July Overview/ Month Ahead.

Surely it isn't August already? That actually means my blog is coming up for two. I would have organised a giveaway but this blogaversary has crept up on me unawares. I will come up with something in a few weeks when I have actual time to myself. So watch out for that.

Another quiet reading month. I spent far more time than I wanted on Century Rain. Not in a good way. It was annoying me how slow it was. So I blame that for another low book count. Still some books in there that I very much enjoyed though.

1. London - Edward Rutherfurd
2. The Leopard - Tomasi Di Lampedusa
3. Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children - Ransom Riggs
4. The Phantom of the Opera - Gaston Leroux
5. Century Rain - Alastair Reynolds
6. Pigeon English - Stephen Kelman
7. Snowdrops - A. D. Miller

As much as I enjoyed most of these books it is fairly easy to pick a favourite. It has to be London by Edward Rutherfurd. It was a fantastic historical fiction. Not quite as good as his New York but I still loved it. A book that took me a few weeks to read as it was so huge and I didn't mind it for a moment. My least favourite was Snowdrops. I haven't reviewed it yet so I won't go in to detail but it was a fairly bleak view of Russia with a dull plot.

Challenge Overview

 Last month I chose to read the Leopard which I loved. I would say it's a nice change for a classic but this year I have been reading a lot of classic authors that I have never read before. I even participated in the classic prompt this time. I will definitely be taking part this month too as I will have more time on my hands very soon (two weeks and counting). I am now reading my next classics choice which is The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. I am loving it so far. Hadn't planned on reading it this month but a fellow blogger highly recommended it (thank you FBT).

 I was so down on this challenge last month and hard to feel motivated. I was actually tempted to give up. Thankfully I didn't and surprised myself by very much enjoying The Phantom of the Opera. A book I didn't enjoy the first time I read it a few years back. Next up is The Invisible Man. Have never read this so I am looking forward to it.

 It was the horror category this month and I probably stretched it a little by choosing Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs. It does have some element of horror though and it was a good read. This months category is sci fi/ fantasty. I have decided to go with fantasy as I have a book that's been lying there for years. The Sorcerer's Treason by Sarah Zettel. I may also read the travel category as I don't think I can wait to read the Bill Bryson.

I went with my own choice this month which was Century Rain by Alastair Reynolds. I picked it because I had read the group choice, Fahrenheit 451, plus I have a few sci fi books that have been sitting a while on my tbr pile. Glad it's out the way. Whilst I did like it I think I have gone off the whole space opera theme. Not sure what the group choice is but I think I am going to go with a book I picked up last week. It's Peter F. Hamilton's short stories, Manhattan In Reverse. I realise he is also a space opera writer but it is from a series of his books that I loved. Plus it will let me know once and for all if I have went off Alastair Reynolds or the genre.


Other than that I have no plans. I enjoyed a wee unplanned trip to the library last month so maybe I will have another this month. otherwise it's a case of working through my tbr pile which I seem to be getting there with.   In case you haven't guessed I have some time off in a few weeks and I plan to read my head off. I have a few chunkies sitting there so I might dust those off.

Any one got some holiday reading plans?

Century Rain - Alastair Reynolds

Verity Auger is an Archaeologist who spend her time searching Paris for tokens from the past. The Earth has been desolated after humans tried to clean up the atmosphere using nanotechnology. It all went horribly wrong and the nano's took over. The Earth is covered in a sheet of ice and to come in contact with the nano's can mean death. Verity almost kills her team in one of her searches and is afterwards given a choice. Face a tribunal or head through a portal to Earth2. On Earth2 it is 1959 although it is much like the 1930's of Earth1. There was no WWII and as a result technology isn't where it should be and fascism is once again on the rise. Verity must go there to collect the belongings of murdered agent, Susan White.

I used to love Space Opera novels and Reynolds was one of my favourites. Like the last one I read I found that whilst I liked it I was also a little bored by it and the book didn't push on fast enough. In this case there was just far too much going on. There was a war between two species of humans, conspiracies, an Earth2 human investigating Susan White's murder and then Verity's own investigation. It was just too much with long boring periods in the middle and a rush at the end. In all honesty the rush at the end was the best part.

There were still parts of it I enjoyed. I liked the Paris setting with it's 1930's feel. Every so often you would get a reminder that it was supposed to be 1959. When Verity finally arrived on Earth 2 and the action started I enjoyed that too. I think maybe because then the pace picked up and the story became interesting.

In any case I think I will leave off Reynolds for a while. This was the last of his books in my tbr pile. I have a few Peter F. Hamilton's there. So I will see how I feel about those before I leave off the Space Opera novels all together. It's definitely not the sci fi itself though as I have been enjoying that over the last year.

I read this for the sci fi challenge hosted by Ellie of Curiousity Killed The Bookworm. The book was supposed to be Fahrenheit 451 but as I have read it before I picked out one from my tbr pile. Almost wish I had read it again. Anyways, you can read what others read here. 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

This is a book meme hosted by Sheila of Book Journey. It's a fun way for readers to share their reading week.

I have been slow in reading only to do almost nothing but read over the weekend. I have been very lazy in my book reviews though and done none so have a little bit of catching up to do this week.

This week I read;

Century Rain by Alastair Reynolds. I read this as my choice for the sci fi challenge. Could have been a good book but far to much going on.

Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman. Found the child narrator to be irritating at first. Also a little repetitive but in the end I liked it.

Snowdrops by A. D. Miller. Was disappointed with this one. Painted a very bleak picture of Russia and in the end the plot was boring and obvious.

Just now I am reading;

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthrone. I am reading this for the classics  challenge. I have only just started it but I am enjoying it so far.

Next I plan to read;

The Sorcerer's Treason by Sarah Zettel. I am reading this for the mixing it up challenge. It's for the sci fi/fantasy category. A friend bought this for me years ago which is why I decided to pick it up for this rather than my usual sci fi. It's about time I read it.

Honestly, I spent most of my weekend reading. Anyone else have a reading weekend or have you been glued to the olympics?

July Book Purchases!

I seem to stick to buying four books a month. I think I can keep up with that and still get my tbr pile down. Here are this months book purchases.

11.22.63 - Stephen King
The Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne
Manhattan In Reverse - Peter F. Hamilton
A Walk In The Woods - Bill Bryson

The King book is one that I have heard a lot of good things about. It has to be better than Under the Dome. So I am very much looking forward to that. I saw a review of The Scarlet Letter on FBT's blog, Kill Me If I Stop (a great blog, especially if you like classics). It sounded right up my street so this is going to be my choice for next months classic challenge. The Hamilton book is again one I have been looking forward to. As for the Bryson, I have enjoyed his autobiography and thought it is about time I tried some of his travel. I am keeping it though for the travel category in the Mixing It Up challenge.

On a whim I also took a wee trip to the library and got out these books. I'll be reading them next.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

This is a meme hosted by Sheila of Book Journey. It's a fun way for everyone to share their reading week. I'm going to do two weeks in one as I got distracted last week.


The last fortnight I have read;

The Leopard by Tomasi Di Lampedusa. An Italian classic which I read for the classics challenge. I loved it. It had such a sad atmosphere.

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs. I read this for the Mixing It Up challenge. I very much enjoyed it. Been a long time since I came across a YA this good.

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. I read this for the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen challenge. This was my re-read. I liked it better this time round than I did the first time.

Just now I am reading;

Century Rain by Alastair Reynolds. This is my choice for the sci fi challenge. I am enjoying it but have been slow in reading it as I have been distracted by other things (such as crafting).

Next I plan to read;

Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman. I picked this up in the library over the weekend. I read a couple of pages and I think I will very much enjoy it. Looking forward to it. Plus it's not for any challenges.

What abou you? What have you been reading the last few weeks?

The Phantom of the Opera - Gaston Leroux

Underneath the cellars of the famous Opera house there lives a ghost. A ghost which has the new managers at their wits end. A ghost that is also perceived as the Angel of Music by young singer Christine Daae. Her father told her he would send her an Angel to teach her to sing as he did. As it would turn out this ghost is no Angel but a monster who is determined that Christine Daae will belong to him and no one else. This puts the Viscount of Chagny in danger. A childhood friend of Daae he finds her again as she takes the stage and wows the audience with a voice no one ever suspected her of having. The Viscount's attentions are met with great jealousy from the ghost and he threatens everyone if Daae does not promise herself to him.

I have memories of being bored by this book the first time I read it. This is why I became so reluctant to finish this challenge. It would be the second re-read that I didn't enjoy the first time. I had hoped with Dorian Gray that I would find that I enjoyed it the second time but this didn't happen. So I didn't see it happening with this one. I don't know what I was thinking the first time I read this book because this time I loved the book.

I loved the whole mystery behind the ghost. I still remember the details of the story from my first reading (I have seen the film but I am sure it doesn't have everything from the book). However, I was seeing it with the new eyes I had hoped I would see Dorian Gray with.

I loved this monster who lived beneath the Opera House. How can you not feel sympathy for someone who was shunned and hidden by his own parents who couldn't stand to look at him? Of course that doesn't excuse him for some of the deplorable things he did and from his past. In the end though he only wanted to be loved or accepted. Each time he was accepted he was threatened or chased away. It's quite sad really. I guess he saw in Daae a quiet, sweet soul who might actually see him for more than a scarred face.

I actually liked him more than his rival, Raoul Chagny as he was just a little bit whiny and demanding. Very much like a spoiled child and the one time Daae stood up to him I wanted to applaud. I would have quite happily have lived without him in the book but then there wouldn't have been much of a story really.

The book was a great mystery and I wish I had loved it as much the first time round. I liked the fact that it wasn't just about this singer and her Angel of Music. I especially liked the details of the Opera ghost getting one over on the new management. Yes, I am rooting for the bad guy here and I'm okay with that.

As I said I read this for the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen challenge. Funnily enough the character to focus on is the Phantom himself. I am sure he was a bad guy in the film too. Not that this surprises me. He always did seem to fall in with a bad crowd. If I remember his character in the film though his original version is much more eloquent. I think I prefer him in the book. Just two more books in this challenge to go. Both unread before and I am looking forward to them. This challenge is hosted by Hanna of Booking In Heels and you can see others reviews of the various the challenge focuses on here.

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children - Ransom Riggs

Jacob has been brought up on the strange and wonderful tales from his grandfathers childhood. He tells of the monsters he ran away from and the refuge of the home on an island near Wales. Jacob believes every word but as he grows older he begins to doubt despite the photographs his grandfather had to prove how special all the children in the home were. When Jacob's grandfather dies all these stories comes crashing back into nightmare. Jacob begins to believe in them again causing him to doubt his own sanity. His only way of finding some closure is to head over to Wales and get some answers of his own.

I think what makes this book stand out is that it's not just the words that tell the story. The photographs interspersed through out are a big part of it. I think I read somewhere that it was initially going to be a picture book with just the photographs. There are collectors through out the world that pick up these odd photographs from markets and church stalls. The author was able to borrow some for this story.

The story itself seems straight forward enough. Jacob and his parents believe that the monsters his grandfather was running from were the Nazis who were believed to have killed his family. By describing it that way it allowed his grandfather to tell his story without feeling some of the pain. The refuge of the home would seem like a wonderful place after those horror's. However, the reader gets caught up when Jacob believes he has seen one of the monsters his grandfather had described. As he wonders whether the monsters were actual or not so do we. As his parents (and even himself to some extent) doubts his stability of mind I felt the frustration he must have felt. Especially since his parents continued this doubt right to the end.

Jacob then lands in Wales. I have to say that I wasn't completely convinced by it. I can't quite put my finger on it but I don't think the Welsh part was done very well. It's my only criticism though and since I have never been to Wales I can't be too critical. The book then takes a turn into a mix between horror and fantasy. It has a little bit of everything. Monsters, children with strange abilities, time travel and  teachers with the ability to change into animals. I quite liked it and I liked the pace of it.

I am guessing that this is probably a YA book (glad I didn't realise that at the time when I picked it up). However, it is one of the better YA I have read in a long time. It was easy to read and I probably would have read it in one setting had I been allowed to read instead of work.

I read this as part of the Mixing it up challenge hosted by Ellie of Musings of a Bookshop Girl. This is for the horror category. Clutching at straws a little but it does contain monsters which eat people. I am still on track with this challenge (next category is sci fi/fantasy). You can see how I am doing here.