First up was to finish Mad Love by Paul Dini & Pat Cadigan - the fictionalisation of the well-known and loved story of Harley Quinn!
~~~
When she was only seven years old, Harleen Quinzel witnessed her father being beaten up by thugs, and then arrested by the police. That night she ran away to the safest place she could think of: Coney Island amusement park. But there, pursued into the Funhouse by the men who brutalised her father, she beheld unimaginable horrors. Years later, Harleen has put her past behind her, and used her intelligence and ambition to escape her childhood of poverty with a career in psychiatry. Assigned to her first position at Arkham Hospital, she will discover, deep in the asylum, something dangerous and alluring, something quite unlike anything else she has ever known before: The Joker. Because why would you settle for love, when you could have MAD LOVE? From the moment that Harleen finds a rose on her desk, to the moment she dons her harlequin hat, this is the definitive story that chronicles the obsession, the burning desire, the manic laughter, and the birth of one of the most controversial and popular comic book supervillains ever created: Harley Quinn.
~~~
I absolutely loved this - as expected! I found out after I had read it that it is, in fact, the second in the series, as they did The Joker first so I will be going back to read that soon too! Check out my review for Mad Love!
Next up was a reread of The Binding by Bridget Collins ready for the event in Sheffield. I absolutely adored this book, and read it last year as a proof copy. I obviously had to own a copy of the beautiful hard back, which I also got signed after the evening with Bridget in Waterstones where we got to listen to her talk about her book and characters. A truly amazing story - read it!
~~~Imagine you could erase your grief.
Imagine you could forget your pain.
Imagine you could hide a secret.
Forever.
Emmett Farmer is working in the fields when a letter arrives summoning him to begin an apprenticeship. He will work for a Bookbinder, a vocation that arouses fear, superstition and prejudice - but one neither he nor his parents can afford to refuse.
He will learn to hand-craft beautiful volumes, and within each he will capture something unique and extraordinary: a memory. If there's something you want to forget, he can help. If there's something you need to erase, he can assist. Your past will be stored safely in a book and you will never remember your secret, however terrible.
In a vault under his mentor's workshop, row upon row of books - and memories - are meticulously stored and recorded. Then one day Emmett makes an astonishing discovery: one of them has his name on it.
~~~
My review is the same one I wrote after reading it last year. This is honestly one of my favourite books now and I could genuinely read it over and over again and not get tired of it!
Vengeance Road by Christine Feehan is the second book in the Torpedo Ink series. I was in love with Reaper, from the first book, and Steele was quick to join him. A great series with intriguing characters. I can't wait for the next one!
~~~Breezy Simmons was born into a ruthless motorcycle club - and now that she's out, she's never going to be that girl again. But when her past catches up with her, Breezy must go to Sea Haven to seek out the man who almost destroyed her. The man who chose his club over her and left her feeling used and alone.
As vice president of Torpedo Ink, Steele is ride or die for the brothers he lived through hell with. He never thought he'd find something as pure as his feelings for Breezy, or that keeping her safe would mean driving her away with cruel words that turned her love for him to ash.
Now, Steele won't let her walk away twice. He'll do whatever it takes to make Breezy his woman again - especially when he learns the real reason she came to him for help, and that the stakes are higher than he ever could have imagined . . .
~~~
Loved it - I knew that I would... Now I have to wait an entire year again for another one... Check out my review then go read these books!!
A new book at work, Adele by Leilah Slimani was up next. I read her first book, Lullaby last year and thought that it was fantastic, so I obviously had to pick this one up too!
~~~Adele appears to have the perfect life.
A respected journalist, she lives in a flawless Parisian apartment with her surgeon husband and their young son. But beneath the veneer of 'having it all', she is bored - and consumed by an insatiable need for sex, whatever the cost.
Struggling to contain the twin forces of compulsion and desire, she begins to orchestrate her life around her one night stands and extramarital affairs, arriving late to work and lying to her husband about where she's been, until she becomes ensnared in a trap of her own making.
An erotic and daring story - with electrically clear writing - Adele will captivate readers with its exploration of addiction, sexuality, and one woman's quest to feel alive.
~~~
If I'm totally honest, I didn't like this book. I don't like saying that about any book, but this just wasnt my thing. I found it a hard slog and struggled to see a story line. I do however priase Slimani for writing about such taboo subjects and making them readable in a way that it highlights issues that would normally get pushed under the carpet. You can read my review but it really doesn't say much!
Another event this month was for The Flight of Cornelia Blackwood by Susan Elliot Wright so of course, I read this too!
~~~What has happened to Cornelia Blackwood?
She has a loving marriage. But she has no friends.
Everyone knows her name. But no one will speak to her now.
Cornelia Blackwood has unravelled once before. Can she stop it from happening again?
From a supremely talented storyteller, The Flight of Cornelia Blackwood is a powerful novel of motherhood, loss and loneliness and how we can make damaging choices when pushed to our emotional edge.
~~~
Again, not really my thing, but an excellent book and a deep insight into a subject that wouldn't normally see the light of day. A hard subject to broach, but it is done fantastically. Check out my review here.
I squeezed in Amelia Fang and the Half Moon Holiday by Laura Ellen Anderson in just twenty-four hours. The fourth book about the spiffy little half vampire/half fairy. I requested an advance reader copy of this from work so that I could get ahead of the game... sneaky perks of the job!
~~~It's the half-moon holidays in gloomy Nocturnia which means no school for Amelia and her friends! Instead they are going to spend it with their Rainbow Rangers troop, (lead by unicorns Ricky and Graham) earning badges on Sugar Plum Island. But whilst exploring, Amelia and the gang stumble upon an ancient curse - and are shrunk to the size of bugs! How will they make the bloodcurdlingly BIG journey to break the curse when they are all so very TINY?
~~~
Another fantastic adventure. These books really are great and although they are catagorised as young children's fiction - they really are suitable for all ages. They are a great pick-me-up and put a smile on your face when reading. Check out my review then go out and start the adventure! I promise you won't regret it.
Last up for February was Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott - the book of the highly anticipated new film... I can't wait to see it...
~~~Can you love someone you can never touch?
Stella Grant likes to be in control - even though her totally out of control lungs have sent her in and out of the hospital most of her life. At this point, what Stella needs to control most is keeping herself away from anyone or anything that might pass along an infection and jeopardize the possibility of a lung transplant. Six feet apart. No exceptions.
The only thing Will Newman wants to be in control of is getting out of this hospital. He couldn't care less about his treatments, or a fancy new clinical drug trial. Soon, he'll turn eighteen and then he'll be able to unplug all these machines and actually go see the world, not just its hospitals.
Will's exactly what Stella needs to stay away from. If he so much as breathes on Stella she could lose her spot on the transplant list. Either one of them could die. The only way to stay alive is to stay apart. But suddenly six feet doesn't feel like safety. It feels like punishment.
What if they could steal back just a little bit of the space their broken lungs have stolen from them? Would five feet apart really be so dangerous if it stops their hearts from breaking too?
~~~
Oh wow... This book is a must-read! It was like The Fault in our Stars, but better. And I loved that book too! A truly heart-breakingly beautiful story... check out my review, and get this read before the film comes out!
And that's a wrap! I have started another one, but highly doubt that I can get it finished before Thursday so I will save it for the start of the next post... I hope that I inspire you to pick up one of the titles I have read this month, or from any of the previous posts... There's nothing a book-nerd likes better than to know someone is reading a book they liked from their recommendation!!
Till next time
V x
Till next time
V x
