The Diviners - Libba Bray libbabray.com/
What a brilliant book this was - well worth the wait (it's been on my reading list for about 16 months) - it was a riveting combination of:
- history it's set in America in the roaring twenties
- spooky it has ouija boards & undead spirits
- magical several characters have special powers which they do not totally understand
The central character is Evie O'Neil who's a young girl who has been sent away from her home town because her parents cant handle her - her uncle has no idea how to manage her either, but in the main he treats her like an adult which suits Evie just fine. There are parties and speak-easys which she wants to go to, her uncle is busy helping the police solve a string of crimes with a supernatural twist and soon Evie is assisting him with his enquiries and trying to keep 1 step ahead of the trouble which seems to follow her and her colourful group of friends. Danger is very much closer than Evie and her uncle could possibly imagine.
As it is a novel for young adults there is romance & yearning, but it doesn't get too heavy. The tone of book is chilling rather than horror, and the story is well crafted with a vivid tapestry of interesting characters who are well developed, but the reader is left feeling that there will be more to discover as the series continues. I could not put this book down, I took my Kindle everywhere with me and stole any moment I could to read it.
As it is a novel for young adults there is romance & yearning, but it doesn't get too heavy. The tone of book is chilling rather than horror, and the story is well crafted with a vivid tapestry of interesting characters who are well developed, but the reader is left feeling that there will be more to discover as the series continues. I could not put this book down, I took my Kindle everywhere with me and stole any moment I could to read it.
Readers who enjoyed Beautiful Creatures & New Girl would enjoy this book I am sure! Libba has written other novels - most recently I enjoyed A Great & Terrible Beauty which is book 1 of a trilogy.
West End Girls Jenny Colgan www.jennycolgan.com/
This book is chick lit at its best - real girls (unidentical twin sisters) who bicker and argue as well as larger than life 2 dimensional characters to make you laugh out loud! One sister, Penny, has always coasted on her looks - they should be her ticket out of her life of drudgery and duff boyfriends. The other sister, Lizzie, has always looked out for Penny (which generally gets her into trouble) and squashed her sorrows with food, she isn't looking for adventure, she is looking for a quiet life. When life throws these sisters the opportunity to live rent free in a flat in Chelsea, how will they fare in such different surroundings?
What follows are their attempts to get jobs, get a rich boyfriend (Penny) visit the places they have only read about in magazines (Penny again!), make friends and make a new life for themselves. Some of their adventures are crazy and madcap, some of the situations are uncomfortable but you will keep turning the pages wanting to know what happens next - who finds love and who just finds out what really matters in this life.
Jenny Colgan never disappoints - and she is very clever at finding different voices for herself in the novels she writes. If you like this book, you will quite likely enjoy the works of Jojo Moyes, Lisa Jewell, Judy Astley & Sophie Kinsella.
