Bookie Brunch: Christmas Edition!

         

Welcome to Bookie Brunch!

Founder: Sasha Soren (Random Magic)

Come & Join in the discussion!

Today’s host: Jennie’s Corner (@joaniefontana) (Youtube channel)

Next week’s host: Storywings (@Storywings)

This week’s discussion open through: Sunday 25th December to Saturday 31st

Hello everyone and welcome to the christmas edition of Bookie Brunch! I hope everyone is comfortable and ready to talk about their books choices for christmas!

My guests this week:

Liddy - Theebookmonster

Sarah Olivia - The Book Bunny (@The_BookBunny)(Youtube)
Daisy - Between the Pages  (@DBetweenpages)

Amanda - Geeky Fairytales (@bookge3k)(Youtube)

The question under discussion: What do you think of festive themed books? 

Related topics to consider: Do you have a favourite christmas book to read? If so, What is it and why? or will you be avoiding them?

   I'll start this weeks Bookie Brunch off. 

I picked these questions as I was interested to hear people different opinions on festive books. Usually I would avoid reading books that are centred around a certain season in favour of "normal books". I think I was under the impression that they wouldn't have that much substance to them (snobby much?). However this year I decided to buy a christmas book, which was Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson & Lauren Myracle. 

I have a full video review on my youtube channel here. Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised. The three short holiday romances really put me in the christmas mood. Which I guess is the whole point of these sort of books! It has definitely converted me to festive books! Before this I wouldn't say I had a favourite holiday book. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens is always a a good choice but it nice to mix it up with some contemporary books!

I'm not going to ramble to much as I have some wonderful vloggers and bloggers who are waiting patiently to give their opinions! 

First up is Liddy (aka theebookmonster) who shows us her favourite book to read with her family at Christmas time:

Next up we have Sarah Olivia (aka The Book Bunny) who reminded me of some great christmas books for kids and adults! 

What do I think of holiday books? They are cute and fun and what's not to love? The only one's that I can think of off the top of my head would be I Spy Christmas (Which is a picture book), and I loved I Spy books, they were always challenging when I was younger and my brother always beat me to the item we were looking for. Another would be Merry Christmas Mom and Dad (Little Critter Series) by Mercer Mayer, they really are cute little critters. My favorite I think would be, How the Grinch stole Christmas by Dr Seuss, because everyone loves Dr Seuss. And even though the Grinch is so mean he is loveable at the same time...even though that doesn't really make sense it made sense in my head. 

As you can tell, it's been a long time since I've invested time in reading a holiday related book. I love Christmas but I don't think I will be able to get time to read any this year. There is always next year. Happy Holidays & I hope you have a great one!

Daisy from Dbetweenpages gives us some alternative book choices for those not into reading festive books: 

Amanda aka bookge3k says:

Q: What do you think of festive themed books? 

A: I have a love/hate relationship with festive themed books. If done poorly they can be very boring and cheesy. If done right they can be heart warming and inspirational. During all different holidays of the year people are in the stores more frequently than they are during other times. People are more likely to purchase books centered around whatever holiday they are celebrating, for gifts or otherwise. For that reason festive books are great for the book business and therefore I support them.

Q: Do you have a favourite christmas book to read? If so, What is it and why? or will you be avoiding them?

A: I like children's books around the holidays. But other than that I avoid them like the plague for personal reasons.

Thanks to all my guests for their great answers and for joining this weeks Bookie Brunch! 

You’re invited! 
Visitors: Please share your thoughts on the topic in the comments section, so they can be included in the discussion. This is an active discussion though Saturday, so feel free to stop by again later on.

Goodies Giveaway!

Win a book-and-DVD set of great classic film, Little Women (trailer shown below). 

How to win: Asking visitors to leave email info and thoughtful or interesting comment to enter if they like. Winner picked at random. If host and guests agree that a specific visitor comment is substantial, outstanding, or in some other way has particular merit, they can override random.org pick at their discretion.

 Brought by: Sasha Soren  (Random Magic)

Bookie Brunch is a weekly meet-up, held every Sunday, where book bloggers can have a cup of tea and chat about a particular bookie question of interest. The discussion is open from Sunday through Wednesday, and you’re welcome to drop by any time to add your opinion or read what other people have to say. This discussion is open as well to general readers or bloggers in a different field, authors, publishers and publicists.

Courtesy guidelines: Thank you for coming! All thoughtful comments will be considered and probably get a response from fellow bloggers. In fact, you’re encouraged to talk about it and share viewpoints or include links to relevant materials. We’d like everyone to have a nice time. Differing viewpoints are just fine, even if strongly expressed, but inflammatory or off-topic comments will be removed.

* Find Bookie Brunch

Jennie - Jenniebeanblogs (@joaniefontana) (Youtube channel)

Next week (Janruary 1st):  Blog: Storywings  Twitter:(@Storywings)

* Contact Bookie Brunch

If you’d like to browse all Bookie Brunch discussions (Archive): The Fluidity of Time 

What do you think? Do you have a favourite christmas book? What will you be reading this christmas? 
You’re invited to join the discussion below!


Happy Christmas Everyone! Hope you are all enjoying the holidays! :)

Wither by Lauren DeStefano

Hello World.

This is a review of Lauren DeStefano's debut novel Wither. It was first published in 2011 and is book 1 in the upcoming Chemical Garden Trilogy, which are a series of Young Adult dystopian novels.

A look at the blurb:

What if you knew exactly when you would die?

Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a ticking genetic time bomb – males only live to age twenty-five and females only live to age twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out.

When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden’s genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape – to find her twin brother and go home.

But Rhine has more to contend with than losing her freedom. Linden’s eccentric father is bent on finding an antidote to the genetic virus that is getting closer to taking his son, even if it means collecting corpses in order to test his experiments. With the help of Gabriel, a servant she trusts, Rhine attempts to break free, in the limited time she has left.

The story starts dramatically with the main character Rhine, being captured at the beginning of the book and chosen to be one of three brides to the wealthy Linden. The world in which these characters live is overshadowed by the fact that all of the new generations that are born only live until the are in their twenties, due to a unforeseeable side effects of genetic advancements. The story continues with this premise, Rhine is trying to come to terms with her predicament, whilst simultaneously trying to form a plan to escape from her new husband and so called "sister wives".

This book has received so much praise and as such, I was really looking forward to reading it. The main crux of the book is that "modern science" has effectively gone too far and created the world that these characters live in. To me, this sounds intriguing but also quite vague. However I was hoping and expecting that it would be explained in detail how this catastrophe happened. It wasn't. There was a paragraph at the beginning of the book, that basically attributed the "genetic time bomb" to an immune system boost. Now I am neither a geneticist nor a doctor and whilst I do have a science background, I don't think it is needed to understand that an immune system boost would not cause this sort of disease. You may think I'm reading too much into this and should just enjoy the book but I'm sorry, it instantly ruined the book for me.

I tried to give this book a fair judgement and focus on the other main theme in the book, which is polygamous marriage, underage marriage and pregnancy. It was really brave of Lauren DeStefano to cover such sensitive and controversial topics in her first book, especially in a young adult book. I thought the characters, their relationships with one another and how they individually reacted to their situation was written really well and I definitely commend Lauren on that part of the book. However I couldn't escape the fact that the reason for their situation was built on such a flimsy premise and for me, it overshadowed any positives of the book.

I really wish I had enjoyed this book more as the idea was so great, and I was really looking forward to reading it. Had Lauren researched the topic in detail, then this book could've been so much better.
However saying that, I think I am most definitely in the minority with my opinion. So I'll leave it up to you to decide, this is just my two cents on the topic. (The one thing that I can't argue with is the cover. The photo doesn't even do it justice, it is honestly gorgeous!)

My Rating: 2/5

See you next time!
J x

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

Hello World!

How are you all? Good, I hope?

Anyways this review is going to focus on The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. This is Elizabeth's first book and was published in 2005, with quite a considerable length of 720 pages.

A look at the blurb:
Late one night, exploring her father's library, a young woman finds an ancient book and a cache of yellowing letters addressed ominously to 'My dear and unfortunate successor'. Her discovery plunges her into a world she never dreamed of - a labyrinth where the secrets of her father's past and her mother's mysterious fate connect to an evil hidden in the depths of history. In those few quiet moments, she unwittingly assumes a quest she will discover is her birthright - a hunt for the truth about Vlad the Impaler, the medieval ruler whose barbarous reign formed the basis of the Dracula myth. Deciphering obscure signs and hidden texts, reading codes worked into the fabric of medieval monastic traditions, and evading terrifying adversaries, one woman comes ever closer to the secret of her own past and a confrontation with the very definition of evil.


The best way of explaining this book is that, the author uses the historical facts of Vlad Tepes, considered to be the original inspiration for the story of Dracula, as the basis for this story. The main protagonist in the book is Paul, who we follow, along with his daughter, through the letters he left behind, detailing his search for the tomb of Vlad Tepes or Vlad the Impaler. 


The book seamlessly mixes the story of Vlad the Impaler and the fictional character of Count Dracula created by Bram Stoker. I have to say, I was really intrigued by the concept and thoroughly enjoyed learning about Vlad the Impaler. However the Kostova's narrative and pacing let such a promising story down. She spent so much time detailing the scenery of the Romanian landscape, that sometimes it bordered on a travel book. However in saying that, I did still enjoy it and appreciated the insight she was trying to give. I do feel that the book did not need to be as long as it was and felt that Kostova could have managed to create the same atmosphere is a shorter space of time and in doing so, the book would have had better pacing. 


However for all of my criticism, I am still a sucker for detail and don't mind when a book has a slower pace, but that might not be everyones cup of tea! I also loved learning about the "original" Dracula. So in saying that, I am going to be generous and give this book: 4/5


As per usual if you want to see my video review or want a bit more of a discussion of the book, then check of the video linked below! :)

MY RATING: 4/5
Hope you enjoyed this review!
See you soon,
J x

Wicked by Gregory Maguire

Hello World!

So I'm slowly catching up on my blog posts, I'll be up to date soon, I promise! ;) For now at least this post will be a review on the book Wicked: The life & times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire.

It was first published in 1995 and is the first in the series of books, written in parallel to L. Frank Baum's: The Wizard of Oz.

A look at the blurb: 

When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious Witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil?

Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability, and the Tin Man becomes the victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to become the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly, and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil.

Now unless you've been living under a rock for the past few years, you're bound to have heard of this book. Wicked: The Musical, based on this book, has become an amazing success and its inclusion on the TV show Glee, introduced it to another generation. However although the musical helped to direct people to this book it is important to not that the book and the musical are quite different.

The book is spilt into different sections. I guess you could almost look at them as mini books, as each section skips a few years and starts a new segment in the characters lives. Regardless, the book always focuses on the main character Elphaba who will come to be known as the Wicked Witch of the West. The sections start with Elphaba's early years, born to Melena and the Unionist Minister Frexpar in the town of Nest Hardings in Munchkinland. It then moves, to Elphaba in the Shiz University, her time in Oz, the Vinkus and then her final days.

Throughout the book we encounter numerous other characters such as Galinda (or Glinda), Boq, Fiyero, Nessarose and Madame Morrible. However in my opinion the only main character is Elphaba, and the other characters only serve to provide a different perspective on Elphaba.

Without spoiling the book too much, the topics that are covered by Gregory Maguire are vast. He successfully manages to transport you to the Land of Oz and remind you of places and characters you grew up with, whilst introducing adult themes. It is filled with politics, animal rights and social injustice. However the main theme is the comparison of good and evil. Is anyone truly one or the other? Should certain acts define the way we are judged in society?

I absolutely loved this book! I was not expecting it to cover such controversial themes or for it to be so philosophical but fortunately I loved it! If you are looking for a light read or something along the lines of the musical, then perhaps you won't enjoy this book. However if you are looking for something unique that will leave you pondering afterwards then this is definitely the book for you! If you want to watch a video review of this book, then just click the link below!

My Rating for this book: 5/5
I hope you enjoyed this review!
See you soon,
J x

Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan: Book #1 The Eye of the World

Hello World! :)

So I know it's been quite some time since my last post, but hopefully I will make up for my absence, over the next few weeks *fingers crossed*.

So to begin my return, I thought I would kill two birds with one stone (what a strange phrase..), by fulfilling another promise I made, to talk more about the Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan (The pen name of James Oliver Rigney).

So let's say you've never heard of the Wheel of Time Series (and maybe you haven't, who knows?). The best way of describing this series, is as an adult, epic fantasy. There are set to be 14 books in total (well, 15 if you count the prequel), with the fourteenth and final book set for release in 2012. Unfortunately James Oliver Rigney/Robert Jordan died in 2007, and as such the final three book were finished by fantasy author Brandon Sanderson, with the guidance of notes left behind by Robert Jordan.

Now I know what you might be thinking, "15 books?!?! That's crazy", but I assure you it is completely worth it and anyways no one is expecting you to finish them within a month. Quite frankly if you did you would probably be setting some sort of record, as each of the books average at around 800 pages each, with the longest one reaching 1001 pages (book 4).

Again, I promise I'm not crazy. These books have garnered thousands of fans, and rightly so. Robert Jordan (I'm just going to refer to him by his pen name from here on in...) created a world so rich in detail and characters, that the reader cannot help but be drawn into the storyline.

So this epic adventure begins with the first book: The Eye of the World. In this book we are introduced to the mains characters in their home town of Emonds Field. Rand Al'Thor, Matrim Cauthon, Perrin Aybara, Egwene Al'Vere and Nynaeve Al'Meara's world is turned upside down when their town is burned downs by these creatures known as Trollocs. It seems as if they are searching for something but no one knows what. The only one who can shed some light on the situation is Moraine and her warder Lan. Morraine is an Aes Sedi (which I guess the easiest way to explain is that she is a good witch, she wields a good form of power). She explains to the boys that in order to save their town from further attack they must leave with her. Not volunteering much more information than that, the boys decide to trust her and set off on their journey with Morraine and Lan. Needless to say its is not a smooth trip and they encounter numerous obstacles along the way.

If I were to chose another series to help set the scene, it would undoubtedly be the Lord of the Rings. However I feel the Wheel of Time series is written in such greater detail and contains characters that are so much more relatable, that to compare to the Lord of the Rings does not do it justice.

I won't go into anymore detail here, but I have done a video review (linked below) if you would like to watch that to get a better feel of the book. As I mention in the video I hope to review the whole series *fingers crossed*, it may take awhile though!

I can't praise this series enough. The first book would get a 5/5 for me, as with all series the first book suffers slightly from the fact that it has to introduce you to all the character and give you a chance to get to know the world of the book. However the series as a whole is a definite 5/5. So stick with it!

I hope you liked this review, and give this series a chance!
See you next time!
J x


Rating: The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan - 5/5

Bookie Brunch - Coming Soon!!! :)

Coming Soon! Bookie Brunch

Coming soon: Bookie Brunch
Founder: Sasha Soren (http://tinyurl.com/3zxs66d) (Author of Random Magic) (http://tinyurl.com/65dkmuh)
Come join the discussion!
* Every Sunday* 




Roll up, roll up one and all for the most spectacular event of the year!!! or you could just pull up a chair, with a nice cup of tea and a biscuit (or two, go on you know you deserve it!) and have a chat about all things book related with some ridiculously lovely people! 


What’s Bookie Brunch all about? 
Bookie Brunch is a weekly meet-up, held every Sunday, 
where book bloggers can have a cup of tea
and chat about a particular bookie question of interest.

The discussion is open from Sunday through Wednesday, and you’re
welcome to drop by any time to add your opinion or read what other
people have to say.

This discussion is open as well to general readers or bloggers in a
different field, authors, publishers and publicists.

Courtesy guidelines: All thoughtful comments will be considered
and probably get a response from fellow bloggers. In fact, you’re
encouraged to talk about it and share viewpoints or include links to
relevant materials. We’d like everyone to have a nice time. Differing
viewpoints are just fine, even if strongly expressed, but inflammatory
or off-topic comments will be removed.

Contact Bookie Brunch!?!?!
Be a guest at an upcoming brunch: @StoryWings (http://tinyurl.com/6cafk3f)
Bring goodies for a giveaway: @StoryWings (http://tinyurl.com/6cafk3f)
Suggest a question: @LiederMadchen (http://tinyurl.com/6kkbz33)
Browse Bookie Brunch discussions (after July 2011, archive): The
Fluidity of Time (http://tinyurl.com/2e4zn68)

You’re invited!!! :)
Feel free to join us every Sunday for great
company, fun discussions, and occasional goodie giveaways. Some
upcoming dates are listed below, it’ll be great to see you there.
Calling all bookies - grab a seat and let’s talk books.

Upcoming Bookie Brunches in July 2011:

We’ll be talking about e-readers vs. print editions, fantasy vs.
realism in books, characters vs. plot, and lots of other cool and
bookish questions.

Sunday, July 10
Host: Songs and Stories (http://tinyurl.com/44pfbno) (@LiederMadchen)
(http://tinyurl.com/6kkbz33)

Sunday, July 17
Host: Moonlight Gleam’s Bookshelf (http://tinyurl.com/436lkhv)
(@MoonlightGleams) (http://tinyurl.com/62mdbyq)

Sunday, July 24
Host: This Miss Loves To Read (http://tinyurl.com/2aagpvt)
(@MissIrenne) (http://tinyurl.com/5vlre96)

Sunday, July 31
Host: Beyond Strange New Words (http://tinyurl.com/62hngyg)
(@StrangeNewWords) (http://tinyurl.com/5wddvc7)

More Bookie Brunches: Every Sunday, July 2011 through December 2011

Would you like to be a guest on an upcoming brunch, bring a giveaway,
or send a question? Feel free! Please leave your info below, and then
contact the Bookie Bruncher who can help get you set up:

Contact Bookie Brunch
Be a guest at an upcoming brunch: @StoryWings (http://tinyurl.com/6cafk3f)
Bring goodies for a giveaway: @StoryWings (http://tinyurl.com/6cafk3f)
Suggest a question: @LiederMadchen (http://tinyurl.com/6kkbz33)

The first Bookie Brunch is open for a delicious discussion on July 10,
at Songs and Stories ((http://tinyurl.com/44pfbno).

I’m going to be a host/guest at an upcoming Bookie Brunch on July 24th,
feel free to drop by.

See you there!
J x

New Authors

Hello World! :)

If you have watched any of my videos on youtube then you know that I have been using my kindle a lot to read books, or rather ebooks!

What I have found is the best thing about amazon and the kindle (or a nook if you have one) is that you are exposed to a whole variety of new authors who are now able to publish their work by themselves as ebooks. More often then not these books are retailing at really affordable prices, making it easier then ever to check out new authors without the big price tag. You can find a lot of books for free or for £0.69/$0.99, at that price you have no reason not to delve into a world full of new and exciting authors.

Many authors are finding success through this method, the most famous being Amanda Hocking who wrote the Trylle Trilogy, My Blood approves series and Hollowland. Her books are great and definitely worth checking out, but there are so much more out there!

One new author that I stumbled across is Michelle I Brooks and her first book: Bone Dressing. It a paranormal romance and the first in a soon to be series of seven. If you are interested in hearing more, check out my review down below.

So tell me, have you stumbled across any new authors that you are loving? 

See you soon,

J x