Getting to the end of A Dance with Dragons was bittersweet. Who knows when the next one will appear and even the debates/discussions/theories/opinions that I have shared with my son (and others) have not filled the space that this book has left. I have read lots of blog posts, teaching books and research, but a spot of fiction is much needed at bed time. So here are a few of the books that have kept me going and helped me nod off to sleep at night!
The Magician was recommended by my son who has a plethora of Feist books. I have read the first two books of the Riftwar saga and no doubt will read more, but I don't feel they are on the same level as Game of Thrones. That said, they are a good read for fantasy fiction fans.
The Daylight War (The Painted Man, book 3) another much anticipated book that didn't disappoint. I read books 1 and 2 again before reading this - mostly because I was in the post GoT void. I loved these books, even though the first time I read book 2 I felt that Brett had written it for TV (I didn't feel this on second reading funnily enough). Now I have to wait for book 4...
The 100 year Old Man Who Climbed Out Of a Window and Disappeared - I started this, found it too twee and only picked it up again recently, thinking I had to finish it really as other people were commenting on it. I found it a bit too Forest Gump and am ashamed to say that I didn't particularly enjoy the historical references. It's a bit silly and I only bought it because I liked the title (and it was 99p on my Kindle recommendations list) so i can't complain for the price!
Pigeon English was recommended by Jenni H and was a massive change from the fantasy fiction I had been reading. I thoroughly enjoyed it! It's easy to read, but thought provoking. And heart-breaking. More sobbing!!
Ketchup Clouds is an easy teenage fiction read, written by the same author as My Sister lives on the Mantlepiece.
The God of Small Things has sat on my book shelf for a while as another boot sale bargain that caught my eye. It is set in Kerala, which (having been there) was why I was keen to read it. The prose was a bit too 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' for my liking when I first picked it up and reading it coincided with starting my new job, so I put it down until October half term. It is not an easy read if you don't like overly floral language, and I admit it took me a while to get into it. I am pleased I persevered though because it is a beautiful and moving story. Another one that made me cry (sob).
Divergent when I went to see The Hunger Games II at the cinema we were all given the first five chapters of this book, which is a clever way to get folk to buy the book. I enjoyed this, but not enough to pay full whack for the next two books. An easy read, but I'm happy to wait until they come down in price.
At this point I decided that the best way to keep up with my reading and to try new genres was to start a book club. I phoned a few friends from my old school who often read similar books to me and it started from there. We are only on a first book, but we have selected our next four, so I have got ahead in case work takes over.
A Tale for the Time Being was my choice for the first book. It is a story that I know will stay with me for a long while, partly because it reduced me to tears in more than one place and partly because I learned a lot of new things from it (facts that no doubt I will never remember). I found it harrowing at times, but it is a very believable story and I would recommend it.
The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul was a much easier read than the previous book and is essentially a romantic novel. I was grateful for this at the time as it didn't take a lot of brain power to read, but equally I found it very annoying at times and lacking substance. To me it felt like it had been written in the hope that it would be made into a chick flick with the kind of sentimentality (and sickly happy ending) that American films often have. If you want an easy read, it won't disappoint, but you have been warned!
Goldfinch was another recommendation from my cousin - and I have always enjoyed her recommendations (Middlesex and vernon God Little were both great reads). I am only about one fifth of the way through, but it has me gripped...
I'd love to know what you have been reading!
The Magician was recommended by my son who has a plethora of Feist books. I have read the first two books of the Riftwar saga and no doubt will read more, but I don't feel they are on the same level as Game of Thrones. That said, they are a good read for fantasy fiction fans.
The Daylight War (The Painted Man, book 3) another much anticipated book that didn't disappoint. I read books 1 and 2 again before reading this - mostly because I was in the post GoT void. I loved these books, even though the first time I read book 2 I felt that Brett had written it for TV (I didn't feel this on second reading funnily enough). Now I have to wait for book 4...
The 100 year Old Man Who Climbed Out Of a Window and Disappeared - I started this, found it too twee and only picked it up again recently, thinking I had to finish it really as other people were commenting on it. I found it a bit too Forest Gump and am ashamed to say that I didn't particularly enjoy the historical references. It's a bit silly and I only bought it because I liked the title (and it was 99p on my Kindle recommendations list) so i can't complain for the price!
Pigeon English was recommended by Jenni H and was a massive change from the fantasy fiction I had been reading. I thoroughly enjoyed it! It's easy to read, but thought provoking. And heart-breaking. More sobbing!!
Ketchup Clouds is an easy teenage fiction read, written by the same author as My Sister lives on the Mantlepiece.
The God of Small Things has sat on my book shelf for a while as another boot sale bargain that caught my eye. It is set in Kerala, which (having been there) was why I was keen to read it. The prose was a bit too 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' for my liking when I first picked it up and reading it coincided with starting my new job, so I put it down until October half term. It is not an easy read if you don't like overly floral language, and I admit it took me a while to get into it. I am pleased I persevered though because it is a beautiful and moving story. Another one that made me cry (sob).
Divergent when I went to see The Hunger Games II at the cinema we were all given the first five chapters of this book, which is a clever way to get folk to buy the book. I enjoyed this, but not enough to pay full whack for the next two books. An easy read, but I'm happy to wait until they come down in price.
At this point I decided that the best way to keep up with my reading and to try new genres was to start a book club. I phoned a few friends from my old school who often read similar books to me and it started from there. We are only on a first book, but we have selected our next four, so I have got ahead in case work takes over.
A Tale for the Time Being was my choice for the first book. It is a story that I know will stay with me for a long while, partly because it reduced me to tears in more than one place and partly because I learned a lot of new things from it (facts that no doubt I will never remember). I found it harrowing at times, but it is a very believable story and I would recommend it.
The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul was a much easier read than the previous book and is essentially a romantic novel. I was grateful for this at the time as it didn't take a lot of brain power to read, but equally I found it very annoying at times and lacking substance. To me it felt like it had been written in the hope that it would be made into a chick flick with the kind of sentimentality (and sickly happy ending) that American films often have. If you want an easy read, it won't disappoint, but you have been warned!
Goldfinch was another recommendation from my cousin - and I have always enjoyed her recommendations (Middlesex and vernon God Little were both great reads). I am only about one fifth of the way through, but it has me gripped...
I'd love to know what you have been reading!
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