Rainy Day Reads

So I ended up reading this even though I wasn’t sure I was in the mood for it. I do like Kinsella’s books normally but they just seem to fall into a sort of pattern often, which can get a bit boring.   In this book we follow Samantha, a high-achieving career lawyer in London. One day she makes a massive mistake that costs the company millions of pounds and she finds herself escaping to the countryside, where she ends up as a housekeeper for a mostly kind, but sometimes a little condescending couple. Here she struggles to learn the simple household tasks of doing the ironing and preparing dinner. Tasks she never had time for in her hectic London life. She settles down and when her old life comes knocking she has to make a choice whether to stay or go back.  This book was okay for me. It was fine, but not much more than that. It did follow the pretty predictable pattern of chick-lit in general, so there weren’t really any major plot twists or anything to keep you on the ed

This book is set in Ceylon in the 1920s and 1930s. We follow Gwen, a young English woman who has married an older man who owns a tea plantation. Before she even steps foot on Ceylon she starts coming upon secret after secret and the book oozes of an ominous and slightly creepy feeling. Basically all of the characters seem to be keeping secrets; there is the mysterious Mr. Ravasinghe whom Laurence, the husband, hates for no apparent reason, the sister-in-law who seems slightly unhinged, the plantation manager who seems dark and domineering and finally the husband himself who seems to distance himself from his young wife in-between moments of love and passion. Gwen becomes pregnant soon after her arrival and the pair are happy to be starting their family. However, when she gives birth she must make a choice and this choice will haunt her for many years to come. She joins the secret keepers with a massive secret of her own and we follow the family’s dance trying to keep their

This has been on my TBR for absolutely AGES so I figured it was time to buckle down and read it.   The book follows a few different characters over a span of many years, from the start in 1968 to the finish in 2011. The main character is Lynnie. Lynnie is a young woman who shows up one night on the doorstep of Martha, with a deaf, black man and a newborn baby in tow. Martha is a bit flummoxed but decides to take in the small family and figure everything out later. However, before they can settle down to anything the authorities come looking for Lynnie and her companion. Martha figures out that they have escaped a mental institution, ostensibly labelled a school for the incurable and feebleminded. Having hid the baby in the attic Lynnie is forced to return to the school while her companion flees into the woods and Martha pledges to protect the baby. From here we follow how everyone does in life and how everything leads back to that one night on Martha’s doorstep.  We foll

This book was pretty hyped when it first came out, so when I came across it at my library I decided to see what the fuss was about.   The book is about a young girl named Faith, who adores her father, though he is remote and stern, and despises her mother for using her womanly wiles to get her way in the world. At the beginning of the novel the family finds itself on a ship headed for a small island where they will take up residence, while the father works on a scientific excavation. As the family arrives and starts to settle into their new lives they soon find themselves the object of gossip and ill will. Faith finds out that the family did not move to the island simply because of the scientific excavations, but rather something happened in London which they needed to remove themselves from. As the story unfolds we slowly figure out exactly what happened and who is responsible for the trouble.  It starts out as a slow-paced novel dealing with family life, the social ord

If you need a reason to put Bangkok on your itinerary I have some good ones right here. Although it is hardly possible to avoid the capitol city of Thailand on any Asia trip, seeing as it is a major hub of transportation, with connections far and wide in the world. If you need convincing to brave the sweltering streets rather than enjoy the air-con in your hotel (provided you coughed up enough money to get an air-con room), have a look at these pictures and I think you will find yourself hitting the streets in no time! Bombard your senses with the colorful scenery around the city. No point in trying to make an easy transition when you first land, the city is full on from the get go, but you can find peaceful moments, espcially on the longs (canals) and at orchid farms.  While you're at it enjoy the local wildlife which is to be found everywhere, including your room sometimes! If you prefer animals without legs you can feed the local trouts

This is the first book in the Mistborn series, which I thought was a trilogy but it seems to be longer experience than that. There are currently 6 books out in the series, a 7th on the way and a number of in-between books (you know the 0.5 and 3.5 in a series).   This book is about the street urchin Vin, who comes to realize that she has powers, when a mistborn takes her under his wings. The book is set in a society ruled by what appears to be an immortal man, who holds the people in an iron fist using magic and a strict social order.  Vin finds herself part of Kelsier’s thieving crew who has a plan to overthrow the ruler and set up a new world order. She must learn how to use her new found powers in order to help the crew, while she struggles with trusting her new friends and navigating life as a court spy.  I really liked this book, but because it is so long I did begin to flag a little towards the last quarter or so, when nothing much seemed to be happening and it

I read this book mainly because I was interested in the movie, and if at all possible I do like to read the book before seeing the movie.   This book is about a number of black women in the USA, coming of age in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s and having to fight tooth and nail to transcend the barriers between them and their dream. At this time in the USA racial segregation was still a thing and these women had to fight to be take seriously, not only because they were women, but because they were black. Their immense talent helped them some of the way and hard work took them even further.   We follow their struggles to rise within the hierarchy at NASA ,set against the backdrop of World War II, the Space Race and the Civil Rights Movement. Shetterly intertwined history with the women’s personal stories of growth and development and for the most part this book read like fiction. I had never really heard of the black women mathematicians at NASA before, so this was an educatio

TBR Jar review: Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan I’m really pleased I finally got around to reading this. I’ve never read anything by Levithan before, but I was pleased with what I read, so I look forward to more from him.  This book is centered around two boys kissing. Harry and Craig used to be a couple, but they are not anymore. When Craig gets the idea to go for the world record for longest kiss, Harry is there to help and support. As they kiss we meet a number of boys trying to navigate a world where so many people think that who they are is wrong. All the main characters of this book are gay, and each has his own struggles trying to fit in or finding the courage to stand out. Their struggles are followed with avid interest by the spirits of all the men who died of AIDS in the 1980s. These men put a wider perspective to each boy’s own personal struggle, and I thought that was a really interesting concept.  Although we don’t really get to know the characters ou

I saw this idea on Pinterest and thought it sounded like fun. When recommending books it can be hard to hit all the things that make a book great, and sometimes you really enjoyed one aspect of it, but maybe not so much other aspects. So I’ve tried to find popular books that many people will have read to recommend from and then tried to find not-so-popular books to recommend according to a specific topic in the book. Does that make sense? Hopefully it will once you read the recommendations.  The Book Thief by Markus Zusak:  Why: Unusual narrator: Two Boys kissing by David Levithan World War II setting: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein Understated romance: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins: Why:  The competition element: Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin Dystopia: Angelfall by Susan Ee Rising up against the government: Legend by Marie Lu Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling: Why: Friendship: The Raven