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Book review: I Owe You One

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By Sophie Kinsella
Published by Transworld Books

Synopsis: Fixie Farr can’t help herself. Straightening a crooked object, removing a barely-there stain, helping out a friend… she just has to put things right. It’s how she got her nickname, after all. 

So when a handsome stranger in a coffee shop asks her to watch his laptop for a moment, Fixie not only agrees, she ends up saving it from certain disaster. To thank her, the computer’s owner, Sebastian, scribbles her an IOU – but of course Fixie never intends to call in the favour.

That is, until her teenage crush, Ryan, comes back into her life and needs her help – and Fixie turns to Seb. But things don’t go according to plan, and now Fixie owes Seb: big time.

Soon the pair are caught up in a series of IOUs – from small favours to life-changing debts – and Fixie is torn between the past she’s used to and the future she deserves. Does she have the courage to fix things for herself and fight for the life, and love, she really wants?

How did thi…
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Blog tour: Jay-Jay and his Island Adventure

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Welcome to the blog tour for Jay-Jay and his Island Adventure by Sue Wickstead!
Jay-Jay the Supersonic Bus is not an ordinary bus taking you on a journey. He is a Playbus. Find out what happens when he is invited to an island where the children have never seen a double-decker bus - and certainly not one full of toys!

Having read this introduction, I immediately knew I wanted to be part of this blog tour and find out more about Jay-Jay the Supersonic Bus. There is definitely something fascinating about repurposed buses… whether they are turned into libraries, tea rooms or party venues! So let’s learn something more about what inspired the creation of this beloved character…

'Jay-Jay and his Island Adventure' was originally written for a Scottish book bus. 'Play, Talk, Read' was the project which visited remote areas of Scotland to encourage reading in the very young. It was a great success and the bus even visited the Shetland Islands travelling on a very small ferry. The …
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Book review: Go West

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By David Quantick Published by Unbound Digital
Synopsis:GO WEST is a novel about Charlie Bread, self-styled Antiques Whisperer and forgery hunter. When Charlie is sent on the trail of a mysterious document that may have been written by the inventor of Peter Pan, his life becomes a road movie full of pursuit and intrigue, soundtracked by old John Peel shows, the beautiful Penelope, and a game of high road hide-and-seek all across the West Country. In a world where nothing is what it seems, Bread has to find out the truth – before the truth finds him out.
How did this book end up in my hands? Another awesome serialisation by The Pigeonhole, which I am now officially addicted to!
Was it a page-turner? The serialisation spanned ten days and I was comfortable with the reading pace. I sometimes would have loved to be able to read more but I appreciated the time I had to make up my own conjectures! 
Having read the synopsis, did the book meet my expectations? This novel was even funnier than I ex…
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Book review: Circe

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By Madeline Miller
Published by: Bloomsbury Publishing

Synopsis: In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe has neither the look nor the voice of divinity, and is scorned and rejected by her kin. Increasingly isolated, she turns to mortals for companionship, leading her to discover a power forbidden to the gods: witchcraft. 

When love drives Circe to cast a dark spell, wrathful Zeus banishes her to the remote island of Aiaia. There she learns to harness her occult craft, drawing strength from nature. But she will not always be alone; many are destined to pass through Circe's place of exile, entwining their fates with hers. The messenger god, Hermes. The craftsman, Daedalus. A ship bearing a golden fleece. And wily Odysseus, on his epic voyage home.

There is danger for a solitary woman in this world, and Circe's independence draws the wrath of men and gods alike. To protect what she holds dear, Circe must decide whether she bel…
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KonMari and books

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A few months ago I become engrossed in the series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo on Netflix. Of course, I had heard of her before but I had never paid much attention as I’ve always been relatively tidy and I’ve been watching my mum fold clothes to perfection since I was a child.

With a baby on the way, limited storage and lots of new stuff to accommodate, I have however been looking for a way to optimise the space around me. Enter Marie Kondo and things have definitely improved. So much, in fact, that I wanted to deepen my understanding of her method and decided to listen to her audiobook, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying.

This is not a post about the changes in my home though. Because of the criticism this adorable tidying expert has received for saying that she has reduced her collection to 30 books and implying that we shouldn’t need many more than that, I have decided to share a few snippets of her book-related theories along with my thoughts.

So let’s begin:

Books are one of the main …
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Book review: One Minute Later

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By Susan Lewis
Published by HarperCollins
Synopsis: With a high-flying job, a beautiful apartment and friends whose lives are as happy as her own, Vivienne Shager is living the dream. Then, on the afternoon of Vivi’s twenty-seventh birthday, one catastrophic minute changes everything.
Forced to move back to the small seaside town where she grew up, Vivi remembers the reasons she left. The secrets, lies and questions that now must be answered before it’s too late. But the answers lie in thirty years in the past…
Shelley Raynor’s family home, Deerwood Farm, has always been a special place until darkness strikes at its heart. When Vivi’s and Shelley’s worlds begin to entwine, it only takes a moment for the truth to unravel all of their lives.
How did this book end up in my hands? I have read this book via an online serialisation by The Pigeonhole.
Was it a page-turner? I liked the author’s writing style since the very first paragraphs but I found it hard to get into the narrative until I was a…
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Book review: A Perfect Balance

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By Laura Ambrose

Synopsis: Emma does not want, or need, a relationship and everything that comes with one. She has her career as a science fiction editor in London keeping her busy, and she needs to overcome her own writer’s block. Every few weeks, she meets the mysterious S and has no-strings-attached dalliances. It’s the best way to satisfy her needs and wants without all the extra bells and whistles.

How did this book end up in my hands? The author kindly sent me a digital copy of this novella in exchange for my honest opinion. 

Was it a page-turner? I wasn’t able to read it in one sitting but, given the chance, I could easily have done that. At less than 150 pages, you wouldn’t expect to get to know the Emma and S so well but there is some great character building going on here and you just can’t help caring and wanting to know what’s in store for them. 

Did the book meet my expectations? Having read A Hidden Hope, the first novella in the series, I had an idea of what to expect but –…
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