May Book Reviews

The sequel to McKenzie's Falling Fast - River and Flynn have made it through Romeo and Juliet, now real life is posing all the problems. Flynn can't handle his temper, rumours at school are getting worse. River's friends are worried about her and after one too many incidents Flynn drops a bombshell that tears River's life apart... can the star crossed lovers make it through? When you're in love if you're not in the relationship you just can't understand - An easy absorbing read that teenagers will be able to relate to.

My guilty pleasure - A Bank Holiday read in the sun, just shows how much you don't know about people. This biography chronicles McFly from inception to present day, following the highs and lows of Tom, Danny, Harry and Dougie. A must for all fans who I'm sure have all got their signed copies already. There's much more to these boys than their public image and you should never judge a band by their photo shoots!

 I've had a bit of reader's block lately and so returned to an old favourite. This is the third or fourth time I've read 1 Reasons Why and every time I get engrossed in the story and finish it within 48 hours. Hannah Baker committed to suicide a fortnight ago but no-one knows why... In the night that follows Clay Jensen finds out why. There are 13 reasons, 13 people responsible and on 13 sides of cassette tapes Hannah explains why. 

You can touch someone's life without even realising.. have an effect that snowballs or just catch someone on an off day but unless you realise how can you help?

John Crace writes a digested reads column for The Guardian. In this book he takes one hundred books, ten from each decade of the twentieth century and puts his twist on them. Unless you are very well read you won't know them all, especially those from the earlier decades but this does not stop you enjoying Crace's unique perspective on literary classics.

I don't like giving up on books and it's not something I will readily confess to but The Olive Route is an Everest that I will never conquer. In this episode of the Olive Farm series Carol leaves her own olive farm in France and travels through the countries of the Mediterranean learning the history of olives. 

This is a very dense read, Drinkwater jumps from political, historical and religious aspects at the turn of a sentence and I got no further than 3 countries in before I could take no more. 




This was my wild card of the month which was a bit of a flop in my opinion. The premise was interesting and thought provoking.. a romance for the 21st century - Marie falls in love with current events blog writer Jeff Brennan so when she meets him in person a relationship is fast formed. What she doesn't know is that he virtual Jeff Brennan and the Jeff she has moved in with are completely different people. 

There are 5 different voices through out the novel, physical Jeff, virtual Jeff, Marie, physical Jeff's grandfather and his best friend. I found the different voices confusing, and the layers of plot didn't interlock as smoothly as they could but props to the author for tackling such a contemporary subject which is very rarely explored for all it's importance in today's world.

The third in the Chemical Garden Trilogy sees Rhine find her brother and Gabriel and develop her relationships with her sister wife, Cecily and her husband Linden. But as with all stories there is always a villain of the peace - House Master Vaughan. No matter how much she tries Rhine cannot escape Vaughan's grasp, not when he threatens the lives of everyone Rhine holds dear, but there are secrets to revealed and friends lost as they hunt the elusive cure. A fitting end to the trilogy... I look forward to future offerings.

Catching up with my junior fiction whilst I am not enjoying reading as much and this is a cover that always stands out at me so I thought I'd give it a go.

"Dirk Lloyd" falls to Earth from his plain and is taken in by the Purejoie family. Convinced of his majesty and his need to return to the darklands he enlists the help of Christopher, his "brother", Sooz the "Night Walker" and Sal the "Cricket Overlord". What ensues is a humourous tale of trying to fit in and find your place, with a little magic for good effect.

Solid story for ages 7+