random book talk

As a very busy girl, I should be devoting my Sundays mainly to working on my dissertations (which I am truly fed up with), but I always find myself browsing the net for even more books instead - typical. I'm addicted, I really am. I have over 100 purchased & unread books on my book shelf, but I keep buying new ones on almost a daily basis.

I order them online and so on Friday the copy of The Chocolate Lover's Club by Carole Matthews arrived. The next day, I got two more books I ordered: What's Love Got To Do It with It by Lucy Broadbent and Airhead by Meg Cabot.

Just a few minutes ago, after spending far too much time browsing various book sites, just bought Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson (seems promising + Speak was amazing so I'm rather excited about this one, even though I expect it to be quite disturbing) and The Accidental Bestseller by Wendy Wax. I told myself I wouldn't buy them just now, I'll just add them to my Visual Bookshelf and buy them later, but I. Just. Could. Not. Resist. And so I clicked the Add to Basket button, followed by the Checkout button. The books will be here soon and I'm excited, but I can just hear my credit card whimpering as the poor thing has really been under a lot of stress lately, mainly due to my craaaazy online book shopping addiction.

I keep telling myself that I should STOP (I really do spend a fortune on books) but I truly cannot help myself. Bookaholics Anonymous, here I come. :(

DIAMONDS ARE A GIRL'S BEST FRIEND by Jenny Colgan ****

"Sophie is a girl about town - living the party lifestyle with Daddy footing the bill. But when she gets embroiled in a scandalous affair, she is thrown out of home and left to fend for herself on the mean streets of London. Scraping a living as a cleaner in a photographic studio, living in a bedsit on the Old Kent Road, eating baked beans from the can - this is one spectacular fall from grace. On top of that, she is papped by photographers every time she leaves the flat, with her so-called friends laughing at her downfall. But stepping in to solve a crisis at the studio, Sophie discovers that she is also quite handy with a camera, and a new career behind the lense is born. But when she is hired as the photographer for a society wedding, Sophie is thrust back into her old lifestyle, and discovers that perhaps money can't buy you happiness after all ..."

(click for detailed summary)

This was actually the first Jenny Colgan novel I've read and I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised as the story was more serious than I expected and the heroine was luckily less ditzy than I imagined her to be from the description. The beginning was rather sad and Sophie's world crushed completely, but she managed to pick up the pieces and eventually start again. In the process, she discovered her strengths and learned to stand on her own two feet while also started to accept the little things in life that she used to take for granted before. I have to say, Sophie handled her fall from grace surprisingly well and the novel on the whole was very enjoyable with quite a few hilarous bits, which is always a plus. As I said, I was pleased to discover that the novel was far less silly than I anticipated it to be and I'm glad Sophie got her happy ending, even though it wasn't a fairytale one.
I could easily give this one a 5/5 as it was well written and funny and real, but it didn't completely blow me away (plus the title is rather misleading, no?) so I guess I'll have to go with 4/5 - make that 4.5/5 actually!

I think this book was a great introduction to Ms Colgan, whom I shall definitely be returning to - possibly sooner than later as I already have a copy of Operation Sunshine waiting to be read (my boyfriend gave it to me for my brithday last year), but I think I'll save it for my holiday as it does seem like a beach read. Lastly, I'd be happy to receive some suggestions which other Jenny Colgan novels are particularly worth reading. :)

ps: The plot seems very similar to Cecelia Ahern's next book The Girl of Tomorrow - cannot wait to see how Cecelia will deal with the story!

A little something about yours truly ...

Hello there and thanks for stopping by. :)

I've decided to create this blog in order to post my book reviews and other book related news. I only regret not starting this soon as I've read so many incredible books over the years and I wish now that I had reviewed them back then as I tend to quickly forget what a certain book is about and why it moved/infuriated me so much, heh.

The first thing you should know about me is that I'm a fervent book lover and books are my life, quite literally. I work in publishing and compulsively buy books - I'm afraid I currently buy far more than I actually manage to read, but I'm hoping that will change in a couple of months when I'll hopefully be able to start my long planned reading marathon, yay.

I currently own over 100 still unread books and I look forward to reviewing them eventually! :)

Anything else you're curious about? Fire away!

BOOKS READ IN 2010

1. Cally Taylor: HEAVEN CAN WAIT
   
2. Anna Godbersen: ENVY
   
3. Muriel Zagha: FINDING MONSIEUR RIGHT
   
4. Kate Forsyth: THE PUZZLE RING
   
5. Zoë Foster: PLAYING THE FIELD
   
6. Luisa Plaja: SPLIT BY A KISS
   
7. Kristin Walker: A MATCH MADE IN HIGH SCHOOL
   
8. Anna Godbersen: SPLENDOUR
   
9. Ruthanna Hopper and Amanda Goldberg: CELEBUTANTES
   
10. Rachel Cohn: VERY LeFREAK
11. Tara Hyland: DAUGHTER OF FORTUNE
12. Corra Harrison: I WAS JANE AUSTEN'S BEST FRIEND
13. Jodi Picoult: HOUSE RULES
14. Ali Sparkes: FROZEN IN TIME
15. Bridie Clark: THE OVERNIGHT SOCIALITE
16. Abby McDonald: BOYS, BEARS AND A SERIOUS PAIR OF HIKING BOOTS
17. Kathleen Tessaro: THE DEBUTANTE
18. Martel Maxwell: SCANDALOUS
19. Sarah Webb: THE LOVING KIND
20. Jen Nadol: THE MARK
21. Ilana Fox: SPOTLIGHT
22. Susan Wooldridge: THE HIDDEN DANCE
23. Luisa Plaja: SWAPPED BY A KISS
24. Ruth Gilligan: CAN YOU SEE ME?
25. Alice Clayton: THE UNIDENTIFIED REDHEAD
26. Keris Stainton: DELLA SAYS: OMG!
27. Chrissie Manby: GETTING OVER MR. RIGHT
28. Alison Bond: A RELUCTANT CINDERELLA
29. Jandy Nelson: THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE
30. Liane Moriarty: WHAT ALICE FORGOT
31. Kiki Warner: PIECES OF SKY
32. Anonymous: PLAYING THE GAME
33. Anonymous: KNOWING THE SCORE
34. Hester Browne: THE FINISHING TOUCHES
35. Anonymous: WORLD CUP WAGS
36. Paige Toon: PICTURES OF LILY
37. Jojo Moyes: THE LAST LETTER FROM YOUR LOVER
38. Abby McDonald: THE LIBERATION OF ALICE LOVE
39. Michele Gorman: SINGLE IN THE CITY
40. Lisa Jewell: THE TRUTH ABOUT MELODY BROWNE
41. Siobhan Curham: DEAR DYLAN
42. Robin Benway: THE EXTRAORDINARY SECRETS OF APRIL, MAY & JUNE
43. Tilly Bagshawe: SCANDALOUS
44. Suzanne Collins: THE HUNGER GAMES
45. Sophie Kinsella: MINI SHOPAHOLIC
46. Suzanne Collins: CATCHING FIRE
47. Claudia Carroll: PERSONALLY, I BLAME MY FAIRY GODMOTHER
48. Suzanne Collins: MOCKINGJAY
49. Lauren Weisberger: LAST NIGHT AT CHATEAU MARMONT
50. Rachel Hore: A PLACE OF SECRETS
51. Catherine Rye Hyde: SECOND HAND HEART
52. Amy Huberman: HELLO, HEARTBREAK
53. Kate Morton: THE DISTANT HOURS
54. Adele Parks: MEN I'VE LOVED BEFORE
55. Jennifer Donnelly: REVOLUTION
56. Katherine Applegate: ZOEY FOOLS AROUND
57. Katherine Applegate: JAKE FINDS OUT
58. Melanie Rose: DOWN TO EARTH
59. Katherine Applegate: NINA WON'T TELL
    
60. Anne-Marie O'Connor: STAR STRUCK
61. Katherine Applegate: BEN'S IN LOVE
62. Lulu Taylor: MIDNIGHT GIRLS
    

Bookalicious Ramblings's read-in-2010 book montage

Bookalicious Ramblings's favorite books »

Review Policy

Dear authors and publicists,

I'd be more than happy to read and review your books provided I find them interesting. I particularly enjoy chick lit, historical (19th & early 20th century) and YA books.
I do not read paranormal stories (i.e. vampires, werewolves, fairies etc.), even though I don't mind a bit of "magic" (e.g. time travel, magic dresses etc.). I also do not read crime, sci-fi, (urban) fantasy or anything remotely religious.
I will consider each book you think might interest me and let you know if I think I could review it. All I can promise is that my review will be honest and should you request, I'll post it on Amazon, Goodreads and anywhere else you might like.

I try very hard to review each book I receive, but due to my massive pile of unread books that is not always immediately possible. Let me know when you'd like to have the review posted and I'll try my best to get it up by then.

If you would like to have a book reviewed on Bookalicious Ramblings, then please email me at bookaliciousss @ gmail.com (obviously delete the spaces) and I'll get back to you as soon as possible, usually within a few hours at the latest.

Books Read in 2009

1. Eva Ibbotson: A COMPANY OF SWANS
2. Tracy Chevalier: THE VIRGIN BLUE
3. Alexandra Potter: WHO'S THAT GIRL?
4. Carlos Ruiz Zafon: THE ANGEL'S GAME
5. Nicholas Sparks: THE NOTEBOOK
6. Jane Green: LIFE SWAP
7. Jacqueline Wilson: MY SECRET DIARY
8. Jenny Colgan: DIAMONDS ARE A GIRL'S BEST FRIEND
9. Helene Berr: THE JOURNAL
10. Kira Coplin: POP TART
11. John Boyne: THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PYJAMAS
12. Laurie Halse Anderson: WINTERGIRLS
13. Madeline Wickham: WEDDING GIRL
14. Jodi Picoult: CHANGE OF HEART
15. Lindsey Kelk: I HEART NEW YORK
16. Gayle Foreman: IF I STAY
17. Sophie Kinsella: TWENTIES GIRL
18. Sarah Glazebrook: CROOKED PIECES
19. Tilly Bagshawe: DO NOT DISTURB
20. Marian Keyes: THE BRIGHTEST STAR IN THE SKY
21. Adele Parks: LOVE LIES
22. Paige Toon: LUCY IN THE SKY
23. Anna Godbersen: THE LUXE
24. Kate Morton: THE FORGOTTEN GARDEN
25. Jenny Colgan: OPERATION SUNSHINE
26. Zoe Foster: AIR KISSES
27. Sarah Dessen: ALONG FOR THE RIDE
28. Marian Keyes: ANYBODY OUT THERE?
29. Carmen Reid: HOW NOT TO SHOP
30. Audrey Niffenegger: HER FEARFUL SYMMETRY
31. Haruki Murakami: NORWEGIAN WOOD
32. Tracy Chevalier: REMARKABLE CREATURES
33. Alexandra Potter: ME AND MR DARCY
34. Lauren Oliver: BEFORE I FALL
35. Lucy Diamond: HENS REUNITED
36. Sarah Dessen: JUST LISTEN
37. Mary Ann Shaffer: THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO ...
38. Melissa Nathan: THE NANNY
39. Meg Rosoff: THE BRIDE'S FAREWELL
40. Abby McDonald: LIFE SWAP
41. Abby McDonald: THE POPULARITY RULES
42. Gabrielle Zevin: ELSEWHERE
43. Kerry Reichs: THE GOOD LUCK GIRL
44. Amy Silver: CONFESSIONS OF A RELUCTANT RECESSIONISTA
45. Anna Godbersen: RUMOURS
46. Jessica Ruston: LUXURY
47. Cecelia Ahern: THE BOOK OF TOMORROW
48. Emma Heatherington: PLAYING THE FIELD
49. Martina Devlin: SHIP OF DREAMS
50. Robin Benway: AUDREY, WAIT!
51. Allison Winn Scotch: TIME OF MY LIFE
52. Mary Naylus: THE DRESSKEEPER
53. Alexandra Bullen: WISH

Click the image below to see which five of these books made it into My Top 5 of 2009 and why!