Perfect by Cecelia Ahern

Perfect by Cecelia Ahern
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Celestine North lives in a society that demands perfection. After she was branded Flawed by a morality court, Celestine's life has completely fractured – all her freedoms gone.

Since Judge Crevan has declared her the number one threat to the public, she has been a ghost, on the run with the complicated, powerfully attractive Carrick, the only person she can trust. But Celestine has a secret – one that could bring the entire Flawed system crumbling to the ground.

Judge Crevan is gaining the upper hand, and time is running out for Celestine. With tensions building, Celestine must make a choice: save only herself, or risk her life to save all the Flawed. And, most important of all, can she prove that to be human in itself is to be Flawed…?

This is the follow on story from Flawed, however if you have not read that, there are many references to it in Perfect and you would be able to grasp the concept of the story from reading this one. It shouldn't affect your enjoyment of it.

Cecelia Ahern is a great writer, I particularly enjoy her adult novels, she is just as good though with YA and even if you don't really like YA, I would give these ago.

I don't want to say too much about the book as I could end up giving too much away, but there are some brutal scene in this, but also really emotional ones that will have you grabbing the tissues. It is a complete roller coaster of emotions and it was delivered really well.

This is a must read for any fan of Cecelia Ahern or YA/Dystopian books.

The Day We Met: The perfect epic love story to read this Valentine’s Day by Roxie Cooper

The Day We Met: The perfect epic love story to read this Valentine’s Day by Roxie Cooper
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Stephanie doesn’t believe in fate, true love or living happily ever after. She’s content enough being engaged to Matt. But then she meets Jamie, who understands her more than anyone else ever has.

Jamie is happily married to his childhood sweetheart Helen and believes in everything Stephanie doesn’t. So why does he have such a strong connection with Stephanie?

When Stephanie and Jamie meet one fateful weekend in 2006 it will change everything...

Ten years. Two people. One epic love story.


Its been a long time since I really felt like I have been invested wholey in a book but this one I did just that. Sometimes I am put off with the length of a story, currently working full time it can be hard for me to really get into it and then it can spoil my enjoyment of the book. I didn't need to worry with this one though, I raced through the pages and even after a hard day, I was eager to pick the book up to continue with the story.

This story takes place over 10 years, Stephanie and Jamie meet by fate when Stephanie attends a course. The book then is told from both of their perspectives over the decade. Both of them are with other people, but over the years their relationship develops, they are meant to be together, soul mates, who unconsciously have been searching for each other, but it's too late now isn't it?

I really felt for Stephanie as I was reading the novel, to be what obviously feels like trapped in a relationship you don't want to be in must be awful, convincing herself that she loves her husband. One where you are going through the motions and keeping up with the Jones' just because you feel this is the right thing to do.

When every time Stephanie and Jamie met, you could almost feel their connection, you were routing for them to make it work, to have their happy ever after, but you just didn't know how it would end. No matter how hard they tried to stay away from each other they always were drawn back together.

This is a love story, a tangled mess of relationships but one that you cannot help but enjoy. After all, you can't help who you fall in love with, you just have to hope you have found the right one and that you both feel the same.

I really enjoyed this book, it is one that will stay with me for a very long time. The only part of the book I didn't particularly enjoy was the ending. It was cruel and heartbreaking, I can't say anymore as I don't want to spoil it for you, as this is one book you have to read this year.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Bad Apple by Zoje Stage

Bad Apple by Zoje Stage
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Seven-year-old Hanna has never spoken a word.

She is a sweet but silent angel in the eyes of her adoring father, but with Mummy, things are different. Suzette loves her daughter but difficulties with babysitters and teachers over the years have put a strain on their relationship and her sanity.

Then Hanna speaks for the first time, to Suzette alone, and what she says is chilling.

Suzette wants to write it off as a scary joke, but she’s becoming increasingly frightened by Hanna's little games. Could she be in danger from her own child? And when it's her word against her daughter's, can she make her husband believe her?

A twisty, darkly compulsive psychological thriller/horror tale realistically creepy and deeply disturbing.

This is written alternately between Suzette (the mother) and Hannah (the child) which chronicles the events between a mother and a very manipulative little girl whose blatant refusal to speak drives a wedge between them. Hannah was a normal baby but when she reached the age to be able to speak she simply refused to do so. Her parents tried everything with her and took her to countless doctors and hospitals for tests but they could find nothing wrong with her. Her inability to speak lead to problems in schooling her and (what they perceived to be Hannah's frustration to communicate) consequently her bad behaviour around other children meant that she eventually was considered to be too much of a handful and schools didn't want her. Suzette took on her schooling at home but eventually she felt she couldn't cope with her and being trapped in the house with a frustrated and often manipulative child was taking its toll on Suzette with constant battle of wills and tantrums. That is until daddy comes home, at which point this wilful child turns into a smiling, loving angel who has all his attention and his indulgence. Like most fathers they find parenting so easy as they only see their children for a fraction of the day while the mothers may have had the day from hell. Suzette is left feeling pathetic and whingey that she can't cope with her child.

Suzette is also at a disadvantage as she has health problems and through a combination of pain and lack of sleep finds Hannah a handful and is constantly questioning her parenting skills. Hannah is quite menacing and we glimpse an insight into a childs' mind and how they can misunderstand actions and signals and pull these round to justify their bad behaviour. Once we know there is nothing mentally wrong with Hannah (or at least nothing she has been tested for) the child takes on a more chilling and calculated persona. Every little victory for her is a loss for Suzette. Eventually Hannah does speak but it's frighteningly like she is possessed. Zoje Stage is careful to keep Hannah's 'voice' as childish as possible which only adds to the creepiness of the whole situation.

Daddy of course does not at first believe there is anything amiss with his perfect angel of a child, who overall appears to be very advanced for her age. I found the researching on the internet by a seven year old a bit of a stretch but to enjoy this you have to accept a few leaps of faith. Suzette although weakened by her illness does become genuinely afraid of her daughter and I could see how this could manifest itself in rational mothers. But she has to accept she is the adult and take control of the situation.

I felt there was a shift of power when Suzette does become as manipulative as Hannah when she has to convince daddy that the best course of action would be to take Hannah away from the family home. By now the situation has gone on too long and Hannah has targeted Suzette as the focus for all her misfortunes regarding her obsession with her father and Suzette is afraid for her life. Strangely I got the impression that although Suzette had suffered at the at the hands of her daughter she does really still love her but doesn't like her which allows her to become removed from emotion. Suzette is happy that she is no longer in the house and both her and her husband have more time for each other and with their loyalties no longer divided they are returning to a time when there was no Hannah, they find they are more at peace without her.

It is a disturbing look into the mind of a child that is wilful and manipulative and shows what can and sometimes does happen when a child is given too much attention and is allowed to 'control' and run the show. I know of a lot of children who are given rein to do what they please and have little boundaries which make them difficult to handle and although Hannah did have these she was able to play off one parent against the other like a game, a game which she very much enjoyed that gave her power.

A good read that was well executed by the author. Initially I was convinced that there was some mental problem with the child but as I read on (and being a somewhat spirited child myself) I could see perfectly the opportunities that Hannah had to get her own way and gain attention from a doting father, and unfortunately for her, the consequences that bought out the monster in her that in the end she couldn't control - or could she?

There's a sequel in there somewhere I'm sure and I'd love to read it. 5 stars from me.

With or without you by Shari Low

Have you ever made a life-changing decision and then wondered if you made the right one...?

When Liv and Nate walked up the aisle, Liv knew she was marrying the one, her soul mate and her best friend.
Six years later, it feels like routine and friendship is all they have left in common. What happened to the fun, the excitement, the lust, the love?

In the closing moments of 1999, Liv and Nate decide to go their separate ways, but at the last minute, Liv wavers. Should she stay or should she go?

Over the next twenty years we follow the parallel stories to discover if Liv's life, heart and future have been better with Nate... Or without him?

Extract:

Ah, so she had full facts. She was, in truth, surprisingly alert and sharp for

someone who had brain surgery three days ago. ‘Yep, I did that too,’ I said, returning

her smile.

‘That’s amazing.’

‘You wouldn’t be saying that if you’d seen me. Did they

mention that I did it in

my extra large knick

-

knacks because I couldn’t climb over in my fishtail frock?’

Her chuckle interrupted the conversation between the two elderly dears in the next

beds, who were now listening intently... as was a new arrival to the

scene.

‘Well, there’s a mental picture that may stay with me for the rest of the day.’

A man’s voice. My face

-

flush was instant, and deepened when I turned to see a

doctor, standing directly behind me. I’ve always maintained that real

-

life doctors

don’t lo

ok like the strapping hunks on medical dramas, and generally that’s true.

Richard didn’t have the chiselled jawline or the piercing blue eyes that would make

patients and staff melt at his surgical shoes, but he did have slightly unkempt black

wavy hair th

at curled over the stethoscope that was slung around his neck, somewhat

tired, potentially intoxicating green eyes, and a cheeky grin.

If this guy was in

Grey’s Anatomy

, he’d be the tall, medium

-

attractive one who

played the heart

-

throb’s sidekick, but who

always got the girl because he had a

twinkling eye, a great smile and the kind of charm that could take a patient’s mind off

most non

-

life

-

threatening ailments.

His comment was perfectly delivered, more amused than leery, bringing much

hilarity to everyon

e in earshot, and much mortification to me.

‘Richard Campbell, neurosurgeon,’ he said.

‘Liv Jamieson,’ I replied. ‘Palliative care. Late for work and about to dash off,’ I

added, before turning back to Francine. ‘I’m so glad you’re okay

–

and that I got to

meet you.’

Her infectious smile was back. ‘You too.’

Over the next few weeks, Francine made it back to full health and was discharged.

Meanwhile, the good doctor and I would bump into each other with slightly

suspicious regularity, until Chloe confessed t

hat she was trying to set me up with him

because I ‘needed a happy distraction to stop me moping about Nate’. She was right.

After Francine had been taken to hospital in the early hours of New Year’s Day, I’d

told him I definitely wanted to go through with

the split. It was the right thing to do.

We’d agreed not to call each other for the first couple of weeks and we’d both stuck

to that. So far. The seventy

-

five per cent certainty about my decision had dropped to

sixty per cent, and if it went below fifty

I was calling him.

Richard called me before that happened, at the beginning of May, when I was five

months into life as a singleton. In a stunning pivot of hypocrisy about the whole

doctor/nurse relationship disapproval, I’d accepted his suggestion of a d

ate. It had

taken a while, but I’d eventually relaxed and realised that the best thing to get over the

end of a relationship was the distraction of a cute doctor with a cheeky sense of

humour. I loved that he was a charmer and took nothing, except his work

, seriously. I

loved that it was easy and it hadn’t strayed into deep and demanding. Most of all I

loved that he was the complete opposite of Nate in every way.

Our shifts clashed, so we didn’t see each other more than twice a week, but it was

enough. It w

as uncomplicated. Fun. And not to be crude about it, but the sex...

‘Chloe, he talks the whole way through,’ I blurted, in the kitchen after the first

time he spent the night.

‘In that case, I’m so glad I was working. I’d have had to play a bit of Vengaboys

at

full blast to block the sound. Did it freak you out?’ she went on.

‘A bit.’ Okay, so here’s the thing. I could add up the total of my sexual partners on

one hand. Two of them were short

-

term things when I was a teenager. Another was an

unfortunate one

-

n

ight stand, thanks to vodka overload during Freshers Week. I spent

the next four years at uni avoiding some guy called Jeremy who’d been intimate with

my anatomy.

Then there was Nate, for eight years.

All in all, I wasn’t exactly widely experienced in such

things.

‘But did you like it?’

‘More than a bit,’ I replied, as she roared with laughter.

‘Who’d have known you had an inner slapper?’ she’d teased, before she headed

off, clutching a cream cheese bagel.

That seemed like so long ago now. Five months, thre

e days to be exact. Not that I

was counting. Okay, I was, but only to take my mind off the fact that nerves were

twisting my stomach into a knot the size of a melon.

Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty

Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The retreat at health-and-wellness resort Tranquillum House promises total transformation.

Nine stressed city dwellers are keen to drop their literal and mental baggage, and absorb the meditative ambience while enjoying their hot stone massages.

Miles from anywhere, without cars or phones, they have no way to reach the outside world. Just time to think about themselves, and get to know each other.

Watching over them is the resort's director, a woman on a mission. But quite a different one from any the guests might have imagined.

For behind the retreat's glamorous facade lies a dark agenda.

These nine perfect strangers have no idea what's about to hit them . . .

I really enjoyed this unusual story about 9 strangers who all end up booking into a health and wellness resort for different reasons and who all end up getting far more than they bargained for.

With a wide cast of characters with their own reasons for wanting to transform their lives (a claim that Tranquillem House offers) they embark on a journey that they hadn't anticipated during which they endure 10 cleansing programmes, daily smoothies, spa and therapy treatments along with personal exercise classes and five days of compulsory silence, this is shaping up to be a little more than most of the 'guests' expected.

Good likeable relatable characters with generous helpings of humour keep this novel ticking along nicely. We learn about all nine characters and their reasons for choosing the retreat and what they expect to get from it. Tranquillem House (set in Australia) is situated miles from anywhere and having had to surrender all electronic devices when they entered, our nine guests find themselves cut off from the outside world. The resort is run by a Russian called Marsha who turns out to be a ruthless woman who's own near death experience has led her to change her life and who believes she has the power to change others' lives (whether they like it or not).

While the calming programme seems innocent enough Marsha has a sinister agenda to which her unassuming guests will be subjected to.

Lovely characterisation of all of the nine participants make this a really realistic and enjoyable story and as it progresses the lives of these characters come to the fore. Good doses of humour and wit in this tale along with the madness of Marsha force these people together where unexpected bonds are made and dramatic transformations occur.

Loved the idea and the novel, well written and insightful with steady pace that makes it an easy read. I will never look at health spas and wellness centres quite the same again! Well worth 5 stars

No One You Know by Michelle Richmond

No One You Know by Michelle Richmond
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Her sister was murdered. The killer was never found. Until now…

All her childhood Ellie Enderlin had lived in her sister’s shadow. But then Lily was murdered and their family changed forever.

Now, decades later, Ellie comes into possession of Lila’s lost notebook and has a chance to finally discover the truth about her sister’s death. But her search for justice will lead her to uncover her sister’s darkest secrets…

I really struggled with this novel. I always try to finish a book and give an honest review but I only managed to get to chapter 13 and then had to put it away. To be honest the storyline was so flimsy which alone made it hard to keep going. The main character Ellie is searching for who killed her sister Lila many years previously. Lila's college professor (after meeting with Ellie and pumping her for information) writes a book about the murder and then makes assumptions on who the killer is. Lila is a maths student and has kept a journal with complicated maths calculations and theories and this is so overworked in the chapters that I did manage to read that made it too tedious to bother with. Too wordy and mathematically intense for me - sorry this only gets a 1 star rating.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Strictly Between Us by Jane Fallon

Strictly Between Us by Jane Fallon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Tamsin and her best friend Michelle have been inseparable since they were teenagers. Even now they spend all their time together, along with Patrick, Michelle's handsome husband.

So when Tamsin hears a rumour that Patrick is having an affair, she is furious. Unwilling to ignore it, Tamsin plots a scheme to catch Patrick in the act, using her assistant Bea as live-bait. It should be fool proof.
After all, Tamsin can trust Bea with anything. From her daily coffee order to fetching her dry-cleaning, writing reports and doing all the filing - Bea does everything with a smile on her face.

Except Tamsin never considered Bea might have her own agenda.

And if she does, then Tamsin really needs to watch her back . . .

Really enjoyed this clever, funny, entertaining chick lit by Jane Fallon. The characters were beautifully drawn with all their faults and insecurities that allow the reader an insight into their relationships and friendships. Peppered with lies, cheating, dishonesty and a sprinkling of revenge and jealousy this was a great read.

Told initially in the POV of Tamsin we learn initially all about her and develop an understanding of why (in part) she feels compelled to involve herself in her best friends marriage and expose cheating, lying Patrick, and the hazards of doing so. Part two of the novel you hear other characters 'speak' which allows the 'penny to drop' but also gives the reader choices of who to side with. This change of 'voice' in part two then pivots the pace to race towards the (not entirely expected) ending.

Hugely entertaining, great believable relatable characters, revenge and jealousy with a little romance thrown in for good measure, what's not to like? Intriguing and well woven plots, plenty of little surprises it has to get 5 stars - Jane Fallon is up there with the best in Chick lit writers.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.