Review: Fallen Grace by Mary Hooper

     

Title: Fallen Grace
Author: Mary Hooper

Series: Standalone
Pages: 307

Publisher: Bloomsbury
Release Date: February 1st 2011
Source: For review
Rating: 4 stars

Grace Parkes has just had to do a terrible thing. Having given birth to an illegitimate child, she has travelled to the famed Brookwood Cemetery to place her small infant's body in a rich lady's coffin. Following the advice of a kindly midwife, this is the only way that Grace can think of to give something at least to the little baby who died at birth, and to avoid the ignominy of a pauper's grave. Distraught and weeping, Grace meets two people at the cemetery: Mrs Emmeline Unwin and Mr James Solent. These two characters will have a profound affect upon Grace's life. But Grace doesn't know that yet. For now, she has to suppress her grief and get on with the business of living: scraping together enough pennies selling watercress for rent and food; looking after her older sister, who is incapable of caring for herself; thwarting the manipulative and conscience-free Unwin family, who are as capable of running a lucrative funeral business as they are of defrauding a young woman of her fortune. A stunning evocation of life in Victorian London, with vivid and accurate depictions, ranging from the deprivation that the truly poor suffered to the unthinking luxuries enjoyed by the rich: all bound up with a pacy and thrilling plot, as Grace races to unravel the fraud about to be perpetrated against her and her sister. 

Fallen Grace is a beautifully written novel filled with history, mystery and family. It is my first historical fiction novel and I must say, I really enjoyed it.

The story starts with Grace having given birth and her travelling to a cemetery to bury her stillborn baby. The tone of the novel is set immediately and I automatically felt sympathy for her. The life she and her sister live, selling watercress on the streets, selling their mother's possessions; it was heartbreaking.

Grace was an incredibly strong protagonist. Despite the poverty in which she lived, she was incredibly graceful and elegant. She never acted entitled and her first thought was always for her sister Lily. Grace is like a mother to Lily, putting Lily's needs before her own. She is a mother, sister and provider all in one.

The plot goes in many different directions, a lot of them being surprising to me. The progression of the plot caught me by surprise and it was totally unpredictable. The ending was unexpected and I love it when that happens.

Fallen Grace is a book containing a lot of tragedy but at the same time it contains so much hope. The love Grace has for sister and the strength she possesses definitely reminded me what was important, especially when the world around you in treating you poorly. A nice introduction for those who haven't tried historical fiction and an enjoyable read for those that have.

Review: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

     

Title: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Author: Ransom Riggs

Series: Standalone
Pages: 352

Publisher: Quirk
Release Date: June 7th 2011
Source: For review
Rating: 3.5 stars

A mysterious island.

An abandoned orphanage.

A strange collection of very curious photographs.

It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography,Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children was a book I was dying to get my hands on. I would do pretty much anything for a copy. That cover? Awesome. Those freaky pictures inside? LOVE. The book wasn't quite what I was expecting but I enjoyed it none the less.

Jacob and his grandfather have a very strong bond. From an early age Jacob's grandfather told him stories of a place where there were peculiar children that could do things that no one else could do. Jacob is a little doubtful of these stories and ventures to Wales to discover if they stories his grandfather told him were just that or if they held some truth.

From the pictures and the cover, I expected a really creepy book. Instead, there was a story of a young boy uncovering a mystery about his grandfather. I  loved the idea of the book and I adored all the pictures that accompanied it. It was a really lovely touch.

I wasn't expecting the romance that occurred. I love romance and I loved the aspect of it. I liked both Jacob and his love interest but I particularly liked Millard. Definitely my favourite peculiar.

I really enjoyed Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children but it wasn't quite what I expected. I would describe it as an adventure/mystery novel rather than creepy. It read slightly more middle grade than YA in my opinion but nevertheless I enjoyed reading it.

Review: Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore

      

Title: Texas Gothic
Author: Rosemary Clement-Moore

Series: Standalone
Pages: 400

Publisher: Corgi (Random House)
Release Date: July 7th 2011 (UK)
Source: For Review
Rating: 3 stars

Amy Goodnight knows that the world isn't as simple as it seems—she grew up surrounded by household spells and benevolent ghosts. But she also understands that "normal" doesn't mix with magic, and she's worked hard to build a wall between the two worlds. Not only to protect any hope of ever having a normal life. 

Ranch-sitting for her aunt in Texas should be exactly that. Good old ordinary, uneventful hard work. Only, Amy and her sister, Phin, aren't alone. There's someone in the house with them—and it's not the living, breathing, amazingly hot cowboy from the ranch next door. 

It's a ghost, and it's more powerful than the Goodnights and all their protective spells combined. It wants something from Amy, and none of her carefully built defenses can hold it back. 

This is the summer when the wall between Amy's worlds is going to come crashing down.

Even though I thought Texas Gothic was definitely a strange read, it was good none the less. It was quite difficult to get into at first but after getting over the first hurdle it was an easy read.

The encounter of Amy and the cowboy next door neighbour was very funny and cringy at the same time. Having Amy and Phin as witches was a main theme throughout the book, as well as the idea of the goodnights being ‘different’.

The relationship between Amy and Ben (cowboy neighbour) was very realistic. At times you wanted to hit him and others. You just wanted to give him a hug. The Feud between the two families (Goodnight’s and McCullough’s) was a really interesting aspect of the book and there was a curiosity as to whether the families would resolve their feud in the duration of the story.

The book addresses different things such as myths, paranormal activities and anthropology which was difficult to grasp at first but as the story line got going it was very gripping.

Overall it was a good read which has a mysterious storyline full of supernatural happenings!

Reviewed by guest reviewer Rebecca

In My Mailbox {29}

For Review

Seizure by Kathy Reichs

Fated by Sarah Alderson

After the Snow by S.D Crockett

Vixen by Jillian Larkin
Black Arts by Prentice and Weil

Review: Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick

         

Title: Crescendo
Author: Becca Fitzpatrick

Series: Hush, Hush #2
Pages: 427

Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Release Date: October 14th 2010 (UK)
Source: For Review
Rating: 4 stars

Nora Grey's life is still far from perfect. Surviving an attempt on her life wasn't pleasant, but at least she got a guardian angel out of it: a mysterious, magnetic, gorgeous guardian angel. But, despite his role in her life, Patch has been acting anything but angelic. He's more elusive than ever and even worse, he's started spending time with Nora's arch-enemy, Marcie Millar. 

Nora would have hardly noticed Scott Parnell, an old family friend who has moved back to town, if Patch hadnt been acting so distant. Even with Scott's totally infuriating attitude Nora finds herself drawn to him - despite her lingering feeling that he's hiding something. 

Haunted by images of her murdered father, and questioning whether her nephilim bloodline has anything to do with his death, Nora puts herself increasingly in dangerous situations as she desperately searches for answers. But maybe some things are better left buried, because the truth could destroy everything - and everyone - she trusts.

Crescendo was a pleasant surprise for me. I enjoyed Hush, Hush but it didn't live up to the hype for me. Crescendo, however, was a lot more enjoyable.

I found the plot captivating and quick paced. It was full of mystery and suspense and I loved that.

Patch was more appealing to me in Crescendo. He wasn't perfect but he felt less creepy for sure. Nora was a little annoying at times but I generally liked her.

All in all I thought Crescendo was a better read than Hush, Hush. A quick read with lots of twists and turns!

In My Mailbox {28}

For Review:

The Hunt by Andrew Fukura

Everneath by Brodi Ashton

Someone Else's Life by Katie Dale

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Review: Being Nikki by Meg Cabot

    

Title: Being Nikki
Author: Meg Cabot

Series: Airhead #2
Pages: 301

Publisher: Macmillan
Release Date: July 1st 2009 (UK)
Source: For Review
Rating: 3 stars

I am Nikki Howard now. Em Watts is dead ...

Teen supermodel Nikki Howard has a secret. She's not the gorgeous golden airhead she seems - on the inside she's someone else. Literally. Em Watts is stuck in the body of glamazon celebutante Nikki. And it's not easy. Especially when Nikki's past is about to catch up with her, her boss is spying on her, and Em's heart wants one thing but her lips keep kissing someone else...

Being Nikki was a bit of a disappointment for me. I really enjoyed Airhead and was looking forward to the next book in the series but Being Nikki fell a little flat for me.


Chris was my favourite character in Airhead and I really hoped to see more of him in Being Nikki and see how his and Em's relationship would progress. There was more of Chris towards the end but I felt I had to push myself through the first half.


The second half was much better to the first which did redeem the book slightly. The ending was a OMG moment. It was a huge cliffhanger and a complete shock.


The second half and the ending are enough to want me to read the final book in the trilogy, Runaway. I hope it resembles Airhead more than Being Nikki.