Review: The Versions of Us by Laura Barnett

The Versions of Us

by Laura Barnett

Now, I must confess, I have a salad bowl of opinions when it comes to this novel novel (see what I did there ;)).

        The purpose of this book is to explore the different roads that people's lives can lead depending on the tiniest decision or the most microscopic-seeming object being in a different place. Eva's story starts when she's riding her bike down the streets of Cambridge.

        Three things could happen:

1. A dog and a nail cause Eva to collapse on her bike, causing her to meet Jim. She leaves her former lover, David, and marries Jim.
2. Eva has a safe ride home, marries David, and doesn't meet Jim until years later.
3. A dog and a nail cause Eva to collapse on her bike, causing her to meet Jim. She courts Jim for a while but then finds out she's pregnant with David's baby and leaves to marry him.

        I have to compliment Barnett on the novelty of this plot. It's something I have seen before, but never to this quality. Combining three plots, with the same characters and very closely related relationships, is hard to do without completely losing the reader, and I think Barnett did an astounding job. The fact that I didn't put this book down half way through is a sure indicator of that!

        On the other hand, the characters I had mixed feelings about. I feel as if they didn't have as much substance as I would have liked and, although I did enjoy reading their stories, I couldn't relate to them emotionally at all. I would have liked to, but I just couldn't. On a brighter note though, the characters were not in the slightest dislikeable and I would more than happily read about them again, however, preferably with a little more "oomph" as I shall call it. Let's make a call to 3D-ify characters in books a little further!

        One thing that I found hard in this book was getting sucked in. The ever-switching story versions really messed with my head and I found myself having to spend a few minutes trying to remember what happened in that version - sometimes to no avail - before I could read the chapter. I'm a very confused person in general though, so I'm not sure to what extent I can attribute this to the author's writing! Many other people seemed to have coped alright though, so I would just say to beware if you're like me and have a very disorganised mind because this is a Rubik's cube of a book for us mess-heads!

        To end this review on a positive note, I would like to compliment Barnett on her absolutely amazing ability to conduct the tone of the different periods (1958-2014) written into the pages of this book. That was probably my favourite part of this book, as everything just felt so as it should be!

Abi Ainley

Short Review (rant): Travelling To Infinity by Jane Hawking

Travelling to Infinity

by Jane Hawking

I blatantly refuse to do a full-scale review of this book. As many people have already pointed out across the many social media sites that I inhabit, this is almost nothing but a book of complaints and whining. I hate to be this hostile, but I'm not the only one, and in the knowledge of that I feel I am completely fine to release my anger towards this work in whatever way I please.

        NO, this is not a romance.

        NO, this will not teach you anything interesting about Stephen Hawking.

        YES, you will find out what she had for breakfast.

        YES, you will be annoyed beyond comprehension from her bothersome grasping for sympathy.

        Need I say any more? If you wish to experience this book for yourself, go ahead - a good few people have enjoyed this book - but, take it from me, the majority of us were ready to pack up and migrate to the wilderness by the end.


Abi Ainley

Review: The Watcher in The Shadows by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

The Watcher in the Shadows

By Carlos Ruiz Zafon

The Watcher in the Shadows is definitely one of the best novels I have ever read. Set in 1930's Normandy, France, it follows the story of the Sauvelle family, Simone, Irene, and Dorian, who are struggling for money after the death of the father. Then one day, they are introduced to the kind, yet reclusive, toymaker, Lazarus Jann, who welcomes them with open arms. Lazarus lives in a grand building, set in the midst of a dark, mysterious forest. The story seemed to focus on the daughter, Irene, who meets a seclusive boy named Ismael. A good portion of the story focuses on their meagre adventures around the island and the forest, which I personally loved reading about.

        Ismael was probably the most characterised in this novel and his character development was brilliant. It wasn't hard to imagine that he could have been a real person, preferring seclusion but still strong-willed and brave. Dorian, Irene's younger brother, was also an interesting character, with a purposeful resemblance to the reclusive and eccentric toymaker. I noticed quite a bit of foreshadowing and hidden links in this story, which were very exciting to find. Now, I'm not entirely certain if this was intended or not because it seemed to work with the story, but Irene's character definitely seemed only half-there. It was almost as if she were a ghost in the story, the most of her personality veiled beneath a translucent cloak. The reader really didn't get to know this protagonist, but, as I said, it somewhat worked, enhancing the mystery, magic and intrigue that made this story so interesting.

        I must confess, the intrigue in this story beats a lot of what I've seen before. I have seen few people who claim to have experienced this also though, so I'll presume that this is just how my mind works, but the amount of mystery and guessing in this story really made it a whole. Every page, I was making links and guessing what was going to happen next. Every time I put the book down, every way in which the story could pan out appeared in my head. Congratulations to Zafon on this as it was truly outstanding.

        The thing that Zafon succeeded in the most though, was not the mystery, but the way the story grabbed you with sharp claws and drew you into the detailed gothic scenery. Everything was described in a way that painted a tantalising image in the reader's head, full of excitement and wonder. The Cravenmoore house, home of Lazarus Jann, was beautiful. The wonderful and exciting, yet creepy and disturbing, toys and artwork described around the house made it almost impossible to look away, drawing the reader into a swirling abyss.

        The tone of this book was very gothic and somewhat drab, but it worked wonderfully. I cried at one point and even laughed at one point, but the ominous nature of this book is really what made it such a thrilling read.

        The only thing I could really complain about with this book is the fact that it's a children's book. Maybe the childishness was what made the atmosphere so intriguing, but really I think this story is...
Oh nevermind, I'm trying to argue a point I don't really agree with and it's not working! This book was perfect. The only thing it really lacked was a bit of viscosity but I feel like I can hardly complain about that when the rest of it completely outweighed that fact.

        I would recommend this book to anyone, young or old, but I have to say, after lending this to my mum, I want to snatch it back very selfishly. I can tell you now, this is a book you will be very selfish about; this will be your story that will be shared with no one!


Abi Ainley

April To Be Read (And somewhat introduction to this blog)

Hello!
This being my first bookish blog post, I'd better quickly introduce myself. My name's Abi, I love horses, as do a good lot of people, and, most importantly, I love to read. I told you it would be quick!
-It might also interest you for me to add that I'm not actually new to this; I did have a Youtube account for a long period of time, however I've decided I definitely don't suit a gritty, square webcam.


So, as it's already April (currently 56 minutes into the 8th and counting) I'll start with the (now it's 57 minutes into the 8th) books that I've already read, however I won't review them just yet as that would defeat the point of the "wrap-up":

A highly acclaimed book that is on most people's reading list or read list.

You just wait until I review this one!








Onwards to my currently reading:

Currently I'm experiencing a slow but enjoyable read. I'm having to read this one chapter a night though as it's a little tedious.

I'm reading this as part of a Goodreads reading challenge called "Away With The Fairies". Not the greatest read as it's just a compilation of fairy tales but it's a light read, which is nice.







Now onto the ones that I'll be reading soon!:

Yes, I have still to read this! Unless you've been hiding under a rock you'll have noticed everyone's read this series. Apart from me. I've always presumed that I won't enjoy this because it's a dystopian novel, but then again, I said that about The Hunger Games and read the lot in half a day.

I won this one in a Goodreads giveaway. It's set in the 50s, which is always exciting, and it's got awards and stuff so I don't see much that could go wrong. ;)









Other than that I'm leaving my doors open for the month. My birthday's on the 15th of next month. This also happens to be the same month that two books I'm anticipating are coming out and the month I can finally read Half Wild as I'm getting it for my birthday! I've been waiting for Half Wild for so long: not sure why I agreed to wait until my birthday!

Thank you for sacrificing your precious time to read this malarkey. :p


Abi

(It is currently 1 hour and 17 minutes into the 8th of April)