end of the hols...so depressing!

Had a fab week and now it's Sunday and I'm all depressed again!

Class by Jane Beaton
Found this by accident on RiSi and tried to swap - as it didn't happen I bought it from Amazon out of curiosity and because i like the cover. So, I admit to being shallow! Like the author i loved the boarding school stories as a child and vividly remember St Clares, Mallory Towers and the Naughtiest girl in the school! Like many girls I thought my very ordinary school was dull in comparison...well this is boarding school for grown ups (well pretending to be grown ups!) and it's a romp through school girl pranks, difficulty settling in for the girls and the staff...I'm already for the next one!

Unmasqued
An altenative "Phantom of the Opera"...where Christine makes the right choice!

Half term...

Hurray...but why is it only a week long?!
Loved Jersey Boys - didn't think it was my thing, but so slick and all the cast were fab! Ryan Molloy is amazing!!

Agatha Raisin and the Fairies of Fryfam by MC Beaton
What can I say...I know exactly what I'll get before I start reading. Agatha ends up in Norfolk - still trying to get away from James. Okay, so Charles is less annoying in this book and actually seems to be more sympathetic towards Aggie, but i still wonder what she's thinking, and then the quick surprise at the end!! Hope all the sparks will kick off in the next one. Still think she's better in the Cotswolds with familiar characters around her, but a quick, fun read.

Hubble Bubble by Christina Jones
So I've found these books and am now reading them out of sequence. This is the first one where Mitzi Blessing finds she can do magic with her cooking. Light and frothy...a no thinking required book with ridulous characters and situations. Silly, but fun.

Only 3 more get ups...

Nearly the holidays...can't wait!

The Olive Farm by Carol Drinkwater
Not one of my choices - acquired from my mum. A pleasant meander through the south of France in a derelict olive farm that the author and her partner buy. Okay, but a bit wordy in places where it wasn't always necessary and some of the parts i would have liked more about were skipped through...at least it wasn't like Peter Mayle by lingering on the "funny folk" too much.

An Angel on my shoulder by Theresa Cheung
If you believe in angels already this book will convince you and you will be delighted...if you're not sure all you see is "nice" anecdotes that don't convince and simply describe coincidences and kindness. What else can I say? I remain unconvinced!

end of the weekend...don't you hate Sunday nights?!!

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
Someone at work lent this to me to see what I thought of it. Okay, it's a children's book, but unusual as it has a huge number of illustrations and little text. It looks beautiful - the pencil illustrations are gorgeous and the whole feel of 1920's Paris emanates from the page. It did gro on me - at first the story left me a bit cold, but as it progressed it did suck me in and i was sold by the end. Not sure how many children I work with would be absorbed by it though...a great starting point for work in school, but possibly a new children's classic that is bought by adults for children, rather than what they'd choose themselves.

It had to be you by Sarah Webb
More Irish chic-lit! Easy read - bit of fun, will try more from the same author. Nuff said?!

Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden by MC Beaton
I do sometimes get cross with Agatha! She's lost her hair so goes to some godforsaken coastal town in winter to avoid James until it grows back again. She comes across the usual murders...get proposed to and then ends up having a night with Charles! I still don't understand the point of Charles - he a charmless, irritating, tight wad and Agatha deserves much better! I know there's a limit to how many murders you can have in one small village, but I do miss Carsley in the books set away from the Cotswolds.

February all ready?!!

Love Affairs for Grown Ups by Debbie Holt
A gentle but entertaining read and I really liked the main characters who were warm and reasonbaly realistic, although it took them too long to suss themselves out!

The Paradise Room by Belinda Jones
I do love Belinda Jones, but this isn't my favourite...and when I think about it, I'm not sure why! the setting (as always) was glamorous and I still want to feed the fish from my coffee table in Bora Bora!! But something about the book didn't draw me in as usual...maybe it was just the mix of characters that didn't appeal. The main character who dressed frumpily but had the body of a supermodel wasn't as sympathetic as usual and the love interest was a bit of a plonker?! All a bit too predictable - and this from a chick-lit fan?!!
Slightly disappointed as I really love Belinda Jones - sorry!