Real Live Boyfriends by E. Lockhart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Yes. Boyfriends, Plural. If My Life Weren't Complicated, I Wouldn't Be Ruby Oliver
From E. Lockhart, author of the best-seller We Were Liars, and the highly-acclaimed The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, comes this hilarious and heart-warming series.
Ruby Oliver is in love. Or it would be love, if Noel, her real live boyfriend, would call her back. Not only is her romantic life a shambles:
* her dad is eating nothing but Cheetos
* her mother's got a piglet head in the refrigerator
* Hutch has gone to Paris to play baguette air guitar
* Gideon shows up shirtless
* and the pygmy goat Robespierre is no help whatsoever
Will Ruby ever control her panic attacks? Will she ever understand boys? Will she ever stop making lists? (No to that last one.) Ruby has lost most of her friends. She's lost her true love, more than once. She's lost her job, her reputation, and possibly her mind. But she's never lost her sense of humour.
The Ruby Oliver books are the record of her survival.
This is the final book in the Ruby series and wow what an ending, over the course of the 3 books we have followed Ruby through her teen years and learning about herself and others, there have been laughter and tears at times but she has always come through in the end. Reading these books we as readers have been on a journey with Ruby and we have grown up with her.
Everyone will have been able to relate to Ruby, she is your typical teenage girl who has similarities with all of us. Ruby has to deal with real life situations and some of which we may think now looking back are silly and not worth worrying about, to your teenage self you will remember how it felt like the end of the world. This makes her really easy to relate to.
These books are so easy to read, you must make sure you read the others in the series in order to really get the full enjoyment of this book, remember it is part of a series and shouldn't be read as a stand alone.
I don't really want to say much about this due to it being the last in the series as I don't want to spoil it. All I would say is that I think this is the perfect ending for the series and I am a little sad to see the Ruby Oliver series over. This would be a great series for any teenage girl to read, I am sure they will enjoy it as much as I have.
I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.
The Naturalista: Recipes for a healthier, happier life by Xochi Balfour
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Xochi Balfour changed her life from her little London kitchen and, as The Naturalista, has been blogging about her experience of balancing and simplifing her life in harmony with the natural world. Without recourse to expensive ingredients, all-consuming cleanses or dramatic diets, Xochi has taken the principles of naturopathy and created a way of life, from a gentler way of eating to simple beauty recipes as well as bringing relaxation and mindfulness into your everyday routine.
Her food is gluten- and dairy-free and predominantly plant based, but straightforward and delicious, her skincare recipes can also be made from kitchen ingredients and her techniques for everyday mindfulness can be fitted into the busiest of lives. Her recipes include power balls and energy bars, raw chocolate, sea salt and pistachio fudge, cornershop turmeric and coconut dahl and beetroot falafel as well as a gluten-free carrot and flax bread. For your body, there is a rosewater facial spray, passionfruit and papaya face mask and lavender and shea butter body lotion, while for your home, Xochi will show you the benefits of barefoot earthing and how to make your own incense.
This is truly a bright and beautiful guide to natural living in the modern age.
I thought this would be great for healthy recipes and it does have these in, along with beautiful photography. This book looks more at changing your lifestyle rather than just cooking one or two healthy recipes, which is great if you are looking for that kind of book.
The recipes are easy to follow and are clear.
I would recommend this for anyone looking at changing their lifestyle to make healthier choices.
I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.
The Woman who met her match by Fiona Gibson
What if your first love came back on the scene . . . 30 years later?
After yet another disaster, Lorrie is calling time on online dating. She might be single in her forties, but she’s got a good job, wonderful children and she’s happy. This, Lorrie decides, is going to have to be enough.
That is, until she receives a very unexpected request from France. Antoine Rousseau, who had once turned a lonely French exchange trip into a summer of romance, wants to see her – after thirty years.
But Lorrie is a responsible woman. She can’t exactly run off to Nice with the man who broke her teenage heart . . . can she?
A wonderfully funny novel, perfect for fans of Jill Mansell, Joanna Bolouri and Milly Johnson.
Fiona has stopped by with her make up must haves. Here they are!
MY MAKE-UP MUST-HAVES / FIONA GIBSON
My make-up bag is a precious thing. If I mislay it, the accompanying panic is akin to losing my purse, phone or keys - or having one of those dreams when you’re, say, in the baked goods aisle in Sainsbury’s and suddenly realise you are naked.
Most women I know are the same. It’s taken us years to squirrel out our favourites, and to replace it all would be nightmare in terms of time, effort and cash. When I was younger, I hopped from brand to brand, whereas now - although I’m not averse to trying something new - I’m somewhat more faithful to my favourites. Here’s what’s nestling in my make-up bag right now.
Bare Minerals Complexion Rescue BB cream - recommended by Misha McCullagh, a BM consultant who gave me lots of helpful advice when I was writing my new novel, The Woman Who Met Her Match (my main character, Lorrie, works on a beauty counter in a posh department store and I needed the inside info on what that’s like). I can’t bear a caked, claggy feeling on my skin, and haven’t worn actual foundation for years. This BB cream is sheer and light and gives just enough coverage to smooth out the wear and tear.
Bare Minerals Smoothing Face foundation brush. Brush application, as demonstrated to me by Misha, was a revelation - for my entire life I’ve just bunged on my base with my fingers. But using a brush like this, in small circular motions, gives a more even coverage and a really brilliant, professional result. I’m a total covert.
Benefit ‘That Gal’ Brightening Face Primer. Another counter recommendation (I really am a beauty salesperson’s dream. ‘Here I am! Have my money, people!’). If I’ve been working mad hours and lack sleep and fresh air, then my skin can start to look ashen. This magical stuff perks it up. Often, I put a blob on my hand, with a blob of the aforementioned BB cream too, blend them with a brush and then apply - so it’s a primer and BB in one. The effect is really light and brightening.
Clinique Stay-Matte Sheer Pressed Powder. Yep, powder can be viewed as a bit ‘nana’s make-up bag’ but I’ve sworn by this for decades, and always have that trusty green compact in my bag. While I’m not fond of an overly powdery look, a light dusting makes me feel ready to face the day.
Chanel Hydrating Lip Color in Rouge Coco. I’m having a ‘red revival’ after two decades of muted lip shades. Weirdly, I assumed I’d passed the cut-off age for a true red, but a counter lady persuaded me otherwise. This formulation glides on, is neither too matte nor too glossy, and lasts for hours as long as it’s applied with a liner. It’s amazingly easy to wear.
Diorshow Proliner - a twist-up liner which is far easier to apply, in my opinion, than the liquid type that comes with a brush. It’s just like drawing with a pen and gives deep, rich colour that lasts for hours. While I feel slightly too old for the liquid flick, this little beauty just works for me.
As for blusher, at the moment I’m using a swanky Chanel one - but only because I had a treaty gift voucher. I could just as happily use a bargainacious brand like Barry M or Boots No. 7. Ditto for pencil lip liners and eye liners - I don’t believe you need to spend a lot. And mascara-wise, I’m currently using Soap & Glory but I’m equally keen on Clinique and Benefit. I’m a bit of a brand-hopper, lashes-wise.
And underneath it all? When it comes to skincare I’m currently wedded to Liz Earle’s Hot Cloth Cleanser (easily the best cleanser of my life), plus her Superskin Moisturiser and serum (called Concentrate for Night). The ladies at the John Lewis concession in Glasgow are super-helpful and I often come away with a few enticing freebies when I’ve made a purchase. Yes, it’s all a bit spendy, but these products last and last and are a joy to use every day. Isn’t it brilliant to be a woman sometimes?
Fiona’s new novel, The Woman Who Met Her Match, is out now (Avon)
I can't wait to go out and grab a copy, thanks so much Fiona for stopping by!
Ballerina Dreams by Michaela DePrince
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
One windy day, a magazine blew down the road. I reached out and caught it. A pretty picture of a woman was on the front cover of the magazine. She wore a short pink dress that stuck out around her in a circle. She looked very happy.
At the age of three, Michaela DePrince found a photo of a ballerina that changed her life. She was living in an orphanage in Sierra Leone at the time, but was soon adopted by a family and brought to America. Michaela never forgot the photo of the dancer she once saw, and decided to make her dream of becoming a ballerina come true. She has been dancing ever since, and after a spell as a principal dancer in New York, now dances for the Dutch National Ballet in Amsterdam.
Beautifully and gently illustrated by Ella Okstad, Ballerina Dreams is the younger-reader edition of Michaela DePrince's highly moving memoir, Hope in a Ballet Shoe.
This is a nicely illustrated book, perfect for anyone who has a dream, however big or small and it identifies that it doesn't matter who you are or where you come from. You ambition and dreams can come true with a bit of determination and faith.
Reading this as an adult I feel gives a totally different opinion of the story and perhaps some of these thoughts and feelings may not be obvious to children. I think this would be an enjoyable book for adults and children alike.
I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.
The One Plus One by Jojo Moyes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
One single mum
With two jobs and two children, Jess Thomas does her best day after day. But it's hard on your own. And sometimes you take risks you shouldn't. Because you have to . . .
One chaotic family
Jess's gifted, quirky daughter Tanzie is brilliant with numbers, but without a helping hand she'll never get the chance to shine. And Nicky, Jess's teenage stepson, can't fight the bullies alone.
Sometimes Jess feels like they're sinking . . .
One handsome stranger
Into their lives comes Ed Nicholls, a man whose life is in chaos, and who is running from a deeply uncertain future. But he has time on his hands. He knows what it's like to be lonely. And he wants to help . . .
One unexpected love story
The One Plus One is a captivating and unconventional romance from Jojo Moyes about two lost souls meeting in the most unlikely circumstances.
What made the experience of listening to The One Plus One the most enjoyable?
I really enjoyed the different character voices throughout the performance, it was also really engaging from the beginning.
What other book might you compare The One Plus One to, and why?
I wouldn't compare it to any others that I have listened to before,
Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances? How does this one compare?
This was the first from these narrators.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
I did want to although being so long I was unable to, I saved this and listened to it on 2 separate plane journeys, this is something I would recommend.
Any additional comments?
I would recommend this to others, this was the first Jojo Moyes book I have read/listened to and really, really enjoyed it. My previous thoughts were that her books were sad and quite depressing. This book was neither of these and I would now not hesitate to pick up another one of her books.
What a Way to Go by Julia Forster
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
1988. 12-year-old Harper Richardson's parents are divorced. Her mum got custody of her, the Mini, and five hundred tins of baked beans. Her dad got a mouldering cottage in a Midlands backwater village and default membership of the Lone Rangers single parents' club. Harper got questionable dress sense, a zest for life, two gerbils, and her Chambers dictionary, and the responsibility of fixing her parents' broken hearts. Set against a backdrop of high hairdos and higher interest rates, pop music and puberty, divorce and death, What a Way to Go is a warm, wise and witty tale of one girl tackling the business of growing up while those around her try not to fall apart.
I'd probably equate this as a young adult novel. Told through the eyes of a 12 year old girl called Harper it had a charm and evoked memories of the 1980's well. It takes quite a dysfunctional family unit seen through the eyes of a teenager {Harper) who is quite wise for her years through growing up in the 1980's while she tries to make sense of a world of adults, their problems, heartaches and her often witty unique way of handling life.
It was an amusing read, often sad in places but still managed to maintain a lightness throughout. Not really my kind of read as I said it seems more young adult than adult reading but it was still enjoyable. Worth 3 stars for it's nostalgia and craftsmanship but not the best book I've read this year.
I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.
War Orphans by Lizzie Lane
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
“If at all possible, send or take your household animals into the country in advance of an emergency. If you cannot place them in the care of neighbours, it really is kindest to have them destroyed."
Joanna Ryan’s father has gone off to war, leaving her in the care of her step-mother, a woman more concerned with having a good time than being any sort of parent to her.
But then she finds a puppy, left for dead, and Joanna’s becomes determined to save him, sharing her meagre rations with him. But, in a time of war, pets are only seen as an unnecessary burden and she is forced to hide her new friend, Harry, from her step-mother and the authorities. With bombs falling over Bristol and with the prospect of evacuation on the horizon, can they stay together and keep each other safe?
War Orphans is a nice easy read, lots of heart and tugs at the heart strings. A little girl Joanna in the midst of war is a determined little fighter, she is treated badly by her stepmother and finds her salvation in looking after a little puppy who she finds left for dead after someone cruely throws a bag full of puppies into the river to drown. She rescues Harry and is determined to help him survive. The problem is that wartime means that food is hard to come by and having Harry and feeding him is against the law so Joanna hides Harry in an abandoned shed on the allotments.
Joanna grows up during this awful wartime and makes some friends along the way and those lives she crosses have their own hardships to bear.
It was a sweet little book and I suppose it does end how it should but didn't have any surprises for me; a nice distraction read and a little glimpse into this genre but not a great novel. I give this one a 3 star rating.
I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.
