A Spoonful of Happy Endings

3 February 2015

Top Ten Tuesday - Top 10 Chick Lit Books I Can't Believe I Haven't Read

'Top Ten Tuesday' is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. I love making lists, so this feature fits me perfectly! If you also take part in this feature or have any additions to my lists, please get in touch; I'd love to hear from you!

Top 10 Chick Lit Books I Can't Believe I Haven't Read
I wasn't able to join last week's Top Ten Tuesday, but I'm back again this week with another fun top 10 to share with all of you! If you visit my blog more often, you'll undoubtedly know I'm a big chick lit fan. However, there are still lots of chick lit books out there which I haven't read, and there are even a few titles of which you might think: Whatttttt, you seriously haven't read that book?! You can find those titles below, and if you want to encourage me to definitely pick up one of these books as soon as possible, don't hesitate to leave a comment! ;)

1. Sophie Kinsella - 'Shopaholic' series

Yes, I know! *hides in a really dark corner* Somehow I've only managed to read the first Shopaholic book over the years, and as a true chick lit fan that's just not on! I have all the books on my to-read shelf at home, so I guess I really need to sit down and start reading all about Becky's adventures sometime soon!

2. Jojo Moyes - 'Me Before You'

Yes, another thing which I still can't believe, but somehow I still haven't picked up a Jojo Moyes novel. I've especially only heard amazing things about 'Me Before You' and I need to pick up this book soon and finally find out for myself what everyone is talking about!

3. Paige Toon - 'Thirteen Weddings'

Paige Toon is an amazing author and I always love her novels. I still haven't read her last release, 'Thirteen Weddings', while I just know I am going to absolutely love this book.

4. Marian Keyes - 'Watermelon'

Marian Keyes is one of the queens of chick lit and 'Watermelon' is one of her classic novels; one of her classics which I still haven't read!

5. Candace Bushnell - 'Sex and the City'

We all know the TV show, but the series is actually based on a novel by bestselling author Candace Bushnell; a novel which I'd love to read to see where it all began!

6. Lucy Robinson - 'The Unfinished Symphony of You and Me'

One of the 2014 chick lit releases everyone seems to have fallen head over heels in love with. I just know I'm missing something by not having read it, so I can't wait to hopefully pick up this book soon!

7. Jenny Colgan - 'The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris'

Chocolate, Paris, Jenny Colgan... This has to be a fabulous chick lit read and one which is definitely still at the top of my TBR-list.

8. Ali Harris - 'The First Last Kiss'

This is also described as an incredibly moving and amazing novel, and since I love Ali Harris' work, I know I will really enjoy this one as well. Another book which I can't believe I haven't picked up yet!

9. Ali McNamara - 'From Notting Hill with Four Weddings... Actually'

I really couldn't wait until the release of the third part of Ali McNamara's 'From Notting Hill with...' series last year, but when I finally had a copy of the book in my hands, I had to put it away because I had tons of other review copies to get through first. I still haven't read the book, but my fingers are itching to finally start reading it!

10. Nicholas Sparks - 'The Longest Ride'

Nicholas Sparks is probably the king of romantic love stories and he's one of my absolutely favourite authors of all time. I still haven't read his last release, 'The Longest Ride', and I really hope I will be able to pick it up as soon as possible!

2 February 2015

Review: 'Only You' by Lorna Peel (2014)

Jane Hollinger is the wrong side of thirty, divorced and struggling to pay the mortgage her cheating ex left her with. As a qualified genealogist, teaching family history evening classes is a way for her to make ends meet. But she begins to wonder if it’s such a good idea when a late enroller for the class is a little... odd. “Badly-blond Bloke” both scares and intrigues Jane, and when she discovers he is her all-time favourite actor and huge crush, Robert Armstrong, she’s stunned. Even more stunning to Jane is the fact that Robert is interested in her romantically. He’s everything she ever dreamed of, and more, but can she overcome her fear of living in the public eye to be with the man she loves?
Last year I was contacted by Lorna Peel, author of contemporary and historical romance fiction, about possibly reviewing her romance novel ‘Only You.’ I did a bit of research and stumbled upon Lorna’s website (http://lornapeel.com/) and was quite curious to check out her work. ‘Only You’ was released as an e-book in October 2014 by Tirgearr Publishing and appears to be a promising romance read with its romantic black-and-white cover. Lorna will be releasing another novel this upcoming Spring, titled ‘Into the Unknown’, which also sounds like a fascinating read. However, for now I had ‘Only You’ to dive into which provided me with the chance to get to know Lorna Peel’s writing!
Thirty-something Jane Hollinger is trying to pick up her life after her divorce. Her ex-husband has left her with some trust issues after he cheated on her, and a mortgage to pay. Jane tries to focus on making ends meet thanks to her job as a teacher at the local adult education centre. Her sister Mags and best friend Carol believe it's time for Jane to move on and find something new, so they get her to join a dating website. However, it is during one of her genealogy classes that Jane's attention is caught by a slightly strange guy; a guy who turns out to be famous film actor Robert Armstrong. Jane can't believe it's actually him and she's even more stunned when she realises Robert has feelings for her. But is she ready to start a new relationship, let alone one with an incredibly popular actor?
The storyline of 'Only You' is quite a classic one; a normal woman meets a famous and handsome actor who falls in love with her, which results in her suddenly being thrust into the spotlight. While the storyline is quite predictable, I am always interested in seeing how different authors deal with a classic storyline like this one. Lorna Peel managed to create two interesting main characters; both Jane and Robert were easy to like and had their own individual background stories. While Jane has trust issues, Robert is looking for an honest woman who can offer him some normality in his crazy film star life. I loved how Jane and Robert met and felt myself rooting for them from quite early on in the novel, which I personally think is crucial to any convincing romance story.
While the novel definitely has a good basis, I occasionally missed things to make the story more complete. For example, some of Jane's actions were quite sudden and unexplained, and I sometimes missed certain story details such as why exactly Robert falls in love with Jane. I would have loved to have read more about the genealogy aspect of the storyline and Robert's family history, and Jane's previous marriage; maybe if these items had been explored in more detail I would have been able to connect with both the characters and the storyline on a deeper level. Overall, 'Only You' is an enjoyable retelling of a classic storyline with interesting characters at its core; however, to me personally some elements seemed to be missing which prevented me from really diving into the story, which was a shame. I am curious to see what the author's other works are like, though, and will hopefully have the chance to read another one of her books in the future!

Rating:7/10

For more information about this book: Amazon.co.uk / Amazon.com / Goodreads

Thanks to the author for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

1 February 2015

Liebster Award!

Thanks to the lovely Emma over at Emma's Bookery I was nominated for the Liebster award! I love fun things like this to learn more about other bloggers and it's a great way to visit some other blogs you might end up loving! :)

Here are the Liebster Award rules:
1. Post 11 facts about yourself.
2. Answer the 11 questions created by the person who nominated you, then create your own set for the people who you are going to nominate!
3. Choose 11 people (that have under 200 followers) to nominate and link them to your post.
4. Let the people you nominated know they've been tagged. No tag backs!
11 Facts About Myself:

I've been blogging for almost 2 years now, wow! I can't believe how fast time has flown by!
I am secretly obsessed with the Carebears. I used to love the TV show and films when I was just a girl, and I guess I never grew out of that love!
I'm a hopeless romantic who can't stand unhappy endings.
I can't read two or more books at the same time; I just can't.
I hope I will be able to move to the UK one day.
I wish I could see my nanna, who passed away two years ago, one more time and get one of her amazing hugs.
I'm currently addicted to 'Hart of Dixie' and 'Jane the Virgin', which are both such great TV shows <3
I love love love anything cinnamon.
My favourite author of all time is Jane Austen.
I love pretty dresses and own way too many.
My favourite drink is a chai tea latte (particularly Cafe Nero's Chai Latte, yum!)

11 Questions:

What made you start blogging? - I had been thinking about starting my own blog for quite some time, but I wasn't really sure what to blog about exactly. Then I suddenly thought how amazing it would be to share my love for books with others, and I decided to just give Blogger a try and start my own blog... And suddenly here we are, about two years later!
What blogs do you check daily? - I have to admit there aren't that many blogs which I check daily, most of them I check weekly. However, there's one blog which I've been a big fan of for a couple of years now, 'The Joy of Fashion', and I even became friends with Marie, the owner of the blog. She's an absolutely wonderful person and her blog always makes me smile! :)
What are your top five favourite books? - Ahhh, this is such a difficult question! Alright, in random order:

'Pride and Prejudice' by Jane Austen
'Harry Potter' series by J.K. Rowling
'Little Women' by Louisa May Alcott
'Something Borrowed' by Emily Giffin
'From Notting Hill With Love... Actually' by Ali McNamara

If you could travel to anywhere in the world right now, where would you go? - Right now I'd probably go to Hawaii for a relaxing week at the beach after the busy week I had at work!
What is the one wish you would like to be granted? - For my family and friends to live happy and healthy lives until they're very old. But I guess that's something all of us wish... So, another one: I wish I would be able to work at a university, researching and teaching English literature courses, specialising in Jane Austen.
What is your favourite quote? - I don't have one!
Favourite childhood hero? - Do the Carebears count...?
What are you most excited for in 2015? - My trip to the USA in the summer!
Where do you see yourself in 10 years time? - Hopefully happily married with a couple of kids and a great job!
Do you enjoy summer or winter more and why? - I definitely enjoy winter more, because I really dislike hot weather. I love sitting inside when it's cold outside, with a nice cup of tea, a good book, and a blanket on the couch!
If you could go back in time when and why would you go there? - I'd either go back to the time when Jane Austen was still alive and become her best friend; or I'd like to go back to when my grandfather who I never got to meet was still alive, so I could get to know him.