A Zoo In My Luggage - Gerald Durrell

★★

Read : January 2014

"A Zoo in My Luggage begins with an account of Durrell's third trip to the British Cameroon's in West Africa, during which he and his wife capture animals to start their own zoo. Returning to England with a few additions to their family - Cholmondeley the chimpanzee, Bug-eye the bush baby, and others - they have nowhere to put them as they haven't yet secured a place for their zoo. Durrell's account of how he manages his menagerie in all sorts of places throughout England while finding a permanent home for the animals provides as much adventure as capturing them.

For animal lovers of all ages, A Zoo in my Luggage is the romping true story of the boy who grew up to make a Noah's Ark of his own."

Tiring of collecting animals for others, Durrell and his wife set about collecting for a zoo of their very own. We follow them through their journey of the Cameroon's where they capture as many werid and wonderful beasts and they can carry. After finding all of their animals they return to the UK and begin the task of finding a site to set up their zoo, a task much harder and more frustrating than it sounds.

It took me a long time to get through Durrell's novel as I just couldn't get into it. Whilst I found learning about the animals and their habits and escapades fascinating the whole book felt a little disjointed. I couldn't help thinking that, while Durrell's tales were fantastic and intriguing, he just wasn't the right person to tell them. That being said, you could feel his passion and knowledge for the animals jump right off the pages at you as you read, which was wonderful.

A lot of the book was written in Pidgin English (whilst he was in West Africa) which became a bit distracting and 'hard going' at points but added a lot to the story and gave a more accurate glimpse into the British Cameroon's and Durrell's travels through it.

Overall I thought it was a good book with wonderful tales but it all felt a little disjointed and fell a little flat for me. I gave it 2 stars but I would say it's more of a 2½, purely for Durrell's passion and love for the wonderful animals he collects and cares for.

50 Books Challenge 2014

I managed to read 36 out of the 50 books I'd challenged myself to read during 2013 which was a little disappointing. I kind of 'lost my groove' half way through the year and it took me a while to pick it, and the books, up again. This year I'm setting myself another target and I'm aiming, once again, to complete 50 books during 2014.

1. The Husband's Secret - Liane Moriarty ★★
2. Melting Ms Frost - Kat Black ★★★★★
3. A Zoo In My Luggage - Gerard Durrell ★★
4. The Silent Wife - A.S.A Harrison ★★★★
5. Lemonade Revealed - Will Chluho ★★
6. The Time Keeper - Mitch Albom ★★★★★
7. The Dark Inside - Rupert Wallis ★★★★
8. Rage Against The Dying - Becky Masterman ★★★★★
9. Malicious - James Raven ★★
10. Uprising - Scott G Mariani

January Round-Up

Melting Ms Frost - Kat Black

★★★★★

Read : January 2014

"How do you thaw the coldest of hearts? Find out in the sexiest romance to hit the shelves this year!
When Aiden Flynn walks into Cluny's Restaurant, he can't take his eyes off his new boss, Annabel Frost. With his heart set on winning her over, Aiden can think of nothing but getting beneath her cold exterior.
Known as one of the toughest women in the business, Annabel is impervious to Aiden's many charms. His compelling grey gaze and persuasive Irish lilt do anything but captivate her.
But Aiden knows there's more to Annabel than meets the eye. And he's not going to stop until he reveals all..."

Melting Ms Frost follows Restuarant Manager Annabel, a very career-focused and independant woman who on the surface appears very cold and distant and Barman Aiden who, with all his Irish charm, sees through Annabel's defences and is determined to melt her frosty exterior.

When I first received Melting Ms Frost I will admit that I was a bit nervous of starting it. It looked and sounded brilliant but I've read a couple of other adult/erotic romance novels recently and I found I didn't enjoy them as much as I should have...after a couple of chapters I got a bit bored of all the sex and the lack of any kind of storyline. This wasn't the case with Kat Black's brilliant novel, quite the opposite in fact!

Melting Ms Frost managed to deliver raunchy sex scenes whilst at the same time cleverly putting together a fantastic storyline and two rounded characters which, although infuriating at times, were pretty believable and could be identified with. I enjoyed that there was more to the novel, and the characters, than sex and Kat Black took us on a journey of the development of their relationship, their personal lives and the issues of trust and control. Parts of the story were quite 'traditional romance' but rather a bit naughtier.

I was taken completely off guard by just how erotic Melting Ms Frost was. It was brilliantly written and each moment captured a certain amount of naughtiness whilst avoiding the 'seedy' pitfall that a few I've read have fallen straight into. In fact, for the best part of the novel, there was no physical, skin-to-skin contact which meant for rather a lot of 'foreplay' for both the characters and the reader alike and left you feeling almost as 'frustrated' as Annabel must have and waiting in anticipation for the moment they finally fully connect.

Overall I really enjoyed Melting Ms Frost; if fulfilled what it had promised (and more) in the XXX category and backed it up with a strong storyline. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a brilliantly sexy adult novel...a love story with a very naughty side.

Disclaimer: An advance copy of this book was kindly sent to me from Avon Books via Goodreads First Reads to read and review. All thoughts and opinions on the book are my own.

Expected release date ~ January 30th 2014

The Husband's Secret - Liane Moriarty

★★

Read : January 2014

"From the author of the critically acclaimed 'What Alice Forgot' comes a breakout new novel about the secrets husbands and wives keep from each other.

'My Darling Cecilia,
If you're reading this, then I've died...'

Imagine your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret - something so terrible it would destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others too. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive...
Cecilia Fitzpatrick achieved it all - she's an incredibly successful business woman, a pillar of her small community and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything, not just for her: Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia - or each other - but they too are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband's devastating secret."

The Husband's Secret follows three women and their families, secrets and tragedies. Tess, a shy business woman who's Husband's revelation sends her and their son to live with her Mother whilst she re-evaluates the direction of her marriage and her life. Rachel, a grief-stricken mother who lost her Daughter to a man she faces each day who has never been brought to justice. And Cecilia, who in the middle of her perfect, ordered life finds a letter from her Husband that could cause shock waves throughout their family and beyond.

It's worth mentioning that this was a Book Club read for me and isn't the kind of book I would usually pick up off the shelf. Saying that, it sounded like there was potential there that, for me, the author couldn't quite capture. The whole book felt like it could have been much darker and, whilst I appreciate that Moriarty confronted the issue in an easy-to-read, almost chick-lit style book, it felt like an opportunity missed. It could have become a more convincing read if it had explored deeper and further.

I found the massive amount of characters tricky to get a handle on at first, this wasn't made any easier by the book chopping and changing between them each chapter and it felt as if, within a few pages, I was thrown around all of the characters and left totally confused. It was hard to keep track of who was who and what was happening to whom. After a while it got a bit easier and switching between the characters helped to build suspense by leaving off at crucial cliff hangar's. I found the book very difficult to get into at first but the gentle humour and 'the big secret' kept me reading.

Throughout the novel the characters seemed a bit disconnected from each other but as the story went on their lives gradually began to weave into each others. The 'big secret' did come as a shock to me and at times I felt as Cecilia would have, in a Catch-22, where whatever action she took or decision she made would not be right. I wish the novel had spent more time with Cecilia and ditched the rather unlikeable, doormat Tess more often, as I'd expected from the blurb. I think it could have been a much more intense novel if that had been the case.

Overall, I wasn't too impressed with The Husband's Secret. Although it was put together cleverly and was reasonably easy to read (once you got into it) I found it didn't quite deliver what I was hoping it would and fell a little flat. Not one I'd recommend if I'm honest, which is a shame, because it had the potential to be much better than it turned out to be.

The Advent Killer - Alastair Gunn

★★★★

Read : December 2013

"Christmas is coming. One body at a time.
Three weeks before Christmas: Sunday, one a.m. A woman is drowned in her bathtub.
One week later: Sunday, one a.m. A woman is beaten savagely to death, every bone in her body broken.
Another week brings another victim.
As panic spreads across London, DCI Antonia Hawkins, leading her first murder investigation, must stop a cold, careful killer whose twisted motives can only be guessed at, before the next body is found. On Sunday. When the clock strikes one..."

Alastair Gunn's first novel is a dark crime thriller in which DCI Antonia Hawkins of the Metropolitan Police, muddling through her first murder investigation, is faced with catching a serial killer who seems intent on imposing evermore gruesome and creative deaths upon his unlucky victims. In a very British setting, but in no way similar to a traditional British murder-mystery where the gardener did it with his pitchfork after a disagreement, this killer proves he is something else entirely and whilst his attacks seem random on the surface we're allowed a brief glimpse into his psyche which reveals an awful lot more.

Gunn cleverly builds suspense throughout his fantastic debut novel and switches well between the Metropolitan Police Force, the Killer and snippets of his past - opening up the inner workings of his mind and giving us an idea of what's going through his head as he commits these horrendous crimes.

The Advent Killer had me feeling like I knew who the killer was and then, within a few pages, changed my mind completely. Although I had a slight inkling for the last 100 pages or so of the novel who the killer would turn out to be I chopped and changed so much that I couldn't be sure; Gunn kept me guessing and doubting myself until the final revelation.

The climax of the novel was brilliantly put together and pulled bits from throughout the novel which left you wondering how you'd missed a couple of obvious hints. It was a fast-paced, frantic read to find out what would happen to all the characters involved, after the final event takes place and in their lives beyond.

The Advent Killer was a well written read from this debut novelist, who shows a great promise of things to come. The characters were believable, relate-able and put together well. It was a fantastic Christmas read (although I'd recommend it all year round) for lovers of crime thriller and for anyone who fancies something a little different to the sweetness and fairylights that surround the Holiday season. I'm currently passing it around my family for them to enjoy too.

Disclaimer: An advance copy of this book was kindly sent to me from Penguin Publishers via Goodreads First Reads for me to read and review. All thoughts and opinions on the book are my own.

50 Books Challenge (#50Books2013)

Anyone who knows me well will know that I am, and always have been, a bit of a bookworm - a trait I seem to have passed along to my two wonderful children. There is something about reading that I just can't find anywhere else; falling head first into another world and all the secrets, mystery, beauty and events it holds within.

In previous years I've set myself challenges to read a certain number of books, varying from 25 to 100 and this year I'm linking up with the lovely Julie over at mamaowl.co.uk and will be joining in with her #50Books2013 challenge. Come and join us?

1. The Blind Man of Seville - Robert Wilson ★★★★
2. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time - Mark Haddon ★★★
3. Life of Pi - Yann Martel ★★★★★
4. Tan Lines - JJ Salem ★★★★★
5. The Diamond of Drury Lane - Julia Golding ★★★★
6. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen ★★★★
7. Mister Pip - Lloyd Jones ★★★
8. Touching the Void - Joe Simpson ★★★★★
9. Remember Me - Fay Weldon ★★★★
10. Thunder God - Paul Watkins ★★★
11. Honour - Elif Shafak ★★★★
12. The Devil and Miss Prym - Paul Coelho ★★★★
13. When God was a Rabbit - Sarah Winman ★★★★
14. Girl with a One-Track Mind - Abby Lee ★★★
15. The Dead Heart - Douglas Kennedy ★★★★★
16. Left Bank - Kate Muir ★★★
17. The Bonesetter's Daughter - Amy Tan ★★★★
18. We Need to Talk About Kevin - Lionel Shriver ★★★★★
19. Atlantic Shift - Emily Barr ★★★★
20. The First Assistant - Clare Naylor & Mimi Hare ★★★
21. Trading Up - Candace Bushnell ★★★★
22. Ultraviolet - RJ Anderson ★★★★★
23. Quite Ugly One Morning - Christopher Brookmyre ★★★
24. The Necromancer - Michael Scott ★★★★
25. Tom's Midnight Garden - Phillipa Pearce ★★★★
26. Through the Looking Glass - Lewis Carroll ★★★
27. One Thing Led to Another - Katy Regan ★★★★
28. The Great Indoors - Sabine Durrant ★★★★
29. Snow Blind - PJ Tracy ★★★★
30. Stardust - Neil Gaiman ★★★
31. Monument 14 - Emmy Laybourne ★★★★★
32. Stealing Phoenix - Joss Stirling ★★★★
33. Water For Elephants - Sara Gruen ★★★★
34. Sweetly - Jackson Pearce ★★★★
35. The Advent Killer - Alistair Gunn ★★★★
36. Path of Needles - Alison Littlewood ★★★

Read my 'mini reviews' of the books I read during 2013 in the following links: Books 1-10, Books 11-20, Books 21-30, Books 31-36

Books 31-36 Reviewed (#50Books2013)

31. Monument 14 - Emmy Laybourne ★★★★★
This is the first "end of the world as we know it" style of book that I've come across since reading 'I Am Legend' by Richard Matheson quite a few years back. I don't know why I haven't come across more as it's an area of literature that I find fascinating and fantastic and 'Monument 14' didn't fail to impress. It was a brilliant read from the first page to the very last and kept me hooked throughout. It became a fast-paced, frantic read to find out what happens to the characters and I felt it was really well written with just the right amount of humour to balance out the dark, disturbing events that take place. I absolutely loved it and I can't wait to read the next 2 books that follow it!!

32. Stealing Phoenix - Joss Stirling ★★★★
Unknown to us there live among us groups of people with special abilities (think along the lines of X-Men). Phee, who can 'freeze' people by reading their mind patterns, is just one of these and she uses her power for thieving. Whilst on one of her 'missions' set by her groups very unpleasant Seer she comes across Yves, her soulfinder (soulmate) who has abilities of his own. He wants to take her away from her awful life and into the bosom of his loving family but Phee has reservations; leaving isn't that simple.
Stealing Phoenix was a really good read and was somewhat of a modern day romance tackling the enternal question...can love conquer all? I'm looking forward to reading more books in this series and I'd definitely recommend 'Stealing Phoenix' if you're into sci-fi and fantasy novels.

33. Water For Elephants - Sara Gruen ★★★★
Gruen's novel switched between an elderly Mr Jankowski living in a nursing home and young Jacob Jankowski starting his life and finding his way in a travelling circus as a vet and a bull man. Two women are introduced into his life, whilst he's working on the circus, that have a profound impact upon him; Marlena (his boss' wife) and Rosie (an unruly elephant). We follow Jacob through his time on the circus and the events that unfold around him. It was a really brilliant read that kept me captured throughout. Jacob was a character that was easy to connect with and the switch between present and past was done seamlessly...something a lot of author's struggle to do. A definite recommendation to everyone and anyone!

34. Sweetly - Jackon Pearce ★★★★
'Sweelty' is a play on the traditional fairy tale of Hansel and Grettel where the wicked witch living in the woods in a house made of candy is something else entirely. Ansel and Gretchen leave their home when their Step-Mother forces them to leave after the death of their Father. Their car breaks down in the small village of Live Oak and events thereafter stall them from leaving. Pearce crafts an entirely believable main character who carries with her a deep-set fear and the secret of a twin sister who went missing in the woods when they were all small children. Thinking she's found somewhere that she can finally feel safe she's horrified to find that girls are going missing in this small town too. We follow Gretchen through her fears and an unlikely romance as she sets out to unearth what's happening. I enjoyed it, although I found it a bit unbelievable in some parts. It kept me involved in the storyline and built suspense for the final 'showdown' without giving too much away and was a great twist on the original fairy tale.

35. The Advent Killer - Alistair Gunn ★★★★
This was an advance copy kindly set to me from Penguin Publishers via Goodreads to read and review. All views and words are my own.
I really enjoyed The Advent Killer; it was a very well written book from this debut novelist who shows great promise of things to come. I found the characters believable and well put together and the book itself was a brilliant Christmas read (although I'd recommend it all year round) for those of us who fancy something a little different to the sweetness and fairylights that surround the season.
Gunn cleverly built suspense throughout the novel and switches really well between the Metropolitan Police Force, the Killer and snippets of his past - showing the inner workings of his mind and giving us an idea of what's going through his head as he commits these awful crimes. The ending was brilliant and pulled the whole story together nicely. It was a fast-paced, frantic read to find out what would happen. I had a slight inkling as to who the Killer was but I chopped and changed my mind so many times that I really wasn't sure...the author kept me guessing. It was a fantastic read that I'll be passing around my family for them to enjoy too.

36. Path of Needles - Alison Littlewood ★★★
We're pulled into a world of gruesome fairy tales in Path of Needles as is Alice Hyland, an expert in fairy tales who is brought into the investigation. I enjoyed the book and I found the link to fairy tales and the histories of some of the stories and variants fascinating. The book, however, seemed to fall a little flat and predictable in parts. Whilst saying that; we were kept completely in the dark about the motives of the murders and who could be committing them and why and for the majority of the book I had no idea how they would ever find the Killer and stop them.
The ending was okay but, for me, it became a little bit silly...almost like this crime thriller suddenly decided it wanted to be a fantasy novel. There seemed to be an element of "and they all lived happily ever after" which I wasn't too keen on either. Other than that, it was a decent and easy read.