Top 10 Tuesdays... books I loved but never wrote a review for

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. Each week, they post a different topic and you get to create your own top 10 list! This week, the topic is: 

Top ten books I loved but never wrote a review for

Most of these books I read before I started blogging, so some (and hopefully eventually all) will be able to be found in my rather erratic series "Friday favourite". But for now, here they are:

1. Secrets in the Fire, by Henning Mankell

This is the story of Sofia, a young African girl who one day while out playing with her sister, steps on a landmine. It is a true story of an incredibly courageous young teenager - the things she has seen and experienced before she turned 13 absolutely blew me away.

2. The Island, by Victoria Hislop

This was an absolutely fabulous summer read. The story of a girl who sets off for Greece in search of family history. Love, relationships, family secrets - it has everything you want in a beach read!

3. The Uncommon Reader, by Alan Bennet

I really must get around to reviewing this one - that will give me an excuse to read it again. This book is superb. Laugh out loud funny - it certainly provides a different take on the Queen!

4. The Chief, by David Nasaw

I don't tend to read too many biographies, but after visiting Hearst Castle - the incredible architectural feat that is William Randolph Hearst's property on the Pacific Coast Highway, I was so intrigued by this media mogul that I  had to read this book to find out more. I now want to read more about the architect behind Hearst Castle - Julia Morgan

5. The Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery

This was a delightful book - the main character, concierge Renee Michel, provided everything you wanted in such a character: secrets, intrigue, a rather diffident approach to life. It was a very different story which made for a refreshing change and the cover was just beautiful! 

6. Outlander, by Diana Gabaldon

I read the first four books in this series many years ago now, then only made it halfway through book number 5. I really want to revisit them and pick them back up - but I'm wondering why I have such great memories of them if I gave up halfway through?! Jamie and Claire though - you can't beat that relationship!

7. The Bookseller of Kabul, by Asne Seierstad

This was the first book I read set in the region of Afghanistan, but it certainly wasn't my last. I've since enjoyed A Thousand Splendid Suns and Born Under a Million Shadows, but The Bookseller of Kabul still stands out as a favourite!

8. Fame, by Daniel Kehlmann

This book was very, very unusual but so cleverly written it has remained a favourite. Each chapter is a short story in itself but they all tie together at the end without you even realising it is happening! The Guardian has a fabulous review on it.

9. From Notting Hill with Love... Actually, by Ali McNamara

This was cheesy, chicklit at its best. Two of my favourite films about London in a chicklit novel set in London. It was simply too good to put down. I loved every decadent moment of it!

10. Secret Diary of a Call Girl, by Belle de Jour

Much like I am with Harry Potter, it took me ages to get around to reading this one but it certainly provided entertainment when I did
!

Top 10 Tuesdays... Underrated books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. Each week, they post a different topic and you get to create your own top 10 list! This week, the topic is: 

Top Ten Underrated Books

1. Born Under a Million Shadows, by Andrea Busfield 

I'm certainly not criticising the mastery of Khaled Hosseini, his books The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns were superb, but with all the hype and publicity surrounding them, Born Under a Million Shadows seemed to be (and excuse the pun) lost in the shadow of the former two. It's a book about "fighting for love in the shadow of the Taliban" and is an absolutely beautiful book, told from the point of view of 11-year-old Fawad. He'll have you laughing out loud and reaching for the tissues. So if you enjoyed Hosseini's books, then definitely look for this one to add to your TBR piles. It's just as good!

2. The Food of Love, by Anthony Capella

Perhaps it's just because I'm relatively new to the world of blogging but I really haven't seen much written or reviewed about The Food of Love. It's a wonderful book about two Italian men - one who can cook, the other who can't - both of whom are out to make an impression on a beautiful English girl. Now if that's not a recipe (haha) for a good read, I don't know what is!

3. The Very Thought of You, by Rosie Alison

This is a real favourite of mine - the story of 8-year-old Anna who is relocated to Yorkshire from London during WWll. It has everything - love, tragedy, mystery and the point of view of a child, which is always so refreshing. For those who enjoy a good historical fiction, I'd definitely put this one at the top of the list.

4. Nicky Pellegrino

I love this author's work. Her books are light hearted, fun, and the perfect summer read. Not annoying, unimaginable chicklit but instead stories of characters who seem to be real people. You can imagine sitting down to dinner in the family restaurant of The Italian Wedding, or watching the group of girlfriends meet up for their summer holidays in The Villa Girls. They're certainly easy reading, but actually have a depth to each of the characters rather than the shallow individuals you often come across in cheesy chicklit.   

5. Jhumpa Lahiri

Wow! Her writing is incredible but I don't think it gets anywhere near enough of a following that it deserves. The Namesake, Interpreter of Maladies and the beautiful Unaccustomed Earth - all of them provide an incredible insight into Indian-American cultures and relationships.

6. Carolly Erickson

I've only recently discovered Erickson's "historical entertainment" but am wondering why it took me so long to do so. The Secret Life of Josephine and The Tsarina's Daughter invite the reader to understand so much about periods of history, in the first instance Napolean's era, in the second, the Russia's last Tsar without being overwhelmingly educational. We learn so much about the men who have shaped history but little about the women. Fortunately, Erickson is putting that to rights.

7. Paddington Bear

I couldn't resist adding this one into the list - but I think this bear gets a little bit forgotten (quite literally!). He, and his marmalade sandwiches, make for delightful stories, and as much of a Winnie the Pooh fan that I am, I do have a little soft spot for Paddington.

8. Lesley Pearse

Her books never ever disappoint, so why they're not at the top of most of our holiday reading lists I don't know! My first introduction to Pearse's writing was Never Look Back, the story of Mathilda, a Covent Garden flower girl who finds herself as a maid to a minister in the beautiful London suburb of Primrose Hill, before being transported across the Atlantic to America. She may not be quite the character that Fiona Finnegan of The Tea Rose, by Jennifer Donnelly, is - but then she is one exceptional woman! However, while I have been waiting for Donnelly's final instalment The Wild Rose (which has finally arrived, hip hip hooray!), Pearse's novels have certainly filled a gap and now sit quite rightly on their own pedestal in my book collection.

9. The Thorn Birds, by Colleen McCullough

With so many new and exciting books arriving on the shelves, onto our TBR piles and into our wishlists, we seem to forget about the good ones of old. But a book like The Thorn Birds shouldn't be forgotten!

10. The Red Scarf, by Kate Furnivall

Also known as Under a Blood Red Sky,  I think this book has suffered a similar fate to that of those by Lesley Pearse. When they're similar to others, in this case The Bronze Horseman Trilogy, by Paullina Simons, somewhere along the line they don't get the attention they deserve. Anyone who knows me, or has seen my (rather randomly occuring) list of Friday favourites, will know that The Bronze Horseman is a book that I can't recommend highly enough, but that's not to say I didn't enjoy The Red Scarf. In fact, I haven't been able to put any of Kate Furnivall's novels down!

Teaser Tuesdays

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading

Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

--Grab your current read

--Open to a random page

--share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

Be sure NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

--Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers!

"Today I am queen and Louis is king. The old king is no more, God rest his soul."

p76, The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette, by Carolly Erickson

I've just finished my latest book, Letters from Home, by Kristina McMorris, and have yet to start the next one, so this is a teaser from one of the contenders for my next read!

Top Ten Tuesdays - settings in books

This week's theme for Top Ten Tuesdays, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, is all those real or imagined locations/worlds you loved reading about OR settings you think would be perfect in a book.


So, my Top 10 settings in books? Hhhmmmm... where do I start?!


1. Little Italian villages
The perfect setting for any novel I reckon. One of my favourites is Summer at the Villa Rosa, by Nicky Pellegrino. It captures the charm of Italian village life so well.


2. Historical London
London is a favourite anyway, but historical London has extra magic to it. Just think The Tea Rose, by Jennifer Donnelly - need I say more?


3. Morocco
It probably helps that Morocco is also one of my most favourite countries I've visited so any book set in this country will get my vote!


4. Island communities
This setting is fresh in my mind having just finished reading The Mermaid Chair, by Sue Monk Kidd. The island on which the story is set isn't a real one, but is based on the islands around South Carolina. Islands always come with characters and I think its this combination I really like.


5. Character homes
I love the descriptions of homes, houses, palaces in novels. You can almost always imagine it and relate to it in some way. I'm think the houses in The Help, by Kathryn Stockett where stories were told and daily chores were undertaken. It adds so much to the story.


6. All over the world
I love a book that has its characters jet setting from one destination to the next. On my TBR pile is a Jeffrey Archer novel, False Impression, which takes readers from New York to London, Bucharest, Tokyo and a sleepy English village. Perfect! 


7. Africa
I know I've mentioned Morocco above, but actually Africa in general. There are so many unique countries and cultures on this continent, that having just read a few books set in Zimbabwe, I've found I really enjoy reading books set in this part of the world.


8. India
I've been reading more and more books set in India over the last couple of years and must say, it's becoming a firm favourite for a setting. Authors seem to be able to depict the energy, colour and culture of this incredible country so well. 


9. Places I been
I love reading novels set in cities/countries that I've been. I always get a shiver down my spine when I'm reading a book and it mentions Hampstead Heath for example, my old stomping ground - or Primrose Hill in London. There's something magical about reading of a character's exploits through territory I've been myself!


10. Ireland
Perhaps it's because I enjoy Maeve Binchey's novels so much, but Ireland seems the perfect setting for a novel! Maybe it's the Irish charm! 

Top Ten Books That Should Be In Your Beach Bag

There's no way I could resist not listing the top ten books that should be in your beach bag. But it's not fair to only be restricted to ten! Perhaps I'll have to make multiple lists this week. But for now, these would be my absolute top Top Ten!

Top 10 Tuesdays, a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

1. Chasing Harry Winston, by Lauren Weisberger

2. My Best Friend's Girl, by Dorothy Koomsman

3. Beautiful Creatures, by Lulu Taylor

4. Gypsy, by Lesley Pearse

5. From Notting Hill With Love... Actually, by Ali McNamara

6. The Essence of the Thing, by Madeleine St John

7. Any Jill Mansell

8. Any Penny Vincenzi

9. Any Jackie Collins

10. The Millenium Trilogy, by Steig Larrson

10 books that were recommended to me

I have to admit I don't usually participate in Top 10 Tuesdays, a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, but this week's topic really captured my attention, so I couldn't resist.

I've had a number of books recommended to me over the years, mainly from my wonderfully wacky ma-in-law, as well as a few friends, although truth be told I'm usually the one doing the recommending!

But here are the top 10 recommendations that have been given to me!

1. The Help
Two friends, one on each side of the globe, recently recommended this book to me, and (at times I think I must be living in la la land) on Sunday I found out it's being turned into a movie, so this is definitely going towards the top of my TBR pile.

2. Edward Rutherfurd's books: London, Sarum, The Forest
Husband has read, and enjoyed these, and as such as recommended them - but they're just so long!!!!

3. Think Bigger, Michael Hill
This is a biography of Michael Hill, a NZ jeweller, businessman, and entrepreneur. This book was recommended  to me by my brother's girlfriend - and she readily admits she's not much of a reader, so it must be good to hold her attention!

4. Winter in Madrid, C. J Sansom
A friend of mine has just taken a sabbatical from a very interesting job, packed up her bags, and headed to Spain for 6 months - I am very envious! But she's been reading up on all things Spain, including this book, which she's since recommended.

5. Clan of the Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
An oldie, but a goodie, my friend has told me - but I still have to get around to reading it!

6. Novel About My Wife, Emily Perkins
A mother-in-law recommendation that is currently sitting on my shelf waiting to be read!

7. The Lollipop Shoes, Joanne Harris
I have a whole pile of Joanne Harris books waiting to be read, but I'm tempted to start with this one.

8. This Charming Man, Marian Keyes
A recommendation from a real bookworm!

9. Why French Women Don't Get Fat, Mireille Guiliano

10. The Ice Princess, Camilla Lackberg

A friend told me this is meant to be the next 'Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' sensation!

But I now have a confession to make... I actually haven't read any of these!