Review: Sweet Tooth

Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was desperate to read this book when it was published earlier this year and when I finally got my hands on a copy I was not disappointed.

It is the story of a young girl recruited to the British Security Services and gets sent on a mission, Sweet Tooth. However, although I really enjoyed the secret agent aspects of this book, I think Serena’s relationships with others are captured beautifully and are really the triumph of the book.

I was a little worried that as this was a book told from a girls point of view, but is written by a man. I really think that McEwan did an amazing job of this though as I did not feel that it felt masculine in any way. Serena was a really likeable character, and I felt something of an affinity with her and her reclusive, bookish ways.

This book is a love story, a thriller and a brilliant book about books. It really captures Serena’s loves in a sensitive, but realistic way, has some great detail about her time in Mi5 and also had some great literary references that laid out the map of her life.

I absolutely loved this book and found it difficult to put down. I will definitely be seeking out more of McEwan’s work.


View all my reviews

Review: The Fault in Our Stars

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was a little bit wary about reading this book as I was worried that it could be upsetting and a bit depressing as it is about a teenage girl with cancer. I need not have worried.

This book was my firsty foray into reading some of John Green's writing, and it definitely won't be my last! I was drawn into the story straight away and really loved the friendly writing style. In fact, I could barely put this down when I was reading it.

We follow the story of Hazel who is a 16 year old terminal cancer patient. She is convinced by her parents to join a support group to meet some fellow sufferers and give her chance to get out of the house. She meets a new friend in Isaac and subsequently meets his best friend Augustus. Hazel gets close with Augustus and they eventually start going out.

The book is very funny in parts and there are also parts that made me cry. It is wonderfully written and I especially liked the parts about Hazel's favourite book and going to meet the writer. A lot of the time you were able to forget that she was any different to other teenagers, until something popped up to remind you.

The book has a bittersweet ending, and I will warn you, don't read it in public, you may not want to be around people when you read it. The book is in no way depressing and leaves the reader wanting more. This book will stay with me for a long time and I would certainly recommend it to others to read.

View all my reviews

Book Review: Kismetology

Kismetology by Jaimie Admans
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this book as it was written by an up and coming indie author and I liked the premise of the story. I have read a number of indie books and have to say that Jaimie is up there with the best of them!

I have to say that this book is extremely well written and is an impressive full length novel. This is particularly unusual for a first time self-published author. I would even go as far as saying that Jaimie has the potential to be up there with the great chick lit writers as I have read plenty of books by conventionally published chick lit authors that pale in comparison to this one.

The story is about a girl named Mackenzie who moves in with her boyfriend a few doors down from her meddling mother and sets out to find her a man to keep her occupied. The book is very funny and thoughtful and isn’t as predictable as a lot of chick lit. There are enough events in the book to keep you interested and it isn’t over complicated with too many characters as a lot of books can be. I also enjoyed the pace of the book and how the story unfolded.

I have to say that I think Jaimie is an indie author to keep an eye on. She has real talent and as the quality of her first book is so high then I am particularly excited about reading more of her work.

If you like authors such as Talli Roland, Jane Costello and Marian Keyes then this book is for you!


View all my reviews