Book Review; A Collection Of Books For Halloween, Autumn and Winter

Hi readers, 

It feels like I'm writing this post a little late - should have been closer to the start of October then the end! As most of you know though, I've not been well and so I've not been writing a lot, not that I've been keeping on top of this blog anyway! Now, I'm trying to get back to doing things I enjoy and helps to keep me busy.

So, I wanted to write about some books that have the same theme and fit in with Halloween which is next week. I'm not sure if I'll get around to writing about them all individually which is why I thought it would be good to do a collective post. However, I've not read some of these books yet, so I can't give a full view so this is just going to be a quick look and first thoughts.

I'm going to be looking at 6 anthologies, 4 novels, 8 non-fiction books and a coloring book. I really enjoy reading short stories at this time of year because things are often so busy it's nice to dip in and out of stories and not have to fully commit to a single novel.   

My hope is that this post might be useful to other people and introduce them to some new books. Let's make a start with the books in the above photo and what better way to be began with the master of darkness and horror himself, Dracula.   

The Rivals Of Dracula, Stories from The Golden Age of Gothic Horror edited by Nick Rennison.

I saw this book in Waterstones a month or so back and decided I had to have it for my vampire book collection. The anthology contains 15 short vampire stories which were written in the late Victorian and Edwardian times. The blurb describes the stories as being 'classic tales to chill the blood' by well known and less known supernatural writers including, M R James and EF Benson. 

I'm looking forward to reading this because I like Victorian literature and reading about 'early' vampires. 

Haunted Nights, A Horror Writers Association Anthology edited by Ellen Datlow and Lisa Morton.

Someone brought me this book as a Christmas present last year and I decided to save it to read around now. This anthology has 16 short stories that are themed around Halloween. I don't recognize any of the writers which can be a good thing as it's an introduction to new authors and the chances of re-reading a short story are low. 

The stories are described as being 'sly modern narratives to haunting traditional stories' and 'explore the many facets, cultures and traditions' of Halloween. I'm really interested in reading some of this stories as the titles sound so good and with them all being based around my favorite holiday just makes me want to read it more.  

Eight Ghosts, The English Heritage Book Of New Ghost Stories edited by Rowan Routh.

I saw this book whilst on holiday in Cornwall in the Tintagel Castle shop. I pre-ordered it in paperback when I got home. English Heritage, for those that don't know, is a charity that looks after over 400 historic sites in England, including Tintagel, many other famous castles and Stonehenge. 

This book contains 8 ghost stories described as 'a rich collection of unnerving ghosts and sinister histories,' set at different EH sites, some of which I have been too. I don't know any of the writers once again. I do like that there is no introduction to this anthology and it goes straight to the stories. The afterwards includes a list of EH sites that are known for being haunted which I really like and gives a nice finish to the collection.  

   

Complete Ghost Stories by Charles Dickens.

I found this book in a discount book shop along with 2 others. I'm a fan of Dickens, though often find his novels difficult and lengthy to read, so this collection of 20 ghost stories, including the super famous A Christmas Carol, is perfect for me. Dickens was interested in supernatural and liked telling ghost stories. In this anthology, his 'Gothic talents can be seen' and the stories cover, 'grotesque comedy...revenge, insanity, pre-cognition and dream visions.' 

I love the characters and plots Dickens has created in his other writings, so I'm sure I'll love reading these ghost stories too.   

Ghosts Of Christmas Past edited by Tim Martin. 

The last book in the photo, I brought with the Dickens one and they do go together. This anthology has 13 modern and classic short stories and some of the writers I know including; M R James, Jenn Ashworth, E. Nesbit and Neil Gaiman. The stories are Christmas themed and described as 'seasonal chillers,' 'a world of ghosts and horrors,' and 'real spirits of Christmas.' 

I'm looking forward to reading some of these stories at Christmas time. For me, winter evenings, especially when its rainy and windy, create the perfect back drop for curling up and reading horror stories.

The Mammoth Book Of Halloween Stories edited by Stephen Jones. 

This is the last of the anthologies and it's in the photo below. I love Mammoth Books, they cover so many different genres both fiction and fact and I've not found one I didn't like yet. This collection of 26 horror stories set around Halloween was published this year and is a new format from the other books; bigger, larger text and it's also the first to use Halloween in it's title.

The anthology is described as being, 'a dark feast of frightening fiction by some of the most successful and respected horror writers working today,' and is a 'spooky selection of stories set on the night when evil walks the earth.' Once again the writers are a mix and I known some of them including; Neil Gaiman, Nancy Kilpatrick and Ramsey Campbell.

I've started reading this and am enjoying it.   

    

                                                                                                                                                                   

Blood Communion, A Tale Of Prince Lestat by Anne Rice.

This is the first of the novels and I've all ready finished reading it! So I'll be writing a review soon. Briefly though, one of the most famous vampires in the world, Lestat returns in a new novel about the coming together of all the vampires in the world and how he became Prince of them all. This horror story is so fitting to this time of year and I love to get swept away by Anne Rice's passionate and deeply descriptive writing. 

Colouring Heaven, Halloween Special edited by Sally Fitzgerald, Anthem Publishing.

Different from the other books in this post, but I still wanted to include it, is this coloring magazine. I've a subscription to Colouring Heaven now as I found myself buying this magazine each month and loving the art work inside. This edition is the Halloween one and there are '40 unearthly designs with spooky-cuteness.' I love all the drawings and each captures a different spirit of Halloween in a funny or horror way.   

Adult coloring has become really big now and I'm on that train. It's so calming and a different escape from everything else, plus I like bring the pictures to life and making them my own. Plus, I have found myself creating stories about the people etc in the imagines and I'm hoping this will inspire me to write some more stories.        

    

World War Z by Max Brooks

People in the past have recommended I read this novel written as accounts after a zombie plague has taken over the world. I've not had the chance to yet but my boyfriend has lent this book and the follow up one to add to my reading pile. I've never been a fan of zombies, maybe it's because of all the supernatural they don't interested me and when a biologist friend told me that there was actual likely-hood of there one day being a zombie, it put me further off! 

However, I'm willing to read this novel because it's different style, 'based on extensive interviews' in the 'finest traditions of American journalism' interests me and lots of people say it's good. I just hope it's not too scary!  

The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks

This book is the companion to the one above and is about surviving zombies, 'don't be reckless with your most precious asset- life.' So, I guess if the threat of real zombies ever happened this self-help book would contain useful information in dealing with a whole range of situations. The chapters look at zombie myths and realities, weapons and combat techniques, on the defense etc. It has a very fact feel to it and isn't something I'll be reading at bedtime! 

A Secret History Of Witches by Louisa Morgan

This book was the first I picked up for the discount book shop and I thought it was like a non-fiction book about witches, then I read the back and saw it was a novel. It kinda of sits on the edge of my normal supernatural reading but it interested me enough to buy it. It's about a family of witches who have lost their magic and need to rediscover it as the Second World War arrives in order to change history, 'a tale of family, sacrifice, love and magic.' 

Without reading it I'm not sure how I'm going to feel about.    

Wicca For Beginners by Lisa Chamberlain

Keeping with the witch theme here's the first of the non-fiction books. I have had an interest in magic for awhile now and I've been meaning to get around to learning more about how I can use it. This little book gives a brief guide to 'Wiccan beliefs, rituals, magic and witchcraft.' It's laid out nicely and simply, not going into too much detail and covering lots to get you more interested. 

I've had a flip through and found I can connect with some of the ideas about the religion of Wicca. I'm looking further to reading more.  

Wicca Book Of Spells by Lisa Chamberlain

I got this book to go with the one above as I wasn't sure how many spells there'd be in the beginners book. Each page has a different spell on it, a list of things need to cast the spell and instructions on how to do it. There are spells on how to make friends, find love, succeeded at job interviews, get more money and protecting the home, 'for success in magic, your state of mind is the most important factor.' 

I've not tried any out yet but I'm hoping too. I thought that this, in a different way, might help me to deal with some of the stress and anxiety issues I've been having, of which there are actually spells for! I'll have to give it ago and write about what happens.   

This next group of books don't really link in with the Halloween, horror theme but they do link in with autumn and winter times and how that change of seasons can effect your mental health. Most people at this time of year get depressed and it's something to do with the lower sunlight, the darker nights and the coldness too. I've had different battles with depression over the years and this time it's been mixed in with anxiety and stress, so I wanted to get some different books to help deal with some of my issues. 

The two animal spirit guide books, I brought because I've been turning more and more to my animal spirits and asking them for help. I wanted to find some information out about the different animals I had been seeing and how best to communicate with them. I have found both these books helpful. 

Animal Spirit Guides is a reference book of each different animal and though it's been fun looking them up, I've found that some websites have had more detailed information on them. Animal Magic is more of a guide book to understanding animal spirits and how to interact with them. 

The other four books are about learning to overcome different problems; I got The Happiness Trap because I was looking for a self- help book about dealing with stress at work, anxiety and depression which this book covers. It comes across different from other books that deal with these problems as it sets out to explain that having strong emotions and feelings is normal and that humans aren't always meant to be happy. I've read the first chapter of this now and I'm starting to understand how this book is going to teach me how to deal with my mental health problems better. 

The This Book Will Make You... series has lots of different titles, I picked 3 that I felt would be most useful to me. they are cute little books, packed with simple information to help bring around changes to help you achieve the title. I've had a quick scan through all of them and they look easy to read and have practical information in them. I'm hoping that they will help me progress into a new job and improve my motivation and passion for things. 

That brings me to the end of the post and shockingly it's taken much of the day to write this. But it has made me happy and kept me busy. Let me know if you decided to get any of these books now or your thoughts if you've all ready read any of them. I'm looking forward to dipping into each of them during the coming long, cold winter nights. 

July Life Update Part 1: What am I doing right now?

Hi readers,

I'm writing this early too to try and get a head as I'm so busy right now. Originally, the sewing project post was meant to be up first, but then I realized this follows on well from last week's post when I wasn't able to write about two things on there. So, I'm moving that post to August now. Which means the three Mondays for the rest of this month will now be the book reviews of the Soulless Manga trilogy and the first two books in the Custard Protocol series. Though as I've just checked, the second book isn't out till the Thursday 21st July and that's 5 days to read it in. Just pre-order it so it'll come just before or on that day now. Should have got it with my birthday presents, oh well.

The first thing I want to write about today is the question of if  I'm a 'serial dater' or not. Now, my only slight risk of writing and publishing this is that there are certain people I'd rather not see this post. But I do want to reflect on recent things and prove that I'm not really a serial dater. So, as most of you know I broke up with my boyfriend back in January. Since then we've still stayed friends and though this has been hard it's working...beside from not being able to break some of the old habits....

Around April, I decided I had to move on and prove to myself that I was still date-able and not stuck on the highest shelf like a broken doll. I joined two dating websites, both of which I had used before though, this time I was going to juggle being on both of them at the same time. My inboxes every since then have been stacked high with messages from men. Unlike the last times though, I tried to be more picky in which men I message back.

Internet dating is hard. Everyone seems to think it's easy, but to be honest it's a lot easier to lie and just say what you want, because you feel more protected by the screen and being home then say if you met some at a bar or public event. So, I get a lot of messages with men just saying "I have great ect 'place body part here.'" or do "I want to have a one night stand ect ?" I don't reply to those messages. Also, its rare I reply to people not in the same country as me, just long distance dating isn't my thing and I have enough friends right now. Okay, maybe I could do with a few more...but I like meeting up and doing stuff, not just talk online.

I have a lot of rules and stuff in place for my safety as I am so aware of the problems online dating can led too. One of my rules is that I try to spend awhile talking to the guy to get to know him. Another is that the first date is actually called the first meet up and we meet as friends. That's how it's been for all my 'dates' and I have stated this every time, we are meeting as friends. Because it's less pressure off everything really and I'm not in a hurry to get back into a relationship. Not because I'm holding a candle for my ex, but because I've suddenly discovered the freedom of being single. Though sometimes I don't like it, I'm enjoying it for the most part. My long term goal is of course to find someone, but right now I'm happy building friendships. They say that's how the best relationships start anyway.

So, Over the last two months or so I've meet up with four guys now from the two dating sites. To code them, I'm going to give them letters of the alphabet and try not to go into too much detail about them personally (just to protect them and myself, because I'm nice like that).

The first guy, A, I have meet 3 times now. I really like him and we get on, there's this flitting between us which I enjoy too. He's very funny and sarcastic, which I like. He makes me laugh a lot and he finds my stories and jokes funny. Also, all the meet ups we've turn into mini adventures as we end up wandering around looking for places! The downside for me is that he does live far away from me, but he sees the city I live in as his true home and he does want to move here one day. I am hoping things will develop with him, but I'm not sure if it'll last, we don't seem to have that much in common as of yet anyway.

B lives a lot closer and we had an okay first date, even if I ended up taking the led on it. Which I don't mind, but he was lacking in confidence for me. Plus physically, I didn't feel attracted to him. He was really sweet, but I think he was too nice and was happy doing whatever I wanted. Which I didn't trouble me, but some input would have been good. We've stayed in connect and I said we could be friends, which I know he's not too happy about. We have yet to arrange a second meet up.

C and I have met twice now. He seems nice, but like B he is lacking in confidence and also he's shorter then me and I just can't deal with that. There's just something about tall men I like and it doesn't help that I'm tall myself! The first time we met, I had to buy my own drink. which I don't mind - it's not a date! but I think it jarred with me that he didn't even ask me about it or anything....unlike the other two guys. We had a good talk and we did have a bit of a walk too - which is how I noticed the height difference!

We went bowling and for lunch as our second meet up and he talked a lot about this girl he liked. I was actually in one of my low moods and the conversation wasn't that interesting. Bowling was fun though and lunch was okay. I fear that he'll go the same way B went though as he's not for me, but a friendship might work.

D does live a bit away from me and we have met twice now. The first time, I broke my rule of not eating on the first met up. I'm not a shy eater, but I can be a bit messy and I'd rather just get something like a drink which can easily be handled. And I was messy! We had a talk about a number of things and I do feel once again that I was far more confident then him. Though for some reason I was really on edge and so chatty. He was taller then me though and paid for lunch - super nice of him because he didn't have to. But then he give me super mixed signals because he decided to leave.

I don't normally set an end time unless I have to, but that meet up only lasted about an hour and 40 minutes. Which isn't that short but compared to the the four- six hours I'm use to it kinda is. I so thought I'd come on too strong and he'd not liked me. I had all this paranoia about it until he texted me and asked me if I wanted to meet again...turns out he was just super worried about missing his train home though they seemed to be every hour. I agreed and decided to give it another go.

The second meet up went a lot better and actually changed some of my first judgement about him. I think it helped that we went and did something this time. We went to an art gallery and had fun looking at the paintings. He made some jokes and we talked a lot about art and relationships. We went for tea and it was my pick this time, I choice a new place I'd not been to before, but the food was good. We split the bill this time and we hugged like three times before he left.

I'd like to see him again and not just because he said he wanted to go to the zoo for our next meet up! But because I think his confidence will grow and we have lot in common.

So, am I serial dater? I don't believe so. For starts, I'm not actually 'dating' them and they and me know where we stand and I make it repeated clear that's the case. Also, this the first time I've seen a number of men at once. Normally, I stick with one guy and if the first meet up doesn't work then I move on to the next. Actually, I only started dating in my early twenties. As a teenager, I wasn't that interested in boys and it's only been over the last six or seven years that I have changed my mind and become interested in finding someone to spend the rest of my life with.

I looked up what the actual differentiation of a serial dater and there's lots of interesting information out there, but I came to understand that it's a person who has a few dates with someone then moves on to someone else and the pattern repeats. They do this because they like the first stage of dating and don't want to commit to anything. Also they don't want to spend time getting to know people, they enjoy having money spent on them and date people who have nothing in common with them. I don't really tick any of those boxes.

Of course, I know there's going to come a time when either I decide to start a relationship with one of these guys or another I've yet to meet. I currently have two guys I really want to meet up with as well. Then I know I'll have to sort things out because I'm so not a cheat. At the minute I'm having a bit of trouble juggling the four guys I'm making friends with, so I can't imagine managing two different relationships! To be honest, I'm just having fun meeting and getting to new people, which is something I don't do really do.

And before I forget here's a link to a tumblr I llike and some of the posts on here just sum up internet dating messages for me really well; http://really-not-ok-cupid.tumblr.com/ If you need a giggle it's a good thing to check out, also it reminds me why being single can be a good thing!

On the flip side of this, for the past six weeks I have been giving up my Sunday mornings to be a part of the group mentoring at the youth center. It's the first run of this and it's to help 8-12 children who can't do 1-1 mentoring because their problems are not big enough or do to their additional needs they are unstable. But, if once we finish in another seven weeks, the young people still need support they'll go into the 1-1. I thought this would be a good way to start my mentoring as I've not been matched up to a young person yet.

I am finding it tough. It's hard to do anything for the first time even with training and support. I think it's going to take awhile for me to get into it as even after all this time I'm just not getting to grips with it. I'm not going to say mentoring isn't for me, I just think I need more practice at it as with everything. Maybe I need to do some more reading around the subject and look at how I can improve myself.

So the group mentoring sees three mentors, a supervisor, a supporter and eight young people meeting to do a range of activities which I divided into doing an activity often based around teamwork and looking at emotions/feels, lunch and small group time which sees the mentors working with the same 3 or 2 young people in a more focused activity. Now, my two kids are brother and sister and they have a bit of a rough home life, not in any abusive and neglecting ways, just that their mother has a lot on her plate it seems.

Last Sunday was also the second time they'd not turned up and it was the four time all together. It bugs me because I'm giving up my free time to help these kids to reach the reasons they are on mentoring and their mum doesn't seem so bothered to bring them. I'm so hoping this is going to change and that I can now spend the next few weeks actually helping this kids out. I keep telling myself that even if I'm just there for them and they can talk to me and I can teach them one coping technique they remember when they are having a bad time, then I'll feel like I achieved something. It'd be goo if I can do more, but as a mentor there's only so much you can do anyway.

Even though I love my part time job, I'm currently looking for another. I'd love to find some morning work in an office somewhere, so that I could still keep my shifts at the youth center. It wasn't my plan to really stay so long and I wanted a full time job, but I've not had much look and I guess I've become to comfy where I am. But I want to move out and get a car and the only way to really do that is to save up and I need more money to do that. So, I'm on the look out again and hopefully, I'll find something soon enough.

The issue is that job hunting doesn't get any easier really. I find it takes up so much time and it's tiring. Being on sites like Linked In and signing up to temp and agencies does make it easier, but it's putting in all the leg work and the fact I don't get many replies triggers my depression. A few weeks back I had a phone call and I was headhunted for this job as a research at a recruitment center. But the interview was cancelled the evening before because the guy said on reflection I didn't sound confident enough and that totally didn't make any sense to me. Also he wanted to hand in my notice that day before I had the interview so he could hire me the next day! That's just weird too.

In some other news, I have finally got a goal date set for my short story collection anthology release. It's going to be on Monday 1st August. This is going to be published on amazon kindle for £1. Which seems really cheap to me! It's going to be a collection of around 30 short stories from the first year of my other blog The Story Files over on Wordpress. I've been saying for ages that I'm going to do it and now I really mean it. I'll post on here when it's ready.

I so want to look at getting money from my blogs. I know its' difficult to do and most people say it's like a full time job. I've never really wanted to actually get money out of this because it me it's always been my space to just out pour, but it'd be great to get some else in return for writing now. Speaking of that and blogs.....

I had a great idea for a new blog and I plan to start that up next week. My plan is to post on that blog on Fridays and it's going to be about fighting negativity and how to stay positive. This blog is different from my current two and others I've done in the past because it's going to focus on advising people. I had this idea after having a talk with my dad then seeing some self-help books work. Originally, I was just going to make a life post about it but when I started planning it out there was so much I wanted to write about that I thought I could just turn this into a new blog.

I have set a word limit of 500 words per-post because that's about the right word count to draw people in and to read it fully. I try hard to keep the word count down on here, but like I said with this being a space to out pour it can be hard to keep things short!

So, I'll let you know about that when I've sorted it all out.

Update! I've set it up and done the first post! You can check it out here; https://negativitybreakout.wordpress.com/

Lastly, I wanted to write about my future plans. Right now, I'm on a short break in Leeds with my mum. On Saturday it was actually my birthday and this trip to Leeds is apart of that. I might write about that at some point. So, I've got some books lined up for reviewing, more short stories to write, two novellas to finish and I want to get the other two short story collections for the second and third year of my blog sorted and published. I think I'll carry on with what I've been currently doing on this blog, because it seems okay, but I'm hoping my new blog takes off.

Thanks for reading and please stay posted for some updates on all of this stuff soon!


My other blog: https://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/


Images from https://pixabay.com

Book Review: Heaven by Christoph Marzi

Hi Readers,

I finished this book the night before I went to London, so about two weeks ago now. I brought at the same time as Angelfall and it was another recommended by my best friend when we saw it in the book shop. I wanted to read it because it seemed an interesting fast read. However, I didn't like it as much as Angelfall. 

So this novel is about two teenagers who meet on the roof tops of London and the girl, called Heaven, which is actually her nickname, has had her heart stolen, but somehow she has survived and been able to run away. David, the young man, decides to help her find her heart and the person who stole it. I really liked this idea and at first I thought it was like a modern and different retelling of Snow White. You know, like what had happened if the hunters man had cut out Snow White's heart and she had lived? No. Turns out this story is based around a 'lost' fairy tale; The Fallen Fairy's Heart which the plot states the Earl of Rochester wrote.

Which in itself is pretty interesting and a good plot device, but it didn't help me like this story any better. Anyway, the two main characters do cross paths with the 'murderers' and find out that they are stealing hearts to give to someone. I won't spoil the ending, but it wasn't what I wanted and it felt very weak compared to the rest of the book, even though the ending is happy enough.

The characters get to visit my favorite and still most wanted place to go Highgate Cemetery. The description of the place was well done and also the horror feelings came through. That was my favorite part of the book really.

I'm not going to say that my problems and the overall problems with the book are because it's a young adult novel as that's unfair. I just think the writing style and some of the plot is to blame. I got really into this book and even after I found out the story was based on this 'lost' fairy tale and the idea that fairies are a part of the sky, but then soon after that it just got a bit dull for me, even with the twist about Heaven's parents and other people being murdered, I'm just not sure what is was, but maybe it dragged a little too much. Also, it doesn't help there's a very unrealistic scene at the end of the book. I get the author was going for the dramatic final, but a fight on the London Eye -that's the big Ferris wheel in London, if you didn't know- just didn't do it for me.  

The development of Heaven and David was very good and their falling in love was done nicely in the background. They both grew on me and I liked learning more about them. The villain characters interested me enough with their mystery, but the actual villain, we never got to spend enough time with and even though we learned his story and why he was after Heaven's heart, I thought more could have been done with him. I liked the ghost character who appears as well, Heaven's butler and the owner of the bookshop. In fact, it did seem like the background characters had been given enough attention to make them feel like they were more then just there support the main characters.

The narrative style started to bug me after awhile because a lot of places and street names are brought up. I guess that's useful in a way if you have been to London because you know where these places are. If you haven't been either you are aware of them or you have to guess. I just felt like being told where the characters were all the time bogged down the story. I loved the descriptions of London from the rooftops, though I did find myself humming the chimney sweep song from Mary Poppins  a few times! Doesn't help there's a quote from the song on the dedication page either. But it's very fitting.

The pace was a mix of fast and slow really, but that didn't give me too much trouble because it seemed to be well balanced. There some okay twists in the story too and you do get a mystery feel from the narrative. There is a lot of reference to other books and stories, mainly Dickens. I get this because he was well known for writing about London and the parts people didn't want to see. I think though the author has just assumed you have read Dickens' novels and there for you'll be able to picture/understand the use of Dickens' characters' names and references. The narrative is told in third person, so that we can get a switch between characters at important moments, though I do wonder if it had been better in first person from the point of view of David.

The dialogue of the characters felt real enough, but I think there might have been too much swearing for me. Which is odd to say in a young adult book and coming from me as well, but sometimes it just felt over used and I dislike that. Other then that though, there was nothing special about it.  So, no needed to fear not being able to understand a London cockney accent!

Overall, I want to say I did like this book. I liked the ideas behind it and the mystery too. The problems was, it just didn't grip me all the way through like it should have done. I didn't get the wanting to put it down urge, I just wanted to finish it, but that seemed to take a lot longer then it should have done. I'd recommended this book to teenagers interested in this kind of thing, but if you wanted a fantasy style story set in London I'd say go read Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, to this day that story is still with me. (And I just found out I never did a review of it, that needs changing!)

Thanks for reading and I'll see you next week for a new book review.

Ps. if you've got the time please check out my other blog;  https://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/

Image from: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12735319-heaven

Book Review: The Reflections of Queen Snow White by David Meredith

Hi readers, 

As some of you might remember from my last post, I was gifted this e-book in exchange for a review. Let me first say it's not what I normally read, but I did find the idea behind it interesting. Though I guess it appealed to the writer side of me more then the reader side! I think this is because, and I've noticed this small issue with reading stories on my kindle before, I'm more aware of mistakes and analyzing the work then just purely reading it for pleasure. Perhaps, the long hours spent sitting at a screen proof-reading and editing mine and other people's works is to blame? Still though, I thought I'd give this go as who says no to a free book? 

That aside, of course everyone knows the story of Snow White. The most famous being Disney's version as a lot of fairy tales are known by and with the cliched ending of  'lived happily ever after.' It seems to me there's been a spur in the re-telling of famous fairy tales, what with a lot of movies focusing on upgrading the stories for adult audiences and I guess authors have been doing the same for years. In this case, Meredith has questioned the 'happily ever after' ending and done away with it to write about what did happen to Snow White and Princes Charming.   

I was a little unsure when I first looked at this e-book. The cover image is really nice, but at no point does Snow White sit at a pond, it merely reflects as -ironic as that sounds!- Snow White looking at her past selfs and reflecting upon many life stages. The story opens with Snow White listening to plans of her daughter's coming wedding, but she seems far too distant and lost in her own thoughts. She deeply misses Charming who has died - he was a lot older then her- and she can't get over how lonely she feels. Also, the fact he use to do everything and was always there for her. 

This deep sense of loss comes over really well and I did feel sad for Snow White because she does get so lost in her grieve that she can't escape from it. However, I thought her having a daughter would give her a greater purpose and something to re-focus on, but Snow White seems to have lost interested in her too. I guess because the daughter is getting married and about to also become 'lost' ? (in a sense). I know the story is about Snow White, but for me the daughter takes too much of a back seat and isn't a good supporting character. Though at the end things do get turned around and Snow White does become a mother figure.  

The plot then goes; desperate to have some peace in her busy castle, Snow White goes to the rooms of her wicked step-mother and discovers the magic mirror. There the mirror shows Snow White moments of her past she has buried and how they prove she is a strong woman. We get a re-telling in parts of the original fairy tale by the Grimm brothers, which is far more horror like then the pretty, flowery Disney version! In this context it works very well though and Meredith goes into detail about the abuse and neglected that the child Snow White faced. 

The other moment that stuck with me was the wedding night sex scene. I accidentally, whilst seeing what other people thought briefly about the e-book, read someone's thoughts on this scene and they described it as being rape. That for whatever reason struck me when I reached that part. I didn't see it that way, but I understand why some women might do. It becomes clear that Snow White knows nothing about sex because no one has ever told her anything. Charming, who clearly does know, doesn't take the time to tell her much and just gets on with it. Though, Snow White does seem to enjoy it. There's not much graphic detail of the sex and what I got out of it was the tradition of it and the fact that a heir was needed. 

After having seen and reflected on these hidden events of her past, Snow White sees that she was wrong about herself and she's not an incapable, weak woman. The abuse and lost she suffered has made her stronger and she was able to move on from them before. This allows her to move on from the death of Charming and grew as a queen. Thus, having a happier old age. 

The plot itself does work well and lots of themes do get explored, including death, loss, depression and love. There was enough interest for me to keep reading and I did want to find out about Snow White's time with Prince Charming. However, it is short. When I first started reading, my Kindle told me it was going to take just over two hours and half to read. For most people, that wouldn't be a bother, but for the writer in me I could see areas that could have been expanded upon. Also and as I've said before, I like my stories to have a linear flow and not be so choppy and jumping to flashbacks. I think having a better and more subtle movements into the flashbacks of the past would have improved the narrative structure. 

My second major issue, and this I know is personal to me more then anything else, is the language that Meredith uses. I get he was really trying to capture the settings and time, which came across to me is medieval style and German (true to the original Snow White), but every few words my dyslexic brain would stumble and I'd be like okay I've no idea what that word means, skip it! And it made it hard going for me. Don't get me wrong though, it is nicely written and there is something poetic and old fashioned romantic about the language, but it might take a few pages to get into. 

I think that many readers will easily be able to connect with the character of Snow White and the themes. Haven't we all lost someone and been in love? She is grieving and doubting herself because of that, though at the end she comes out okay. It does feel realistic to life despite the time setting.  

One of the main things I'm taking away from reading this e-book is that you don't actually need a magic mirror to reflect on your past. Though that'd be very useful! You just need some space and time. For me, reflecting has always come easily, I guess years of writing diaries and sub-consciously thinking in my story writing, then my four uni years of having to review my own work and writing book reviews. I always written when I need to reflect on something, often before I talk to someone about it and that just gives me the chance to gather my thoughts and feelings together. This story just reminded me how important it is to reflect back, because no matter how dark your past there is always some good, even if it's only small. Also, don't let your past hold you back!      

Overall, I did enjoy reading this e-book even though I had a few problems with it, but I think that's more personal to me then actual 'issues' with plot, character and language. I'd recommend this to adults who wonder what happened after 'the happily ever after' because it does give a whole new aspect to the Snow White story which makes her more interesting.  

You can find it here on Amazon;  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Reflections-Queen-Snow-White-ebook/dp/B00FLF4JAG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458591579&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Reflections+of+Queen+Snow+White

Thanks for reading and next week I'm returning to a book that past me did read, but present me has no memory of. I wonder what future me is going to think about it? See you next Monday for that. 

            

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Image from: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18780192-the-reflections-of-queen-snow-white

Book Review: End Of Days by Susan EE

Hi readers,

I have a confession to make; I've not been able to finish reading this! I'm about halfway and though I'm enjoying it, just I've been super busy doing other things. I've been putting in a lot of extra hours at work covering for people and also I started volunteering on reception. I have been writing stories for my blog like a desperate mad person. But my biggest news of all is that I've been filling out an application form for a new job and it's taken me about two weeks to be almost at completing it. I have also been doing some sewing as practice for activities to run at the youth centre and mother's day presents. That'll all be in my life update post next week now. In addition, I have a cold and a crazy sleep pattern. So yeah, with all that I'm not surprised that I didn't get to finish End Of Days.

I realise that talking about it is going to be much harder, but if I make a start, I can do a part 2 later once I've finished - maybe or else just included my finally thoughts in a life update post. So, it looks like this post is going to be very short!

The plot so far has been that Penryn and Raffe have found Paige. She has made a connection with the locusts and they are like her pets now. Though, she is also attached to Beliel and so they all end up escaping together. Finding safety on a island, Penryn discovers Raffe's worried about an possible attack from her sister - who is slowly staving and struggling to stay herself. Penryn also gets to see how attracted Raffe is to her when they have a soft bedroom scene! Of course then it all goes back to them not being able to be together and trying to keep their growing love inside. I still want to see what happened here!

Penryn then discovers a new power that her sword, Pooky Bear, has and she is able to see Beliel's memories and we learn that he is not who we thought he was and that Raffe's past keeps getting darker. Then they have to flee the island as some demon dog, bat creatures called Hellions escape and set about hunting them. They make it back to the camp and meet the Doc from before, who is very interested in Paige, but could also be Raffe's chance to get his wings back. Of course that doesn't go to plan and Raffe leaves to find an angel doctor. Penryn is then captured and taken to the angels, because they have a bounty on her head for her killing an angel in the previous book. Thankfully, Raffe comes to save her, but now they need to raise support for him to become the Messenger. Currently, they have traveled to The Pit to meet up with Raffe's solider who got sent down for being with human woman.

I can kind of predicated where things might be going but I'm going to read further to see! It's still fast paced, though not as event after event as the first book, but that isn't no longer needed, because the plot is strong enough to carry through without the need for all the then this happened pathways. I still have no idea why the angels started the war on Earth and telling apart the lies and truths is also tricky. But I'm glad of the mystery though!

Penryn hasn't developed that much and the sword is still doing most of the fighting. I feel there's a lot more focus on the angels this time around now since it's coming to the end. Penryn still has moments of acting like a total teenage girl - guess that's understandable, but for me she's never come across like that- but it's nothing wincey. I think I was hoping she'd mature and be able to face things with Raffe. In my head, I'm still trying to read this as an adult novel.

I still really like Raffe, though he's become less sarcastic and funny. Not a bad thing though due to everything he'd got to deal with. I kind of what him to become the messenger and sort things out. But maybe there's going to be a big twist and something else will happen? I so need to go and read more now!

Have you read this trilogy? What did you think? Leave a comment and let me know.
Also don't forget to check out my other blog: https://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/

Image from: Goodreads

Book Review: World After By Susan EE

Hi readers,

Once again, I'm pre-writing this post because I finished this book so fast and now I need to move on to the third, so I've got to get this one out of my head before I do. If you've not read my last post about the first book then please do, because this one follows straight on and I want to avoid repeating myself.

So, the second novel opens with Penryn seemingly died but back with her family and the Resistance. Of course, she turns out to be okay, but her sister Paige isn't. She's become some kind of monster doll and she ends up running away from the Resistance camp after an incident. Penryn, her mother and the woman she escaped from the angels at the end of the first book, set out to find Paige.

They track her to Alcatraz, where they find that people are being kept for experiments by the angels. Penryn escapes and manages to get herself to the new angel hang out. There she sees Raffe. Which is great because they both think each other is dead. Then a fight breaks out and they are forced to flee over the ocean. They take shelter in a house and have a catch up, before heading out to find Paige. They find her at the angel hang out, save her and all leave together, though the ending is very open.

Also, Penryn's connects to Raffe's sword and she begins to have dreams/visions which turn out to be the sword's memories. We learn a lot about Raffe from these scenes and it's a useful way to give the reader information without having to rehash things or have he characters talking it over. The sword also teaches her how to fight, which is interesting and does work. There's also some funny moments with the sword's name that had me bursting into laughter too.

We get a little more insight into the angels and what they are up to, though it's still no clear why they came to Earth and destroyed it. They are determined to take it over though and this can be seen in the angel hang out scenes. There's still the focus on the dystopia world and the breaking down of humanity, though this does take a bit more of  back seat then from before due to there being a lot of action in this book.

I found once again that the characters all developed well. Penryn and Raffe are falling for each other though and the scene with them eating peanut butter really brought this home to me. I know why there has to be romance, but my problem is I know they can't be together. Raffe really knows it too and I think it'd be interesting to see how they overcome this in the third book. Raffe is my favorite character though, a love his wit and his determination. He's the good guy who wants to set everything right even though everyone is standing against him. I really wish we could learn more about him and it'd be good to hear his side of things.

Penryn's mother is still out of her mind and somehow managing to survive through everything and track her daughters -though how she does this is revealed and we get to learn more about the before her and her husband. As for Paige, I feel sorry for her and what has happened. She's never going back to normal now and I don't think she's going to have a better life either. It feels like she's gone from one disability to another in away, but it sort of reflects how people can see others with disabilities and how we need to stop judging them.    

To be honest I'm also enjoying the sword as a character. I know that's a bit weird, but I have this thing about sentient weapons. I guess it comes from my interest in fantasy and magic. Plus, it's slightly different too and just adds another layer to the novel.

The pacing of this book was very much like the first one, though I didn't think it rushed from event to event as much. I found parts were it slowed down and there was moments of reflection, but these worked well and were needed by the characters. Like I said at the start, I did really rip through this book because it's just so easy to read. Of course that leaves me wondering that if it was rewrote with an adult audience in mind and the characters being older, how would it turn out? There'd need to be more description of the settings and characters, more time would be needed looking at the relationships too and Penryn and Raffe would possibly have to get together.

I did really enjoy reading this and I just hope that the third one is as good or better. I want to find out more about Raffe and the main angels. What's going to happen to Penryn and her family? Will she get with Raffe nor not? And will the world start to be put right? Looks like there's lots more to find out. I also saw on someone else's review that there is actually going to be five books. It said that Susan EE had posted it on her blog, but I didn't actually find the post and no one else seems to be stating that. So, I'm not sure. It is possible for later this year though, so have to keep my eyes out.

I'd recommend this book to teenagers and twenty-somethings because that's audience whom the books are aimed at and they'll get the most out of them. I think adults might find it not engaging enough, but if you are looking for a quick easy read then I'd say go for it. And now I'm off to start reading the third book and I'll be back next Monday with the review!

Please check out my other blog;  https://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/ for a new short story every day and feel free to follow me. Thanks for reading.

Image from: Goodreads

Time To Talk About Mental Health Day

Hi readers, 

I'm doing an extra post this week because today is mental health awareness day and as someone who's suffered through a lot of mental health problems, I thought I'd take sometime to write about it. 

I've had three lots of depression; one which was undiagnosed when was I fifteen -because everyone just thought I was unhappy at school, but on reflection and knowing what I now know it was clearly depression. One for a brief time when I left uni before returning to do my masters - I was upset that I had to close the door on what had been a great three years of my life and I wasn't sure what to do next. And my finally one which was about three/four years back now, when I couldn't get a job and I just wanted to give up on everything. 

That most recent one was longer and more serious then the other two. I had to have pills and counselling. It all came about because after graduating I spent two years trying to get a job. The first year I told myself was like a gap year because I so needed the break and I did get stuff done and I was okay. 

The second year though the job center and my parents were on my back a lot. I must have applied for 200 odd jobs that year and got hardly any interviews. I didn't want to do anything, everyone was putting me down, so why not agree with them? I begin to beat myself up over how worthless and bad I must be. I told myself that there must be something wrong with me. All my friends had jobs and were moving on with their lives and I was just stuck in the gutter. What was the point?

The job center told me I was depressed and I needed to see my doctor. I did and found out I was dangerously depressed and suicidal. It came as a shock to me because I'd not realized how bad my mental health was. I think that it happens to a lot of people, but they just decided to get on with it and keep it hidden. It's a hard topic to talk about and other people who've not had mental health problems can't always understand how and why people who are affect behave the way they do. 

I've always been very talkative and I found that talking to my family and friends as well as the counselling did help. I started doing a lot more volunteering and found that I was getting into all the crafts and sewing at the youth center. I started to sew at home and discovered a liking for it. It became a hobby and it helped a lot of my depression. It give me something to focus on and do, which meant I wasn't thinking about stuff all the time and I had something of a purpose, because I'd then teach the kids how to do it. Then of course, I got a job and things have been pretty stable. 

Well, until last month when I broke up with my boyfriend. I've been boarding on being depressed again. Some of the signs have been there; lack of motivation, being stressed, ill, feeling uninspired and putting myself down that I won't fall in love again. I decided that I just couldn't go backwards and I didn't want to get so depressed again, that's why at the start of February, I picked up the list of stuff I'd wrote down I needed to do at the start of the new year and began thinking and doing some of them. I still have moments - I guess it's going to take some time to get myself right again- but for now I'm doing okay.  

    

My mum directed me to the Time To Change organisation because she thought it'd be good for me to run an activity on mental health with the 8-12 year olds I work with. I know that sounds a little young, but research is showing that a lot of young people are suffering with mental health problems. So, I thought it'd be cool to get the kids to make these folded claw things -that's what I call them! and talk about stuff with them. 

I think that depression, anxiety and stress - both which I've also had bouts of- are the top mental health issues. I think it has something to do with the societies and lifestyles we now all have. But there's also other mental health problems like phobias, grief and panic. A lot of this just goes undiagnosed because people won't go see doctors or talk to people about it because they are embarrassed. Today is the day to change that. And I know it's hard because you don't want people to be mean or misunderstand you etc, but actually the first step of admitting you might have a problem will make you feel better and of course once the ball is rolling it's a lot easier!  

Finally, I wanted to share this image below about stressing less. There's lots of things you can do when you're feeling stressed or having other mental health problems. Reaching out to people and getting the help and support you need is important and I think remembering these 10 points can also be useful. 

So, I hope that whatever you're doing to do is good and that you've found reading this inspiring enough to either make that first step or help others. Until Monday. Thanks for reading and please check out my other blog; https://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/

Images from: 

http://www.time-to-change.org.uk/timetotalkday-resources

http://www.dailynewsservice.co.uk/mental-health-misconceptions/

http://historiasdeariadne.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/os-piores-12-habitos-para-nossa-saude.html

January 2016 Update: January Blues

Hi readers and welcoming to my first post of 2016! 

It's taken me a couple of weeks to get around to writing this, but I've had my reasons, which I'll go into later. Firstly though, I was reading a magazine the other day that January is the worst time of year because we don't have anything to look forward to unlike the other months. Plus, its the deflate after Christmas and New Year because you've eaten and drunk so much, spent lots of money and had a ton of fun. Now, it's back to work or education with little money and feeling like you over did everything. Also, your New Year resolution has probably gone completely out of the window.

January and February always feel the hardest months to get through for me. It's cold and snowy- though I seemed to have missed nearly all the bad weather so far- and it's getting dark so early. Getting out of bed is super hard for me and I do tend to hibernate like a bear during winter. I'm not big on going out either- unless its snowed and it looks nice-because everywhere is muddy, wet or icy. And its so cold and though I do like walking, the weather has to be decent. 

My health, which hasn't been good in years, also doesn't like the winter weather. I've been a bit bad recently with things and something keeps triggering my asthma. I've no idea what it is, but my chest has been giving me lot of grieve. I've had to take strong painkillers for my other health condition and the side effect of that is that I want to sleep all the time. Also, my iron level has been down again, making me tried and grumpy. I've been trying to start eating better to help all this issues and to loss some weight, but my other side effect is that I don't feel like eating and I become sick and nausea, making things harder.       

Thankfully, I'm feeling better today though there is another event which has triggered these problems and I'm still struggling to deal with. I broke up with my boyfriend last Monday. He sent me a message about it then when we spoke I officially ended things. I was really mad at him because we'd just been to my brother's birthday meal on Saturday and spent Christmas and New Year together. I felt he'd just thrown that all way and it was like it didn't mean anything. I know that's not true, but I couldn't help but feel that way. We weren't meeting each other's needs and what I now want is different to what he wants because we are both at different stages really.     

It's real difficult because we were together 3 and bit years and I thought 'd found the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. We never argued and were very close, we had enough in common and everything seemed to be good. I think though he kept this doubt about things between us and he let it grow and come out again. Will we get back together? Not anytime soon. He remembered what I had stated the last time we broke up and got back together, that if we broke again then a good amount of time, in which we dated other people and progressed more with our lives needed to happen before we decided if we should get back together. I think that's the best thing to do really. 

A lot of people give me the classic advice of 'if one door closes another opens,' and 'if it's meant to be it'll find away,' I told my dog- who I've been talking to a lot and been seeking comfort from- 'there were plenty more fish in the sea' and 'it really wasn't the end of the world.'  Sometimes though the classics catchphrases are just what you need to reassure yourself with. I'm going to miss him, no doubt about that, though he won't completely be out of my life. There's still Dungeons and Dragons and he did say he wanted to stay friends. I don't know how I really feel about that at the moment, but what I do want is for there to be a neutral line between us. I want to be mature and calm about it. I know that's going to be so hard to do, but I've got to come out of this stronger now, I don't have any choice. 

I was watching the birds in the garden this morning and I was thinking how that the blue tits, the robin and the sparrows have to live in the current moment. So much of their time and energy is spent finding and eating food. Winter is the hardest month for them and yet they find the will to carry on. They don't seem to have that many worries but for getting the basic needs sorted and it made me think about everything I had to appreciate. My basic needs have been met and exceeded, I've had a good life, been luckier then other people and yeah, even though I'm not rich and famous - which is probably over rated anyway, I'm doing okay. 

I wish my life was as simple as that of a bird's though. Humans compared to all the other animals live complicated, stressful and worry filled lives. The idea of going back to basics does attracted me, but I guess that would mean going to a small island with nothing on it and trying to survive. A Robinson Crusoe situation, but I couldn't cope without my books!        

Whilst watching the birds I also noticed that the snowdrops and bluebells were coming up in the garden. Though it feels far to early for plants to become up, it seemed the mild winter is causing then to appear. The splash of green in the bare brown garden, made me feel happy. Everything moves on and keeps on turning, things happen for many reasons and the world is full of goodness. I guess I just feel like nature is reminding me that things have their time and place, life just carries on. 

I feel little bit better after writing all of this now. Having time to reflect is important and I know it's going to take awhile before I move on again. My lack of motivation and wanting to do things will fade and for now I'm just going to do the small things and take little steps. Hopefully, I'll meet someone else soon. It is a big world out there after all. 

I found this last image on another site and I just love it. It really fits in with what I've been writing about too. I thought it looked like a nice thing to finish on. Till next time. 

Images from: 

https://pixabay.com/

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/c3/fe/d0/c3fed0cd1cce09f81cf7a24cf5b48330.gif

November Update part 2 : Why I give up on NaNoWriMo

Hi readers,

I failed National Novel Writing Month. 

There wasn't an easy way to say that, but I failed to reach the 50,000 word count target in the 30 days of November. I only got to just under 15,000 words, though Trust is now at 44, 383. Which is still under! I do feel a little bit annoyed that I couldn't do it, but I was very ill two weeks ago with a bad cold. That put a stop to everything for a whole week - even going to work and playing dungeons and dragons! I somehow manged to post my daily short story though, (Thinking about it, it was all the Trust parts I'd already written!) but writing Trust went on hold. Unfortunately, I never picked it up again.

I did have thoughts about writing it and I do have an idea about where to take it next. I think the brick wall appeared when I suddenly realized that I didn't have a real enemy for my main characters. The vampire who was suppose to be decided he wanted to be good and that kinda meant there was only so much I could do with him. Now though, I've an idea to introduce some more characters and create some more tension. 

So, what did I learn from NaNoWriMo? 

Firstly, that I could write more a day then I was doing and thought I could do. I was able to write one or two short stories and between 500-1,000 words of Trust. 

Secondly, I'm not so great at talking to people online! Remember my thinking about trying harder to connect with people in my last post? Yeah, I didn't do much about it. I don't know, if I still feel over-protected of my stories or I'm just not balancing my time well enough. 

Thirdly, Changing the stats on the NaNoWriMo doesn't make me feel better. In fact, I feel guilty for not writing! 

Fourthly, I did try my best but being ill and life etc, didn't help, still though it doesn't mean I should give up. 

I think one of the others reasons I give up was because for me writing is a thing I do everyday anyway. I don't need to find time or space to write because I've a lot of that. And on the days I don't, I'm taking a break and thinking about things. I look for inspiration all the time - on the internet and around me which I then use in my stories. I've a Pinterest board/s where all my ideas go and which I refer to everyday. 

Anyway, here's my stats page for NaNoWriMo and yeah, I decided to add the total I had actually written, so the last day is kinda wrong, but I wanted to add it in.      

Well done to all those who did make it and to those who didn't! At least you've start writing now.

I did have a few other things to add, but I want to get this post up before midnight, so I'm going to leave it. I'm thinking of doing a post tomorrow about the start of Christmas, though it'll depend on timing as I'm at work and I do have a gift to make for my best friend.

How did your NaNoWriMo go? leave me a comment below and please check out my other blog; https://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/

Book Review: The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George

Hi Readers,

I thought I'd write a short book review about this novel. I finished it late October, but because I don't want it to be stuck in between my Halloween count down posts, I thought I'd type my thoughts now and post it up in the first week or so of November. It took me awhile to get into reading Bookshop because its really not my kind of thing, but it is really well written and so easy to get into. 

For me, though there wasn't enough grip from the plot and I didn't feel excited to find out how every thing was going to end. The story is set in France, mainly Paris, where the main character Jean owns a bookshop which is on a huge barge boat. He has this strange gift which allows him to fit a book to the mood or requirements of a customer. So, if you were feeling homesick or lonely, he'd have a book for that. I do like that idea. 

Jean has been grieving for twenty odd years over the lost love of his life, who having left only a letter behind her, returned back home to her husband. Jean never opened her letter, until now and reading it helps to make him finally set off to find her. He makes some solid friends on the way - a young writer suddenly thrust into frame by his first bestselling book, an Italian dancer also looking for his lover and two cats. Together they form a good friendship group and learn to be honest with each other. 

The side plot is that Jean is also on a quest to find the writer of his favorite novel. The work got him through the difficult times in his life and now he wants to try and thank the writer. And I won't spoil that for you nor anything else about the plot. As for the characters, I found them interesting and very reflective about their pasts and futures. There wasn't a great deal of tension between them and even at the end when Jean meets up with his lover's husband, where you'd expect there to be an explosion, was more of a flicker. 

My other problem with this book was it's too slow pace and I get that maybe that was done to match the slow journey of the boat and some people will enjoy that, but for me I like action and fast things. I also got bored of the wonderful descriptions of France. There was a lot of time - it felt to me- give up to just the scenery and backgrounds. Normally, I do enjoy a lot of description and close details, but this time I got bored of all the flowers and countryside. 

The book does have some interesting thoughts about wasting you life and trying to live to the full. I did like that message / theme and I can see how that would appeal to an older readership. It didn't move me enough to start looking at how I could life better though. I think the main reason why I actually finished this book was because I only had 150 pages to go and I brought another book I really want to read and that pushed me through the last quarter. 

Overall, I can see some people really enjoying this and getting involved in Jean's journey. I think other people might not bee so keen on it due to the things I've pointed it. Saying that it is an easy and quick read, so it can be worth having a look at.   

August Update : What is going on with this blog and me?

     

Yeah, so it's been another while, though only like one book later, since I wrote this. I've been debating if to do a review on 'Salem's Lot or not. I think though, as I found out on Goodreads that writing book reviews feels pretty pointless for bloggers. I mean if you've got a lot of followers who like you writing about books and everything, then that's okay. But for smaller, not well known bloggers, posting books reviews is like sticking up the same colored flag in a field of other flags. It doesn't really get you anywhere and it's not got me anywhere recently. 

I think what brought readers to this blog in the first place was my uni stuff and interesting things that I been doing. Then I decided to write about books and writing in an already over saturated internet world. Then of course I went off and set up another blog for my actual stories and that seemed to be doing a hell of a lot better then this blog ever did. The idea of packing this blog in though doesn't appeal to me and I do like my little corner of the internet even if anyone hardly comes to visit. So, long talk short - I'm not really going to write book reviews on here any more. Of course, there might be the odd one depending on it's level of goodness or badness. But I'll deal with that when I'm in the mood. 

So, what else is going to be on this blog now? Well, I thought about writing more about my life. That does seem to work for other bloggers and I do have a lot to talk about in certain areas - like long term health conditions, learning disabilities, mental illness and life event things. I don't know how interested readers will be in any of that and I know it's nothing new because their are whole blogs dedicated to such things. Still though, blogs to me have always been like personal diaries which are open to the public instead of being private. There's nothing wrong with that if you're okay with it. 

Anyway, so that's the news about this blog and I bet it's another good few months before I come back here to write! But my other blog takes up so much time! I keep trying not to spend the day writing a short story to put up and some days I write up to five different stories, which is actually pretty good. I've not had much time to sort out my novel nor write my new one, or sort out my new book for Amazon Kindle- though in the light of payment changes, I'm still deciding if I do want to self-publish on there anymore. 

Coming into this is my current health problems. I've two long term conditions which I take pills for everyday and go into hospital every eight weeks for IV treatment. My days and nights can be heavily effect by either one or both my conditions on a varied scale. Sometimes, I'm pretty good and other days I can't leave the house and feel so ill that I can't do nothing but stay on the sofa or in bed or in the bathroom. I bring this up because I've been bad for the last three days and not able to do much. I'm feeling better now, but it'll come back soon enough. On top of this my iron level is half what it should be. Being anemic comes along with both conditions and I've to have tablets and lots of high in iron food stuffs. But when it gets as low as it has been, I'm mega tried and have cold/flu like symptoms, thus I don't want to do much and I sleep for like 12-14 hours without really realising because waking up is just too hard for me to do. Still I battle on though, what else are you suppose to do? 

Hopefully, I'll get under control soon. I'll be able to do more writing and stuff too, really it's the only thing holding me back right now, though I keep trying not to let it! Anyway, tomorrow, I'm going to take my driving exam for the second time. I'm nervous because my instructor got a new car and this will be only the second time I've driven it and it feels a lot different to his last one! So, if anything does happen it'll be my lack of confidence in the car then me! I'll get through it at some point and then maybe I'll get a car of my own. 

I'm also doing two extra days at work this week - Wednesday and Thursday because an event is on for young people with additional needs and they need support staff. It'll be a great experience for me, especially as my review of my trail period didn't go so well. I don't want to get into all of that but let's say I've got a lot to improve on and I'm worried I'm not going to be able to do it. I guess everyone gets like that at some point though.

Anyway, that's all for now. Hopefully it won't be long till I'm back!