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thebookishlifeofbecks's reviews
272 reviews
This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens
5.0
I just finished it and I LOVED IT! After that first chapter, I was HOOKED!
I was literally laughing the whole way through, and the banter between Minnie and Quinn was absolutely perfect.
The small details and little breadcrumbs of the story were absolutely perfect — and I audibly gasped when I realised about the whole brandy cremé patisserie scenario! I really didn’t see that coming!!!
It was so well thought out, and not cliche in the slightest.
This was literally just a feel-good book from start to finish and I will definitely be recommending to all of my friends.
I was literally laughing the whole way through, and the banter between Minnie and Quinn was absolutely perfect.
The small details and little breadcrumbs of the story were absolutely perfect — and I audibly gasped when I realised about the whole brandy cremé patisserie scenario! I really didn’t see that coming!!!
It was so well thought out, and not cliche in the slightest.
This was literally just a feel-good book from start to finish and I will definitely be recommending to all of my friends.
Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton
3.0
If I am being completely honest, I didn’t like this book as much as I thought I would, yet I didn’t hate it either. On one hand, it was a very realistic and insightful memoir into Dolly’s life, and I think people can learn a lot from somebody else sharing their own experiences and mistakes. However, I have a lot of problems with this book, and I am not sure that I would ever read it again.
While I found some of the book to be very poignant and wise, I feel as though the majority of it did not paint Dolly in a very good light, and by the end of the book, I came to dislike her as a person. I am not saying that I wanted her to be perfect, because of course such perfection does not exist, but I found myself disliking her because she never seemed to learn from her mistakes, and simply kept making them over and over again, which I found to be incredibly frustrating; and documenting them made the book extremely repetitive. Though, it made me want to be her friend, so that I could offer her advice and guidance as it made me angry to see her essentially making some very poor choices.
My main problem with this book is that I found her to be narcissistic and irritating. Not only did she have a self-destructive personality, but she also had an awful attitude towards her friends and family. Her self-destructive behavior, in the form of her dependency on alcohol, her casual drug taking and her endless string of one-night stands, seemed to be a way to fill the void of not having a significant other or any true friends that she can count on, aside from Farly. And, though I understand sometimes being jealous about your friend’s happiness and success, especially if you are at a point in your life where you feel as though you haven’t achieved anything or you are not where you hoped you would be, it seemed as though Dolly wanted and was constantly hoping that things would go wrong for her friends just so she could feel better about herself and her life.
While there were some parts that I enjoyed reading, I did not enjoy this book as much as I would have liked, mainly due to the fact that I couldn’t relate to Dolly’s life at all, due to her downward spiral of poor decision making (as previously mentioned above)… all of the alcohol, drugs, one night stands, wild parties, chaos, and complete lack of control. As a reader, I enjoy books that I can identify with, which present universal experiences, and yet, there was nothing in this book that I could identify with or that felt like a reflection of myself.
However, that’s not to say that the book was awful, because it wasn’t, and there were certainly parts of it that I enjoyed.
I really liked the fact that lists and satirical emails were interspersed throughout, as it broke up the text and felt as though I was reading her diary more so than a book, which made it feel more personal. And, the way in which she tells some stories throughout make them genuinely funny, to the point where I actually found myself laughing out loud.
Furthermore, I liked the fact that there was a contrast between the satirical and humorous moments of the book, and the heartbreaking, as it really showcased the ups and downs that life tends to throw at us as human beings.
Additionally, while I felt as though the majority of the book was unrelatable for me, there were some beautiful analogies throughout; and one quote in particular really did hit home, as I am in my early twenties and still trying to come to terms with the fact that I am ‘grown up’, and that that the future that my childhood self pictured, is not the way I imagined it:
“When you begin to wonder if life is really just waiting for buses… and ordering books you’ll never read off Amazon… You are realizing the mundanity of life. You are finally understanding how little point there is to anything. You are moving out of the realm of fantasy ‘when I grow up’ and adjusting to the reality that you’re there; it’s happening. And it wasn’t what you thought it might be. You are not who you thought you would be.” (Page 167-168)
Overall, this is a book that perhaps not everybody will relate to, but I would recommend reading anyway; even if it is simply to make yourself feel better about things.
While I found some of the book to be very poignant and wise, I feel as though the majority of it did not paint Dolly in a very good light, and by the end of the book, I came to dislike her as a person. I am not saying that I wanted her to be perfect, because of course such perfection does not exist, but I found myself disliking her because she never seemed to learn from her mistakes, and simply kept making them over and over again, which I found to be incredibly frustrating; and documenting them made the book extremely repetitive. Though, it made me want to be her friend, so that I could offer her advice and guidance as it made me angry to see her essentially making some very poor choices.
My main problem with this book is that I found her to be narcissistic and irritating. Not only did she have a self-destructive personality, but she also had an awful attitude towards her friends and family. Her self-destructive behavior, in the form of her dependency on alcohol, her casual drug taking and her endless string of one-night stands, seemed to be a way to fill the void of not having a significant other or any true friends that she can count on, aside from Farly. And, though I understand sometimes being jealous about your friend’s happiness and success, especially if you are at a point in your life where you feel as though you haven’t achieved anything or you are not where you hoped you would be, it seemed as though Dolly wanted and was constantly hoping that things would go wrong for her friends just so she could feel better about herself and her life.
While there were some parts that I enjoyed reading, I did not enjoy this book as much as I would have liked, mainly due to the fact that I couldn’t relate to Dolly’s life at all, due to her downward spiral of poor decision making (as previously mentioned above)… all of the alcohol, drugs, one night stands, wild parties, chaos, and complete lack of control. As a reader, I enjoy books that I can identify with, which present universal experiences, and yet, there was nothing in this book that I could identify with or that felt like a reflection of myself.
However, that’s not to say that the book was awful, because it wasn’t, and there were certainly parts of it that I enjoyed.
I really liked the fact that lists and satirical emails were interspersed throughout, as it broke up the text and felt as though I was reading her diary more so than a book, which made it feel more personal. And, the way in which she tells some stories throughout make them genuinely funny, to the point where I actually found myself laughing out loud.
Furthermore, I liked the fact that there was a contrast between the satirical and humorous moments of the book, and the heartbreaking, as it really showcased the ups and downs that life tends to throw at us as human beings.
Additionally, while I felt as though the majority of the book was unrelatable for me, there were some beautiful analogies throughout; and one quote in particular really did hit home, as I am in my early twenties and still trying to come to terms with the fact that I am ‘grown up’, and that that the future that my childhood self pictured, is not the way I imagined it:
“When you begin to wonder if life is really just waiting for buses… and ordering books you’ll never read off Amazon… You are realizing the mundanity of life. You are finally understanding how little point there is to anything. You are moving out of the realm of fantasy ‘when I grow up’ and adjusting to the reality that you’re there; it’s happening. And it wasn’t what you thought it might be. You are not who you thought you would be.” (Page 167-168)
Overall, this is a book that perhaps not everybody will relate to, but I would recommend reading anyway; even if it is simply to make yourself feel better about things.
It Only Happens in the Movies by Holly Bourne
4.75
This book… OH. MY. GOD.
Having lost some of my motivation to read after uni, I decided that I was going to pick a random book off my shelf and read it start to finish.
Well, I did just that… in two days.
It is very rare that I struggle to find things to criticize in a book, as most of my university course has taught me to do just that… but this book just does everything right.
When I first picked up this book, I have to admit that I was very sceptical. When it comes to romance in young adult novels, a lot of the time it can feel very cliche. The whole boy-meets-girl, girl-meets-boy, they-both-fall-for-each-other-and-live-happily-ever-after scenario seems to fill the majority of the pages. As does kissing in the rain, a race to the airport and two best friends find themselves secretly in love with each other, yet the only people oblivious to their feelings, are them.
And while I am a hopeless romantic at heart, and secretly love the cheesy cliches that I've seen and read a million times over, Holly Bourne brings a funny, cute and heartbreaking, but beautifully real, love story to the forefront of her novel, which had me enchanted from the very first page.
The novel showcases the harsh reality of a father leaving his family to create a new life with another woman; and the effect that a catastrophic breakdown in the parental relationship of a family, can have on the couples children. While this may seem like quite a stretch, out of all the couples that divorce every year (42%) in the United Kingdom, nearly half involve children. And while many divorces are amicable, with very little hostility, there are still a handful of divorces that end with the children becoming the middlemen between the parents, much like Audrey.
One of the brilliant things about this book is that it does not sugar coat the reality of teenage relationships and experiences. While many YA novels would shy away from discussing bodily habits such as periods, or experiences such as sexual intercourse, Holly Bourne uses the novel as a platform to explore these exact issues, without romanticising them in a way that makes them 'appealing' to young people.
Another one of my favourite things about this book is that it constantly challenges the typical traits of romance novels and films. Many young adults have been conditioned into believing that 'true love' is a perfect, magnificent fairytale, that sweeps you off your feet, and means that you will live happily ever after with your prince. But the universal truth is, life isn't like that, nor is love. It is messy and complicated, and confusing. And often it can feel like you're more in love with the idea of love than with the person standing in front of you. Perhaps that's true. But Holly Bourne highlights the dangers of this 'cotton candy cinema', as real love does not reflect the fantasies that we construct in our heads; and we are often left disappointed and heartbroken when our relationships don't work out in the way that the movies told us they would.
And finally, it can often feel like the ending of a book does not do the characters justice. It can leave strings untied, and stories unfinished; it does not answer the readers burning questions that they have had throughout the novel; it does not say enough, or sometimes says too much. But as much as I hate to admit it... the ending of this book is by far my favourite part.
This is the very first book that I have read by Holly Bourne, and I am enchanted. So, if you're looking for an incredible book that is fast-paced, easy to read, and that you'll keep wanting to read forever, then this it.
Read my full review here: https://specksofbecks.wordpress.com/2018/11/04/it-only-happens-in-the-movies-holly-bourne-book-review/
Having lost some of my motivation to read after uni, I decided that I was going to pick a random book off my shelf and read it start to finish.
Well, I did just that… in two days.
It is very rare that I struggle to find things to criticize in a book, as most of my university course has taught me to do just that… but this book just does everything right.
When I first picked up this book, I have to admit that I was very sceptical. When it comes to romance in young adult novels, a lot of the time it can feel very cliche. The whole boy-meets-girl, girl-meets-boy, they-both-fall-for-each-other-and-live-happily-ever-after scenario seems to fill the majority of the pages. As does kissing in the rain, a race to the airport and two best friends find themselves secretly in love with each other, yet the only people oblivious to their feelings, are them.
And while I am a hopeless romantic at heart, and secretly love the cheesy cliches that I've seen and read a million times over, Holly Bourne brings a funny, cute and heartbreaking, but beautifully real, love story to the forefront of her novel, which had me enchanted from the very first page.
The novel showcases the harsh reality of a father leaving his family to create a new life with another woman; and the effect that a catastrophic breakdown in the parental relationship of a family, can have on the couples children. While this may seem like quite a stretch, out of all the couples that divorce every year (42%) in the United Kingdom, nearly half involve children. And while many divorces are amicable, with very little hostility, there are still a handful of divorces that end with the children becoming the middlemen between the parents, much like Audrey.
One of the brilliant things about this book is that it does not sugar coat the reality of teenage relationships and experiences. While many YA novels would shy away from discussing bodily habits such as periods, or experiences such as sexual intercourse, Holly Bourne uses the novel as a platform to explore these exact issues, without romanticising them in a way that makes them 'appealing' to young people.
Another one of my favourite things about this book is that it constantly challenges the typical traits of romance novels and films. Many young adults have been conditioned into believing that 'true love' is a perfect, magnificent fairytale, that sweeps you off your feet, and means that you will live happily ever after with your prince. But the universal truth is, life isn't like that, nor is love. It is messy and complicated, and confusing. And often it can feel like you're more in love with the idea of love than with the person standing in front of you. Perhaps that's true. But Holly Bourne highlights the dangers of this 'cotton candy cinema', as real love does not reflect the fantasies that we construct in our heads; and we are often left disappointed and heartbroken when our relationships don't work out in the way that the movies told us they would.
And finally, it can often feel like the ending of a book does not do the characters justice. It can leave strings untied, and stories unfinished; it does not answer the readers burning questions that they have had throughout the novel; it does not say enough, or sometimes says too much. But as much as I hate to admit it... the ending of this book is by far my favourite part.
This is the very first book that I have read by Holly Bourne, and I am enchanted. So, if you're looking for an incredible book that is fast-paced, easy to read, and that you'll keep wanting to read forever, then this it.
Read my full review here: https://specksofbecks.wordpress.com/2018/11/04/it-only-happens-in-the-movies-holly-bourne-book-review/
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
5.0
LOVE. LOVE. LOVE.
I am an absolute sucker for romantic comedies – especially films. However, I have, in the past steered away from romantic comedy novels as I feel as though they can be very hit or miss – a lot of the time they overuse cliche’s, and they just tell the same old story in different ways: boy meets girl, one falls for the other, they end happily ever after.
I am also very skeptical when a book claims to be ‘laugh out loud’ and ‘hilarious’, perhaps because I have a very specific sense of humour when it comes to writing, or perhaps because all of the books that I have read up until now that have claimed to be so, have failed miserably at making me laugh (or, exuding from me nothing more than a little breathy laugh every now and then.)
Thus, I entered this book with little to no expectations, so as to not be disappointed if it failed to deliver. But I needn’t have worried because this book surpassed anything and everything I could have ever expected from it. Sally Thorne hits all of the right notes.
***
I managed to get through this book within a single day, because it is one of the best things that I have ever read. I loved everything about this book. So much so, that I am struggling to find any bad things to say about it. It was beautifully witty and hilarious – from the very first page to the very last – and I actually found myself physically laughing from cover to cover.
One of the things that I liked most about this book is that it is written in the first person, from the point of view of the main protagonist Lucy, which really connects the reader with the character. The way she describes her love/hate relationship with Joshua is so real and expertly crafted, that you become so immersed in their ‘love story’, that it is entirely possible to forget that these two human beings only exist on paper; as from the very minute you begin reading, you are begging and pleading and yearning for these two characters to realise their love for one another.
There is also nothing worse than going to a lavish dinner party and enjoying a whole banquet of main courses, only to have the waiter bring out appetizers afterwards and being utterly disappointed, because you are so full from the glorious food that nothing can quite compare afterwards (not that I have ever been to any dinner parties, but you get the idea…) The same is true for romance novels: there is nothing worse than the characters getting together at the very beginning of the book, and then struggling to maintain momentum, because they gave you the best part first.
However, this novel is a slow-burn. The love/hate relationship/game between two characters is one of those romantic archetypes which we all love to see, but don’t dare admit, and something which can be difficult for writers to achieve successfully – but Sally Thorne executes it perfectly. It begins with sarcastic comments and longing looks for appetizers (a lot of them), and of course, their childish rivalry -which we all know means that they’re secretly in love with each other. You watch them admire each other in their own secret ways, and see their relationship grow and build as they instill more trust and understanding with one another. And, like all good dinner parties, you don’t get to enjoy the main course until the very end.
***
When I first began reading this book, I, like many others, assumed that it was set in New York City because it had that particular feel it it.
However, it wasn’t until I was reading some other readers comments about the book, where somebody started asking questions about the setting, did I realise that the city in which this story takes place is never actually mentioned at all.
But that, I think, is one of the beautiful things about this book. It could be set in any city, in any corner of the world. And, it is down to the reader to use their imagination about where that might be. It also allows the reader to fully immerse themselves within the novel, and for all they can imagine, this love story could be happening right outside of their front door, so to speak.
***
Ultimately, if you’re looking for a moderate-length, quick read (you might be a slow reader but I guarantee that you won’t be able to put it down), then this is the book for you! (I ended up reading until 4am on the day that I started it because I just needed to finish it!)
I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish, more than I can probably express into words. I hope to read more of Sally Thorne’s work as, if this book is anything to go on, I will be delighted with anything and everything else that she chooses to write!
I am an absolute sucker for romantic comedies – especially films. However, I have, in the past steered away from romantic comedy novels as I feel as though they can be very hit or miss – a lot of the time they overuse cliche’s, and they just tell the same old story in different ways: boy meets girl, one falls for the other, they end happily ever after.
I am also very skeptical when a book claims to be ‘laugh out loud’ and ‘hilarious’, perhaps because I have a very specific sense of humour when it comes to writing, or perhaps because all of the books that I have read up until now that have claimed to be so, have failed miserably at making me laugh (or, exuding from me nothing more than a little breathy laugh every now and then.)
Thus, I entered this book with little to no expectations, so as to not be disappointed if it failed to deliver. But I needn’t have worried because this book surpassed anything and everything I could have ever expected from it. Sally Thorne hits all of the right notes.
***
I managed to get through this book within a single day, because it is one of the best things that I have ever read. I loved everything about this book. So much so, that I am struggling to find any bad things to say about it. It was beautifully witty and hilarious – from the very first page to the very last – and I actually found myself physically laughing from cover to cover.
One of the things that I liked most about this book is that it is written in the first person, from the point of view of the main protagonist Lucy, which really connects the reader with the character. The way she describes her love/hate relationship with Joshua is so real and expertly crafted, that you become so immersed in their ‘love story’, that it is entirely possible to forget that these two human beings only exist on paper; as from the very minute you begin reading, you are begging and pleading and yearning for these two characters to realise their love for one another.
There is also nothing worse than going to a lavish dinner party and enjoying a whole banquet of main courses, only to have the waiter bring out appetizers afterwards and being utterly disappointed, because you are so full from the glorious food that nothing can quite compare afterwards (not that I have ever been to any dinner parties, but you get the idea…) The same is true for romance novels: there is nothing worse than the characters getting together at the very beginning of the book, and then struggling to maintain momentum, because they gave you the best part first.
However, this novel is a slow-burn. The love/hate relationship/game between two characters is one of those romantic archetypes which we all love to see, but don’t dare admit, and something which can be difficult for writers to achieve successfully – but Sally Thorne executes it perfectly. It begins with sarcastic comments and longing looks for appetizers (a lot of them), and of course, their childish rivalry -which we all know means that they’re secretly in love with each other. You watch them admire each other in their own secret ways, and see their relationship grow and build as they instill more trust and understanding with one another. And, like all good dinner parties, you don’t get to enjoy the main course until the very end.
***
When I first began reading this book, I, like many others, assumed that it was set in New York City because it had that particular feel it it.
However, it wasn’t until I was reading some other readers comments about the book, where somebody started asking questions about the setting, did I realise that the city in which this story takes place is never actually mentioned at all.
But that, I think, is one of the beautiful things about this book. It could be set in any city, in any corner of the world. And, it is down to the reader to use their imagination about where that might be. It also allows the reader to fully immerse themselves within the novel, and for all they can imagine, this love story could be happening right outside of their front door, so to speak.
***
Ultimately, if you’re looking for a moderate-length, quick read (you might be a slow reader but I guarantee that you won’t be able to put it down), then this is the book for you! (I ended up reading until 4am on the day that I started it because I just needed to finish it!)
I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish, more than I can probably express into words. I hope to read more of Sally Thorne’s work as, if this book is anything to go on, I will be delighted with anything and everything else that she chooses to write!