Beyond The Bougainvillea by Dolores Durando

Beyond The Bougainvillea by Dolores Durando
First published by Bell Bridge Books in 2011 (this edition was received for free from the publishers via Netgalley for review)







Description (from Goodreads):
She found her place in a turbulent era of deep passions, heartbreaking sacrifices, and grand dreams.

When scholarly, smart Mary Margaret is sixteen, her father marries her off to a drunken neighbor in return for a tract of land. The year is 1924, and Mary Margaret's motherless childhood has already been hard as a farm girl on the desolate prairies of North Dakota. Abused and helpless, the new Mrs. "Marge" Garrity seems destined for a tragic fate.

But Marge is determined to make her life count, no matter what. Her escape from her brutal marriage takes her to California, where she struggles to survive the Great Depression and soon answers the lure of the state's untamed northern half. There, embraced by the rough-and-ready people who built the great Ruck-a-chucky Dam on the American River, she begins to find her true mission in life and the possibility for love and happiness with an Army Corp engineer of Cherokee Indian descent.

This vivid saga of one woman's life in the early decades of a turbulent century is told from the heart of a true storyteller in the grand tradition of women's sagas.

My thoughts:

Beyond The Bougainvillea is the story of Mary Margaret, known throughout the book as Marge, as she tries to deal with all the hardships life seems to throw her way. The book starts off during the early years of Marge's life, when she is living with her father in North Dakota, where - essentially - she is a personal slave of her father's. When she is sixteen, her father marries her off to a complete idiot of a man, who is way to old for Marge and treats her just like her father does. As a result of various circumstances and occurrences, as well as from the help of the people she is closest to, she ends up in California. From then on, Marge takes her life in her own hands.

When I finished this book, I was a little awestruck and not necessarily in a good way. While reading the book, you meet hardship upon hardship upon hardship, until you actually reach the point of wondering, 'What worse thing could happen?'. And then, surprise, surprise, it does happen... It's all tragedy: friendships gone bad, loves gone awry, fathers behaving like complete and utter idiots (though maybe that's too mild a word). Interspersed between all the bad happenings, there are also a few happy and positive moments, but they don't last long at all.

One thing I really did not like about this book was the fact that the author seemed to jump years ahead in just one sentence. By that, I mean that she would start of a chapter at 'Time X' and then, nearly half-way through it, we would find ourselves fast-forwarded to 'Time X+5'. She devoted chapters and chapters to all the things that went wrong and then, couldn't devote a few paragraphs about the years in between. I'm not sure I am making much sense, but if you read the book, you will see what I mean.

The book's redeeming quality would have to be Marge. She is such a strong character. At times, she came across as a bit of a bossy-boots and a know-it-all, and it seemed to me as if she was a bit of a meddler, too. I honestly have no idea how she kept on wanting to live with all the things that happen around her.

So, I'm not really sure what to make of Beyond The Bougainvillea, as you can probably tell. The only thing that I am sure about is that I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would.

Rating: 5/10 (I'm leaving it completely in your hands...)

Author:

Dolores Durando is the 90-year-old author of Beyond The Bougainvillea, which is also her debut novel. She grew up in North Dakota, though she didn't have the rough life Marge experiences in her novel. She's seen everything happen firsthand, so she knows what she's talking about when she describes the isolated and rough conditions in Dakota during the early 1900's.

Read for the: 100 Books In A Year 2011 Challenge

In The Bag by Jim Carrington

In The Bag by Jim Carrington
First published by Bloomsbury in 2011 (this edition by Bloomsbury in 2011)









Description (from back cover):

Joe and Ash are best mates.

One night after a party, they find a holdall abandoned by the side of the road.

They open it up.

Inside is £20,000.

Of course they're going to hand it to the police.

Aren't they?

And that is when the trouble starts.

My thoughts:
I'm actually not very sure as to how to start this review. In The Bag is not a book I would have chosen to buy for myself, the main reason being that I think I'm a little too old for it. But it seemed like a quick read, so I decided to give it a try.


The story in itself is appealing. It's about two boys (who are 15-16, if I remember rightly), who discover a bag with a lot of money in it. What are they going to do with it? Hand it over to the police? Or maybe not? It is quite a story, featuring mafia people, gunshots, black cars with dark windows. The main focus of the story is the reasons behind the boys' actions and how they deal of the consequences of their actions. Will they be able to keep it a secret, or will they find that they can't hold on to it any longer? Plus, it has a really weird ending... Like it's half-unresolved... You don't see it often in books and I have to say I didn't mind it! 


One aspect of this book that I liked was the fact that it had alternating chapters from the two characters' points-of-view. We got to be inside the heads of both characters and see how each one of them dealt with the consequences. Joe and Ash might be very good friends, but they're very different to each other and each one of them deals with the problem in his own way. That was very interesting to see. I also enjoyed the fact that the author did not focus solely on the 'bag'. He had a few side stories going on, which gave us more insight into both characters.


On the other hand, there were a couple of things I really didn't like. This book contains rather strong language. It even has a warning on the back for it (which I think is very good). To be honest, I am not bothered by swearing in books. But because of the fact that I think the story (as a storyline) would be more interesting for younger readers, the swearing excludes them from reading it. What I am trying to say here is that I am rather dubious as to whether the story would appeal to a 16 year-old me. It's more of the kind-of story that I would have found exciting when I was 13-14. Another thing I didn't like were all the smoking and drug references. I absolutely hate people smoking (I'm really weird about it) and I hate reading about children smoking. I know it is a wide-spread phenomenon nowadays, but I still don't like reading about it. (Including all those references to smoking marijuana.)


All in all, it wasn't a bad book, but the main problem I have is to whom I would recommend reading this book. It's worth a try though, as the writing is very good and the story flows well.


Rating: 5/10


Author:
Jim Carrington is the author of In The Bag and Inside My Head. (Sorry but that's all I could find!)

You can check out his website HERE.

Read for the: 100 Books In A Year Challenge 2011, British Books Challenge 2011

Love Falls

Love Falls by Esther Freud
First published by Bloomsbury in 2007 (this edition by Bloomsbury in 2007)







Description: (from Goodreads)

From the author of Hideous Kinky comes a charming, surprising, and utterly irresistible tale of adolescent love and self-discovery.

When seventeen-year-old Lara accepts her father's invitation to accom­pany him to a Tuscan villa for the summer, she's both thrilled and nervous for the exotic holiday. To her delight, she soon discovers that the villa's closest neighbors are the glamorous Willoughbys, the teenaged brood of a British millionaire. Caught up in their torrential thirst for amusement—and snared by Kip Willoughby's dark, flirtatious eyes—Lara sets off on a summer adven­ture full of danger, first love, and untold consequen­ces that will irrevocably change her life.

My thoughts:

This book is one of the very few hardbacks I own. I think I got it as a present from my grandparents for my birthday back in 2007 (my birthday is in August and the book was published in July, so that is the only logical explanation as to why they got me a hardback). I hadn't actually read it until now, though don't ask my why not. I honestly do not know. I came across this book when my brother and I decided to have a clear out of our books (to give some of our kiddie books to charity), so I kept it with my other unread books.

Well, umm, I have mixed feelings about this book. I can't really say if I liked it or not. It was kind-of weird. It started off ok. We are introduced to Lara, the main character in this book, who lives with her slightly bohemian (??) mother. Her father, a university professor, invites her to travel with him to a villa in Tuscany, on his first trip out of London in years. She accepts and they travel to Italy by train, eventually arriving at her father's friend Caroline's villa. There, Lara and her father also meet up with the Willoughbys, the villa's closest neigbours.

The story focuses on all the relationships between the people in the area: Lara's rather awkward relationship with her father, Caroline's rather weird treatment of Lara, the relationships between the Willoughby children and their guests/spouses/spouses-to-be and, of course, the relationship between Lara and Kip, the youngest of the Willoughby lot. Yes, that's a lot of relationships to talk about. To the author's credit, you don't feel as if it's too much when you are reading it. I only realised it as I was writing these words.

The story was nothing too sophisticated. It was just how a girl of 17 grew up a little too quickly over the course of a few weeks over the summer, just because of her encounters with the other people in the novel. The character development was ok. Ms Freud told us more about some than the others, leaving me with a rather unclear picture of what was going on at some points in the book. I didn't particularly like Caroline or Roland (he's the husband of one of the Willoughby girls). Others I felt were there only because the author wanted to set a particular atmosphere - they didn't really contribute.

One thing I did like about this book was the descriptions of Tuscany. The villa and its surrounding area sounded beautiful and a little mysterious at times and I would love to see all that scenery myself. I particularly liked the descriptions of a beach the whole party visited one day! It sounded idyllic. I also liked the descriptions of Florence. I visited Florence for a day a few years ago (on a school trip) and loved it! Such a pretty place! The book did bring back quite a few happy memories!

All in all, I am not sure what to say about this book. I can't say I enjoyed it as much as I would have liked to, so I'd classify it as an ok read for me. It just might be the thing for you though! If you like the sound of it, then give it a try! (Forgot to mention that it's actually set in 1981, a week before Charles and Diana's wedding, and I read it right after their son got married to Kate Middleton! No, I didn't do it on purpose!)

Rating: 5/10

Author:

Esther Freud is a British novelist. She is the daughter of painter Lucian Freud and granddaughter of the famous neurologist Sigmund Freud. Ms Freud has worked in television and theatre as both an actress and a writer. Her first novel is the semi-autobiographical ''Hideous Kinky'', which has also been made into a film starring Kate Winslet. Her other books include ''Peerless Flats'' and  ''The Wild'', with ''Lucky Break'' being her latest novel. She is married to actor David Morrisey, with whom she has three children.

You can find out more about Esther Freud here:

Esther Freud on Goodreads

Esther Freud on Wikipedia

Read for the: 100 Books In A Year Challenge 2011, British Books Challenge 2011

13 Little Blue Envelopes

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
First published by Avon in 2006 (this edition is the e-book edition, including an excerpt from The Last Little Blue Envelope)


Book #1 in the Little Blue Envelope series


Description: (from Goodreads)

Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.
In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.

The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist.

Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke–about–town called Keith go to Scotland together, with somewhat disastrous–though utterly romantic–results. But will she ever see him again?

Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it's all because of the 13 little blue envelopes.

My thoughts:

This is the other book I bought from Amazon.com, when the offer was on (the other one being Wings by Aprilynne Pike). I had seen it everywhere on blogs and I thought the story sounded cute and easy to read, so I decided to try it for myself. (It was free, as a promotion for the release of the second book in the series, The Last Little Blue Envelope).


Suffice to say, I wasn't blown over by the book. I remember reading quite a few reviews mentioning that they absolutely loved the book, but that was not the case with me. First of all, I was really annoyed by the fact that there was NO mention of Ginny's parents in (nearly) the whole book. I'm not a parent, but, from a child's point-of-view, what happened in the book and the way it happened, is just not possible. I am 1000% sure that my parents would have never let me travel to a different continent at the age of 17, knowing that they would not be able to communicate with me on the phone. NO WAY!


Secondly, I thought that everything was just a little too rushed. Ginny opened an envelope, did what she was supposed to do and then went on to the next envelope; it was all going a little too fast in my opinion. I suppose that with 13 envelopes to open, the narration had to be a little faster to fit everything in, but I just felt that everything was rushed. I also found her aunt a little annoying... I do see the point of the letters and what her aunt was trying to do, but it didn't sound really realistic.


That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it. It was a good read; an easy and quick book to read. I really enjoyed all the descriptions of places in the book. I've been to London and Rome, so I could remember some of the places described just like I saw them all those years ago. Especially Rome, with the lovely Santa Maria in Trastevere neighbourhood. I think I'll probably pick up the 2nd book in the series sometime in the future! I'd like to see where the story goes!


Rating: 5/10


Author:
Maureen Johnson is an American author. She was born in Pennsylvania and holds a degree in writing from the University of Delaware. Soon after graduation, she moved to New York City to study theatrical dramaturgy and writing at Columbia University School of Arts. She still lives in New York.
Her other books include:

The Key To The Golden Firebird  |  Devilish  |  Suite Scarlett

For more information, you can check these out:

Maureen Johnson (Official Website)

Maureen Johnson on Goodreads

Counts as Book #36 in the 100 Books In A Year Challenge.

Vampire Diaries: The Awakening & The Struggle (Books 1 & 2)

I kept seeing this book every time I went to the bookshop. I had heard about the TV series, but had never watched it. I knew the basic story, so I decided one day to just go ahead and get the book. So...

The Vampire Diaries: The Awakening + The Struggle (Books 1 & 2) by L.J. Smith
First published by HarperPaperbacks in 1991 (this edition by Hodder in 2009)


Books #1 & 2 in the Vampire Diaries Series


Description: (from Goodreads)

The Awakening

Elena Gilbert is used to getting what she wants and she wants mysterious new boy, Stefan. But Stefan is hiding a deadly secret - a secret that will change Elena's life for ever ...

The Struggle 

Elena is torn between her boyfriend, Stefan, and his brother, Damon. But these brothers hide dark secrets and a tragic past that threatens them all. Damon wants to lead Elena astray - and he'd rather kill Stefan than let him possess her ...


Opinions:
I only heard about this book when the TV series came out, but I wasn't really excited, so I didn't buy it. But I saw it every time I went to my local bookshop, so I decided to go for it. So I bought it and decided to give it a try and see if I liked it.


This book is actually two books. Each one of them is approximately (if not exactly) 200 pages long, so each book did not take long to finish. I'll start with the first book.


Just a warning. This review contains spoilers. If you have not read the book (which is probably not the case), then stop here!!!! Unless you don't mind spoilers. Consider yourselves warned!


The Awakening starts off by introducing us to the main character, Elena Gilbert. It is the start of a new school year and there is a new boy in class. So, she just has to have him. She has been characterised as the school's Ice Queen, but I just thought she was a total bitch ('scuse the language). But she honestly was! She is probably one of the most selfish and self-absorbed characters I have ever read about. I couldn't even understand why her friends hung out with her, when most of the time (after she got together with Stefan), she just ignored them. Another thing I didn't like at all was the romance. I am not a person who is put of by 'insta-romances' (as I believe they are called), but this one was just plain stupid. It went like this (approximately):
 - Elena wants Stefan.
 - Stefan ignores Elena (and everyone else, so it's not personal)
 - This goes on for quite some time when at some point
 - Something happens to Stefan
 - Elena says she loves him
That's it! I don't think they even had a proper conversation before Elena told him she loved him. So, I was a little put off by that.


One thing I did like was the ending. It wasn't because of what happened, but because of the fact that the way it was written made me want to go on reading the next book. So, on to the second book.


I preferred The Struggle to the first book. I suppose it was because Elena and Stefan are now an item, so that's over and done with. I liked the introduction of Damen into the picture, as he plays a much more central and important role in the story. And that's because he too wants Elena. So, we have a story where both boys want Elena, and Elena wants Stefan but dreams about Damen (and even meets up with him without Stefan knowing).


I liked the ending of this book, too, as it also makes you want to go onto the next book and find out what's going to happen.


I'm not quite sure about this book. I know quite a few people love it, but I can't say I did. I'm not saying that I will never read another book in the series, but what I read did not make me want to rush to the bookshop and get the next book, so I can start reading it straight away. Maybe sometime in the future!


Rating: 5/10


Author:
Lisa Jane Smith is an American author of young-adult literature. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Experimental Psychology from the University of California at Santa Barbara in 1987, followed by teaching credentials in Elementary education and Special education from San Francisco State University. She taught kindergarten and special education for several years before becoming a full-time writer. Her first book was 'The Night of the Solstice', which was published in 1987. Since then, she has written quite a few books, regardless of the fact that she had been on a writing hiatus from 1998 to 2008. Some of her books include:

• The Vampire Diaries novel series
• The Night World series
• The Secret Circle trilogy
• The Forbidden Game trilogy
• The Dark Visions trilogy
• as well as some short stories.

Here are some covers:

The cover on the left is the newest cover for the Vampire Diaries series. I have to admit I don't really like it. I much prefer the one I have, regardless of the fact that it's too Twilight-ish.

Some more info about the author can he found  on her official website (Click here!)

Counts as Book #27 in my 100 Books In A Year Challenge.

Also counts toward the 1st In A Series Challenge.

It's a Kind of Magic

Book title: It's a Kind of Magic
Author: Carole Matthews
Publisher: Headline Review
First published: 2008
No of pages: 410

Description: Emma and Leo have been a couple for years, but when he turns up at her thirtieth birthday party very late and completely drunk, she starts wishing things were a little different. But then Leo meets a very unusual girl named Isobel, falls under her spell and his erratic behaviour seems to completely change before Emma's eyes, making her realise she should be careful what she wishes for...

Review: I bought this book on my Christmas trip to Athens. I had - as always - bought a whole load of books, but for a change, most of them were quite ''serious'' ones (and I don't mean that in a bad way). So, I decided to stick in a book that was a little ''unserious'' (again not meant in a bad way). And I picked this one.

My choice was pretty random. I had seen some books here and there, but I thought this one sounded sweet so I chose it. When I started reading it, it was a short time after New Year and I was in the mood for something sweet, funny and romantic.

I have to admit here that I was a bit disappointed with this book. It's not that it started well and then just lost it's interest. The book's interestingness (yes, new word) was the same pretty much the whole way, except for some paragraphs of ''drama'' in some of the last chapters. It was sweet, it was funny - and not overtly so - and it had romance, too. So I wasn't disappointed in that aspect. No. What disappointed me was the author's way of writing.

What I mean with that is that there were loads of parts in the book that just seemed to go on and on and on, when in all actuality, nothing was really going on. It was either going on and on about Emma's situation (I dumped my boyfriend, but now I want him back) or about Leo's new situation (I love my old girlfriend, but I love my new one too - or something along those lines). With Emma it was either chatter with one of her friends or with her mother and with Leo it was mainly conversations with his two best friends. Which was SO boring. I honestly think she managed to turn a 250-page book into a 400-page one, thus making it for too long for the kind of story she set up.

Rating: I think this book should get 5/10. It's not a bad book or anything like that, but I do find it very off-putting when authors drone on and on about not very much. So, I'm not saying you won't enjoy it. You probably would enjoy the story, just like I did. But, honestly, it was more tiring than enjoying.

Author facts: Carole Matthews was born in St Helen's, Merseyside (that's in the UK, near Liverpool) and was a very avid reader when she was young. But she had never really planned on becoming an author herself. In 1996, she entered a short story contest, which - to her suprise - she won, and was awarded a prize of 1,000 pounds, which she then spent on a writing course. Her tutor liked what she was writing and he recommended her to an agent, leading to the publication of her first book, ''Let's Meet On Platform 8'', in 1997. Since then she has published many books, such as ''The Sweetest Taboo'' and ''You Drive Me Crazy''. Her latest book is called ''The Only Way Is Up'' and is out in hardback right now.
And as always, sources of information about the author, for anyone who might be interested:
Carole Matthews Official Page
Carole Matthews on Lovereading.co.uk
Carole Matthews on Amazon.co.uk

So, Book #1 for my 100 books in a year challenge! Yay! And Book #1 for my British Books Challenge 2011 (as, from my info, Carole Matthews is British)! Good for me!!

Toodles!