolded to its stunning denouement and Melanie, well she wasn't quite the docile compliant girl we first thought (but I'll say no more to avoid Spoilers!). All in all this was a really good read and definitely one I would recommend.