Greig – Page 38 – transmission

allergy?

Posted on July 14, 2014July 14, 2014 by Greig

Nearlyweds

Beth Kendrick

I saw bits of a film based on this on a Satellite channel the other day so I decided to check out the original novel.
This is a fun look at three women reassessing their relationships in light of their marriages being declared technically illegal after the paperwork doesn’t get completed.
The three lead characters have a bit of depth and are fun to spend time with. The secondary characters are all one-dimensional and mostly they’re despicable.
The best thing is that much of this is dealt with a degree of levity and only taking things seriously when getting to the heart of the issues with each couple.

Rating: B-

scorpion?

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Greig

Angelfall

Susan Ee

Angels have come to Earth with death and destruction in their wake. No one knows why they’re here but the survivors group into gangs/militia or try to scrape by under the radar.
Penryn has survived despite having to protect a wheelchair bound sister and an insane mother.
After an attack that sees her sister carried off she interferes to save an angel who has his wings cut off in order to secure his help in rescuing her sister.
This messy novel mashes up Biblical stories and dystopian fiction. It has quite a few horrific moments and some creepy sexual undertones which I found rather unpleasant.
One thing I can say for certain is that I never knew where the plot was going which is a relief after so many predictable reads recently but I’m not sure that the author knew where it was going either.

Rating: C+

carpark?

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Greig

Clean Sweep

Ilona Andrews

This is an insubstantial and cheesy bit of urban fantasy. Innkeepers run neutral waystations for travellers of a more unusual type. Dina Demille is from a line of innkeepers and is bringing a previously dormant inn gradually back to strength when a series of dog killings get her involved with the local werewolf and eventually a vampire warrior.
Yes this book has a vampire/werewolf/human female love triangle.
To be honest the only interesting thing about this was the magic as scifi tech motif, otherwise a bit crap.

Rating: C+

marsala?

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Greig

Bet Me

Jennifer Crusie

Minerva Dobbs can tell when something’s a bad risk – after all she is an auditor – that’s why she breaks up with her boyfriend. Later that night she overhears her ex making a bet with a man that he can’t seduce and sleep with her. She gets so angry she goes to dinner with the new guy to spite the ex. After a tetchy date they decide to never see each other again except the universe has other ideas.
Typical Crusie – good dialogue, enjoyable characters but utterly superfluous plot and a predictable ending.

Rating: B

tamerlane?

Posted on July 13, 2014 by Greig

The Storied Life of AJ Fikry

Gabrielle Zevin

A.J. Fikry is a bitter widower settling into drunken middle age when a baby is left in his bookshop.
This is a surprisingly moving story of a man returning to the world from deep depression through the love of a child.
I have to say this book is so much better than the plethora of generic romance novels I’ve ploughed through lately.
Highly recommended if you like contemporary fiction and have a bit of a sentimental streak.

Rating: A-

hairspray?

Posted on July 13, 2014 by Greig

It Must Be Love

Rachel Gibson

Joe is a police detective investigating the theft of a Monet. Gabrielle is the business partner of the man suspected of being the fence.
One thing leads to another and Joe and Gabrielle have to fake a relationship so he can study the fence at close quarters.
Joe and Gabrielle’s fractious relationship quickly becomes something more involved and substantial.
While this romance has some decent moments of banter the rest of the book is bland and generic as they come.
It’s not awful – just completely forgettable.

Rating: C

colby?

Posted on July 13, 2014October 3, 2014 by Greig

Along For The Ride

Sarah Dessen

Auden is a brilliant student living with her academic mother in the wake of her parent’s divorce. She’s feeling out of sorts and lonely with her brother traveling abroad and all her friendships broken after a move to an elite prep school. She surprises herself by accepting an invitation to stay over summer with her dad, her stepmother and newborn half-sister in their seaside town.
The summer changes Auden’s life and opens her up to a whole new world of possibilities.
This YA novel is solidly written and succeeded in making me want to smack Auden’s parents heads together. Which means that it connected with me more than a lot of this teen/romance stuff I’ve been reading of late.
I would certainly recommend this if you’re into contemporary YA family relationship stories.

Rating: B

pizza?

Posted on July 13, 2014July 13, 2014 by Greig

Will Work For Prom Dress

Aimee Ferris

Quigley Johnson and her best friend Anne have a plan. They’re going to work every spare hour they have working to earn money for a truly great prom dress.
This particular YA novel is a predictable mix of teen romance and angst but it does have a dash of celebrity secrets to enliven one of the plots.
It’s a quick read and while there’s nothing awful about it the book just has nothing to recommend it.
If it sounds like your kind of thing and you have plenty of spare time to waste then go for it.

Rating: C

call?

Posted on July 13, 2014July 13, 2014 by Greig

Charlie All Night

Jennifer Crusie

Allie is a radio producer. After her relationship with the morning show DJ ends he replaces her with a younger model as both girlfriend and show producer.
Allie freaks and tries to pick up the first presentable guy she spots in the bar next to the radio station. He turns out to be the new DJ for the late night show – which Allie is now asked to produce.
New in town and determined to move on in six weeks Charlie wants to lay low and not get involved in any commitments. Plans, of course, go awry.
This romance is good fun and particularly strong in terms of witty dialogue. Not unusually for a Jennifer Crusie book the plot is thin and the ending rather predictable but that’s a feature rather than a bug with this type of novel.

Rating: B

lipring?

Posted on July 13, 2014July 13, 2014 by Greig

Keeping The Moon

Sarah Dessen

When Nicole “Colie” Sparks is farmed out to live with her Aunt in small town America for the summer by her weight loss guru mother she’s forced to look at life from a new perspective.
This YA novel is well written and features a very likeable lead character. Even though it’s a pretty entertaining read the story just seems stop rather than have an actual ending. I found this pretty annoying.
Still this does mean that it’s ripe for a follow-up with so many plot threads and character acts left hanging at the end.

Rating: B