Still Me by Jojo Moyes

Blurb

"Louisa Clark arrives in New York ready to start a new life, confident that she can embrace this new adventure and keep her relationship with Ambulance Sam alive across several thousand miles. She has been hired by the superrich Gopniks—Leonard and his unhappy, much younger second wife, Agnes—and finds herself amid a never-ending array of household staff and hangers-on. But Lou is determined to get the most out of the experience and throws herself into her job and this very privileged New York life.

As Lou tries to keep the two sides of her world together, she finds herself carrying secrets—not all her own—that cause a catastrophic change in her circumstances. And when matters come to a head, she has to ask herself Who is Louisa Clark? And how do you reconcile a heart that lives in two places?"

Hardcover, 475 pages
Published January 25th 2018 by Michael Joseph

My Review

We had our hearts broken with Lou is Me Before You, and stumbled through a world without Will in After You, now in Still Me, Lou is starting to become the best and bravest version of herself. The story continues directly from the last book as Lou has just arrived in New York to start her new adventure working with the Gopniks, a family caught up in a whirlwind of socialite events and backstabbing among the elite of New York.

Lou has grown so much as a character by the time she's in this book; she stands up for herself, fights for what she wants and still does it all with a unique sense of fashion!

I was gripped by the way her relationship developed with Sam, still living back in London. I also enjoyed her family's antics. However, the relationship I enjoyed reading most of all was between Lou and Margot De Witt. Does anyone else wish they could meet a smart, sassy older lady to be their mentor and friend?

I think it's a mark of how good this book is that I bought it a year after it's release and it was still only available in hardback - I just couldn't wait any longer! It was definitely worth the wait and I can't recommend it enough as a moving and satisfying conclusion to Lou's story. 5 out of 5


The Author

Jojo Moyes is a British novelist.

Moyes studied at Royal Holloway, University of London. She won a bursary financed by The Independent newspaper to study journalism at City University and subsequently worked for The Independent for 10 years. In 2001 she became a full time novelist.

Moyes' novel Foreign Fruit won the Romantic Novelists' Association (RNA) Romantic Novel of the Year in 2004.

She is married to journalist Charles Arthur and has three children.

This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay

The Blurb

"Adam Kay was a junior doctor from 2004 until 2010, before a devastating experience on a ward caused him to reconsider his future. He kept a diary throughout his training, and This Is Going to Hurt intersperses tales from the front line of the NHS with reflections on the current crisis. The result is a first-hand account of life as a junior doctor in all its joy, pain, sacrifice and maddening bureaucracy, and a love letter to those who might at any moment be holding our lives in their hands."

Paperback, 280 pages

Published April 19th 2018 by Picador (first published September 7th 2017)

With thanks to Stacey for lending me her copy!



My Review

Told in short, sharp diary entries, this is a blistering examination of life as a junior doctor. I gasped, laughed and winced my way through the book. I actually laughed out loud a lot at the way Adam Kay describes the mishaps and awkward situations he encountered as a junior doctor, so I had to keep stopping to read each section to my partner so he knew why I was laughing.

That said, there are some heartbreaking moments in this book, both in terms of events that happened to his patients and the rigorous and isolating life that he was leading as a junior doctor. It was devastating reading how someone so dedicated, like so many healthcare professionals, was driven to the point where he felt he could no longer continue in the profession after years of training and hard-work.
A must read for anyone and everyone! 5 out of 5 from me.

The Author

Adam Kay is a writer and comedian.

He writes extensively for TV and film. His first book "This is Going to Hurt" is out now.

The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

The Blurb

"Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice’s life on the road, always a step ahead of the uncanny bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice’s grandmother, the reclusive author of a cult-classic book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate, the Hazel Wood, Alice learns how bad her luck can really get: her mother is stolen away―by a figure who claims to come from the Hinterland, the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother's stories are set. Alice's only lead is the message her mother left behind: “Stay away from the Hazel Wood.”

Alice has long steered clear of her grandmother’s cultish fans. But now she has no choice but to ally with classmate Ellery Finch, a Hinterland superfan who may have his own reasons for wanting to help her. To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother's tales began―and where she might find out how her own story went so wrong."

Hardcover, 368 pages

Published January 30th 2018 by Flatiron Books

With thanks to Netgalley for sending me a copy to review.

My Review

This is a riveting, enchanting tale with elements that feel like a traditional fairytale, where there isn't always a happy ending. 

Alice is a spiky, independent character with anger issues and a bond with her mother that means she doesn't need anyone else, which is good when they have spent all her life running and hiding.

When her mother goes missing, her friendship with Ellery Finch grows, but his obsession with her grandmother's fairytales means she always keeps him a little at arms length.

The story is mysterious and chilling at times, and it is hard to know what is real and what isn't for the reader as well as Alice. The descriptions are magical and eerie, and the setting almost becomes a character itself. I also really enjoyed the snippets from her grandmother's fairytales.

I was completely enthralled by Alice's story. This is a world to get lost in, if you dare. 4 out of 5 from me.


The Author

Melissa Albert is the founding editor of the Barnes & Noble Teen Blog and the managing editor of BN.com. She has written for Time Out Chicago, SparkLife, MTV and McSweeney's.

Five Years From Now by Paige Toon

The Blurb

"What if you met the right person at the wrong time?

Nell and Van meet as children when their parents fall in love, but soon they are forced worlds apart.

Five years later, they find each other.  Their bond is rekindled and new feelings take hold, but once again they must separate.

For the next two decades, fate brings Nell and Van together every five years, as life and circumstance continue to divide them. Will they ever find true happiness? And will it be together?

‘One day, maybe five years from now, you’ll look back and understand why this happened…’ "

Kindle Edition, 400 pages

Published May 17th 2018 by Simon & Schuster UK

My Review

This is such a fantastic book! I have been a fan of Paige Toon for a long time but I think this is one of her best books yet. I read it in one sitting and I have no regrets about dedicating my entire Sunday to it.

We meet Nell and Vian/Van when they are five years old and after a bumpy start they are soon best friends, exploring the Cornish countryside, having boating adventures and encouraging and supporting each other.

Following some tragic circumstances they are separated and don't meet again for five years and such a lot has changed for them in that time. The story follows them as they get older and life brings them together and apart again through mistakes, misunderstandings and factors beyond their control.

I loved Nell and Van's characters, they were so different and yet fit together so well. I was rooting for them the whole way through. I also loved Nell's relationship with her Dad and with her group of friends. The surfing exploits were also entertaining to read.

The story was enhanced by beautiful descriptions of the Cornish setting, which helped to create a magical childhood setting for Nell and Van, and a romantic atmosphere later in the book.

Five Years From Now is a sweet, funny, romantic and heartbreaking read. Paige Toon's writing feels so natural that all of the characters feel real. A well deserved 5 out of 5 from me. 

The Author - in her own words

I was born in 1975 and my dad’s career as a racing driver meant that I grew up between Australia, England and America. I worked at heat magazine for eight years as Reviews Editor, but left to have a baby. I’m now a full-time author and freelance journalist. I live in North London with my husband Greg, son Indy and daughter Idha.

La Belle Sauvage, The Book of Dust: Volume One by Philip Pullman

"Malcolm Polstead is the kind of boy who notices everything but is not much noticed himself. And so perhaps it was inevitable that he would become a spy...

Malcolm's father runs an inn called the Trout, on the banks of the river Thames, and all of Oxford passes through its doors. Malcolm and his dæmon, Asta, routinely overhear news and gossip, and the occasional scandal, but during a winter of unceasing rain, Malcolm catches wind of something new: intrigue.

He finds a secret message inquiring about a dangerous substance called Dust--and the spy it was intended for finds him.

When she asks Malcolm to keep his eyes open, Malcolm sees suspicious characters everywhere; Lord Asriel, clearly on the run; enforcement agents from the Magisterium; a gyptian named Coram with warnings just for Malcolm; and a beautiful woman with an evil monkey for a dæmon. All are asking about the same thing: a girl--just a baby--named Lyra.

Lyra is the kind of person who draws people in like magnets. And Malcolm will brave any danger, and make shocking sacrifices, to bring her safely through the storm."

Hardcover, 546 pages

Published October 19th 2017 by David Fickling Books

My Review

I am a big fan of the original His Dark Materials trilogy so I was very intrigued to find out what the new prequel trilogy would be like. Of course that also meant rereading Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass, but I wasn't complaining - any excuse really! I'd say you don't need to have read the original series to enjoy this book, but I think it definitely added to my enjoyment recognising some of the characters and being back in Lyra's world, and finding out more about her start in life.

It felt like quite a gentle start to the book, introducing the main character Malcolm Polstead and his daily life helping in the pub with his parents, having an unspoken agreement to ignore the washing up girl Alice and visiting the nuns in his pride and joy, his canoe La Belle Sauvage. Whenever I read His Dark Materials and now La Belle Sauvage I almost feel like I'm going back in time and entering another pace of life, where children stay children for a lot longer and are content with simpler things.

However, Malcolm's simple world is turned upside down when he finds a secret message and becomes involved with spies working against the Magisterium (the church in this world).

The book soon becomes a bit of a mystery and an adventure story, with Malcolm braving many dangers to help bring Lyra to safety. The story also takes a darker turn at times and there are some more adult themes with a scene that suggests that a character is raped. Younger readers may not realise what has happened as it is tactfully written (if that is the right word) but you can tell that something violent and distressing is taking place.

I loved the relationship Malcolm had with Lyra, completely in awe of this tiny baby, and Lyra being equally intrigued by him. I really enjoyed reading about how different Pantalaimon (Lyra's dæmon) was when she was a baby, it seems strange but it didn't occur to me that he would be smaller! The author seems to always bring deeper questions to the fore of nature vs nurture and how personalities develop.

This is a really entertaining story which builds up the pace as the novel progresses and brings more to the world that Pullman created over twenty years ago. It definitely feels like the start of the story though as it ends on a cliffhanger.  I'm definitely keen to read the next instalment when it comes out. I've given this 5 out of 5. 

The Author

In 1946, acclaimed author Philip Pullman was born in Norwich, England, into a Protestant family. Although his beloved grandfather was an Anglican priest, Pullman became an atheist in his teenage years. He graduated from Exeter College in Oxford with a degree in English, and spent 23 years as a teacher while working on publishing 13 books and numerous short stories. Pullman has received many awards for his literature, including the prestigious Carnegie Medal for exceptional children’s literature in 1996, and the Carnegie of Carnegies in 2006. He is most famous for his “His Dark Materials” trilogy, a series of young adult fantasy novels which feature freethought themes. The novels cast organized religion as the series’ villain.

Also how beautiful are these 20th anniversary covers of the His Dark Materials trilogy?! I love them :)