Night School - C. J Daugherty

Night School is the first book I have read by C. J. Daugherty. I've seen it in the shelves at work and one day I decided to buy it because it sounded like a good book. And now that I've finished it, I can write my review. And also try not to spoil too much as usual😉

The Blurb:

Allie's world is falling apart...

She hates her school. Her brother has run away.
She just been arrested. Again. And now her parents are sending her away.

But instead of hating boarding school, Allie is happy.
She's making friends. And there's Carter, a brooding loner with whom she feels an instant connection.

Cimmeria Academy is no ordinary school.
Her Classmates - and maybe som of the teachers - are hiding a secret.
And soon it begins to feel like a very dangerous place...

My Thoughts:

When I read the blurb of Night School the first thing I thought about was something supernatural (not Sam and Dean Winchester Supernatural.. sorry.. had to..) like werewolves or vampire or whatever. And this was one of the reasons why I wanted to read this book. Apart from being disappointed on few locations and cringing on other locations I had to find out what was going on at this school.

So, this is a story about a girl called Allie. She's having a difficult time dealing with her brother's disappearance and get's arrested because of vandalism. Her parents decide to send her to Cimmeria Academy. A place only few knows about. The school is way different from the schools she's used to. There are lots of rules to follow and they are not allowed to use any electricity. No phones, no computers. Nothing. Only books. Surprisingly, Allie managed to adapt to her new life real quick (for someone as troubled and difficult as her). More or less, in only few weeks, she makes some friends (and some enemies) and meets a charming, good looking, French guy called Sylvain. Carter, who is another guy, tries to tell her over and over again that Sylvain is not to be trusted. She dismiss him of course, because, well... Carter thinks he's better than anyone else and she dislike him (typical teenage stuff). In the end, Carter is right and suddenly, Allie starts to like Carter more and more... ah.. the good old love triangle drama.

There were many times I sat there being all, oh god.. this is so cliché... Let's just say that, thanks to this book I now feel like I've gotten too old for these types of clichés (I did just turn 25 last Saturday so maybe that's why I'm getting too old.. I'm halfway to 50! Aaahhh.. time flies soo fast!) Anyway...

When the "big secret" got revealed, I was bit disappointed. Well, at least I did not see that coming at least. Like I wrote earlier, I expected something else entirely. Something like; People turning into wolves, magic, whatever.. not this. Of course, not everything has to contain creatures and magic and that there is a lot of different bad stuff that can happen in stories. And this story involves the latter. Really bad things are happening. But at the same time, why? Why this? Couldn't it be something else? Something more scary/dramatic? It wasn't that bad tho, I just couldn't see why this thing had to happen I guess. Oh well. At least the author managed to surprise me more than once nonetheless.

All in all. I do think this book was great. Don't get me wrong, I was hooked from the first page and wanted to find out what was going on at Cimmeria Academy. Yes, there were lots of clichés and some disappointment here and there but I was still hooked nonetheless and could barely put it away. I ended up reading till almost 4 am these past few days so...it is pretty good and I will continue to read the rest of this series. I also read a review where it said that the second book was much better than the first so I'm looking forward to read it😊

Bye x

3/5

Next book to read: Everything everything by Nicola Yoon
Currently reading (Kindle): The Ninth Grave by Stefan Ahnhem
Currently listening to: The Light Fantastic (Discworld #2) by Terry Pratchett

Daughter - Jane Shemilt

I actually started on this review almost two weeks ago, but haven't had the time nor energy to finish it (been in a zombie mode this passed week so all the energy I have had, I used on my daily drawings..)😴

Anyway... back to the review!😉

Daughter was the first book I've read by Jane Shemilt. I didn't know that much about this book before I started, but I was not that disappointed 😊 

The Blurb:

The night of the disappearance

She used to tell me everything.

They have a picture. It'll help.

But it doesn't show the way her hair shines so brightly it looks like sheets of gold.

She smells very faintly of lemons.

She bites her nails.

She never cries.

She loves autumn, I wanted to tell them. She collects leaves, like a child does. She is just a child.

FIND HER

One year later

Naomi is still missing. Jenny is a mother in the brink of obsession. The Malcolm family is in pieces.

Is finding the truth about Naomi the only way to put them back together?

Or is the truth the thing that will finally tear them apart?

My Thoughts:

Like I said in the beginning of this review, I started writing this review almost two weeks ago which means that it's been around two weeks since I read this book. So.. I might have forgotten some of the things that happened in this story, but I will try my best!🙊

So this is one of the typical disappearance stories about someone who's missing and the mother (or another family member or someone else) who wants to find the truth of what happened that horrible night. And it also got this mysteriousness to it that keeps people like me wanting to find out more and ends up reading the whole book 😛  There's also a twist in the end as it usually is with these kind of stories.

The story changed between the past (the days before the disappearance and after) and present (round a year later). I know I've said something like this before, but the way the chapters changed between then and now was not as confusing as it can be when it comes to these kind of stories. I did go back once to almost at the beginning to check something out that turned up at the near of the book, but that was it 😛

I can say that the ending was quite a surprise. I did not see that coming at all! I had some suspicions in my head, but this ending was not one of them. I was not that disappointed either about the end. I actually want to know what happens next, but I know I will never find out. I think. 

All in all, this was a nice and suspenseful thriller with a huge twist at the end and (like I said) I was not disappointed! I will definitely check out more of her books one day😊 

And that's the end of this review! Can't think of anything else to say so this is it. 

Bye! x

(I'm going to upload a new blog entry pretty soon that was also supposed to be up a while ago.. whoopsie!)

(Also..just discovered the emojis that's been added recently as you probably have noticed by now 😛)

Currently reading - The Sunrise by Victoria Hislop

The Secret Keeper - Kate Morton

The Secret Keeper is the second book I've ever read by Kate Morton. I read The House At Riverton a while back ago and feel completely in love with that book. I'm glad my grandmother told me that I should read this right away. If she hadn't borrowed it from me few month ago, then it might have taken some time before I would pick it up (got lots of other books to read so..). But here we are and I was not disappointed at all!

The Blurb:
1961: On a sweltering summer's day, while her family picnics by the stream on their Suffolk farm, sixteen-year-old Laurel hides out in her childhood tree house dreaming of the bright future she can't wait to seize. But before the idyllic afternoon is over, Laurel will have witnessed a shocking crime that changes everything.

2011: Now a much-loved actress, Laurel finds herself overwhelmed by shades of the past. Haunted by memories, and the mystery of what she saw that day, she returns to her family home and begins to piece together a secret history: a tale of three strangers from vastly different world - Dorothy, Vivien and Jimmy - who are brought together by chance in wartime London and whose lives become fiercely and fatefully entwined.

Shifting between the 1930s, the 1960s and the present, The Secret Keeper is a spellbinding story of mysteries and secrets, murder and enduring love.

My Thoughts:
One thing..: How am I going to review this without any spoilers?! This is not going to be easy, mind you but I will try my very best to not spoil anything important!

Ok, first of all, what a book! After finishing the first chapter, I was hooked! Unfortunately my eyes thought otherwise.. which was frustrating. The reason why it took me so, so long to finish this book was because my eyes got tired pretty much in the middle of every single chapters. No matter how thrilling that chapter was, my eyes could barely keep themselves up. Argh! Maybe because the text was small or something.. I don't know.

Despite my tired eyes, I loved this book as much as I loved The House at Riverton. It was suspenseful, thrilling and all in all a great book to curl up with on a rainy day (or weeks in my case).

The characters had their own personalities and you felt like you got to know them well. The shifting from past and present, and between the characters was well written and didn't feel "messy". I liked the way the stories from the past kind of blended with the things Laurel found in present time. I didn't have to wait long for the meaning behind those findings and it still made me wanting to find out more about the life of her mother and also the other people that was part of her life one way or another.

And that ending. That was a huge twist right there! I literally had tears in my eyes reading the last page. I really, really want to spoil it all but I won't do it. You just have to read it yourself!

That's all I'm going to say. If you want to know more then.. well.. read it! (You can also ask me or look up more reviews online :P )

Bye! xx

5/5

Next book to read: On the Other Side by Carrie Hope Fletcher

The Girl On The Train - Paula Hawkins

The Girl on the Train is Paula Hawkins' first thriller novel. Before I bought a copy, I debated whether to buy it or not. I was unsure of getting it because I felt that this book wasn't really my type. But after a few customers at work asked me if I had read it, I decided to give it a go. Just a research so I would be prepared next time someone ask me. So here I am, done reading it and writing my review.

The Blurb:
Every day the same. Until today.
Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens.

She's even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. Their life - as she sees it - is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy.

And then she sees something shocking, and in one moment everything changes.

Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she's only watched from afar.

Now they'll see: she's much more than just the girl on the train...

My Thoughts:
Wow... what a ride...(no pun intended). That was a lot of drama going on between the characters. While reading this book, I started to think, How am I going to write this review without giving anything away? So here I sit, bit clueless on how to do this, but luckily the ending gave me something to write about. Because, as always, there's usually a twist when it comes to thrillers and (luckily for me) this was no exception.

This is going to be a completely different kind of review from me, because this is just how I have to to it. I will try my best to not spoil anything. I will not tell what happened, just about the characters you're going to meet in this book. So I guess I'm going to give you "information" on what to expect from this book.

The story is about three women's point of view. Rachel - The "main character", Megan - The missing person and Anna - Rachel's ex-husband's wife.

The majority of the story is surrounded round Rachel's life as an alcoholic who lives with a "friend" in an apartment. She takes the train back and forth from London almost every day. While on the train, she's seated near the windows and likes to make up stories about the life of the couple living in one of the houses near the railway whenever it pulls to a stop near their home. She calls them Jess and Jason. A perfect couple with a perfect life. So when Megan goes missing, she wants to know what happened. Rachel was near their street that night Megan disappeared and can't remember anything because of the blackout from too much alcohol. She feels she's a part of their life after watching them from the train almost every day for over a year. She also saw something the day before Megan went missing and wants to tell Scott about it and try to help him.

Unfortunately, Rachel's ex-husband, Tom, and his new wife, Anna, lives on the same street as Megan and Scott. Anna is terrified of Rachel because of all the bad things she's done to Anna and her new family. She wants Tom to get rid of Rachel, but he tells her over and over again that he's going to talk with her, which he does every time. So when Rachel's starts to show up on their street more frequently, Anna gets scared, thinking she's there only to cause trouble for them. So Anna's entries are more or less surrounded round Rachel and the hate towards her. When things starts to uncover about Megan's past, Anna becomes uneasy and scared because Megan has been in their house few times in the beginning. So there's a lot of drama surrounding the characters...

Megan's entries is surrounded about her life from few years earlier and up to the day she disappears. She is completely different from what Rachel imagines to say the least. She's seeing a therapist about her trouble sleeping and other problems that she's been through. Learning what she's been going through is sad. I also got frustrated about the things she did (the same with Anna). Seriously! But, you know, it's not easy to love just one person sometimes when another one shows up I guess. Like I said.. a lot of drama.

Back to Rachel before I starts spoiling the whole thing!

I know it's not easy to be an alcoholic, but sometimes.. just sometimes... I was like, Mate... you know you get blackouts and do bad things when you're drunk...WHY ARE YOU STILL DRINKING?? Seriously! If I was you, I would have stopped ages ago! I know it's bad thinking this, but sometimes...When you're not dealing with this yourself it's difficult to look at it from their perspective. It's like telling someone with anxiety to get over it. It doesn't work that way. Trust me, I know! I know so perfectly well, dealing with anxiety myself. I'm better now though, finally. Still got some degree of Socially Anxiety, but I manage thanks to my job for making me socialize even when my heart beats faster, my face turns slightly red and feeling bit shaky.
So, Rachel and her drinking problem. Poor girl. I do feel bad for her, because she too went through not so good things. I think she was strong when she decided to try and drink less (and maybe stop drinking altogether) when the whole Megan thing started. Of course, it wasn't easy for her but she tried.

All in all. It was bit of a slow start. I didn't know what to expect from this book, but when I started reading, I felt that nothing bad would really happen but I wanted to continue just to see where this whole plot were going. And I also continued because this was a "research" for work. Not that I wanted to stop reading after a few chapters! When things started to happen, I wanted to know more. I got more or less hocked because I had questions and wanted the answers. The ending was a huge twist, that's for sure. I wasn't sure who had done this and had a few suspects in mind, but none of them were this person. It's like the Strike series by "Robert Galbraith" were you have no idea who the killer is. Or, you think you know, but the ending blows your mind. Same thing here.

I think The Girl on the Train was a great book. Thrilling and suspenseful and, also, drama (maybe a tad much but still good). I also found out today that this book is turning into a movie! I watched the trailer before writing and I'm glad I read the book first. It looks interesting and I will see it when it comes out, but there where few things that annoyed me about the trailer. First of all, the story in the book takes place in England, but in the movie, it somehow takes place in America. Second, some (or most) of the scenes they showed on the trailer could more or less be a part of a fifty shades trailer. Like I wrote further up, majority of the plot is surrounded around Rachel and her drinking problems, harassing Tom and Anna by turning up drunk on their doorstep and calling Tom in the middle of the night. And the last thing that annoyed me was that they didn't show that much of what was actually the story in this book. Which, more or less it Rachel and the other things I wrote about further up.

At least now I might know some of the reasons why this book is popular here in Norway. One, the book has finally been translated to Norwegian (started selling the Norwegian copies few month ago) and there's a movie adaption coming up next year.

Phew... that was a long review. I hope I didn't give that much away. You will find out about the things I wrote about almost from the beginning so don't worry about that :P

There's a lot more to the story so if you want to read it but not sure, then I hope I helped you with your decision. It is a great book. Well, at least I thought it was great :P

And that's all for now! I might do another review pretty soon, because I'm going to read Paris For One after this and it got round 100 pages so I think I will finish fast.

Bye x

4/5

Next book to read: Paris For One - Jojo Moyes

Behind Closed Doors - B. A. Paris

Behind Closed Doors is B. A. Paris' first novel and it was so good that I'm going to continue buying her books when they comes out! I did finish this a few days (or more like nights) ago, but didn't have the time to write this review until now.

The Blurb:
Jack 
- Handsome
- Dedicated lawyer
- Loving husband

& Grace 
- Elegant
- Consummate housewife
- Prisoner

Everyone knows a couple like Jack and Grace.
He has looks and wealth, she has charm and elegance.
You might not want to like them, but you do.
You'd like to get to know Grace better.

But it's difficult.
Because you realise they are never apart.
Some might call this true love.

Others might ask why Grace never answers the phone.
Or can't meet for lunch, without Jack.
And why there are bars on one of the bedroom windows.

Sometimes the perfect marriage is the perfect lie.

My Thoughts:
Where do I start without spoiling anything?? Aaah! This book was so suspenseful and I could barely put it down when I first started reading it in the evenings! I got hooked from the start even though nothing much happened. You know it's a great book when you stay up half the night to read it even though you have to get up little early the next day! I literally held my breath during the last few chapters!

So much things happened during Behind Closed Doors and I really felt sorry for Grace and actually wanted to jump into the book and save her from that psycho husband of hers. I got shocked when he revealed his reasons for marrying her and how much he manipulated and controlled her. I admired her for her strength (if I can say that) and that she never gave up no matter what and that she was determined to fight him one way or another until the end. Even though she felt beaten and almost wanted to give up, she still tried to find a way to get away from him.

I got my hopes up when one of their new neighbors started to ask questions about things and that she looked suspicious when Grace looked at her. And I sat there thinking "Yey! Maybe she would be the one to save Grace!" So there were few of those hopes while reading Behind Closed Doors, but after reading some more I felt that this won't end good but at the same time still had a hope that she would get away somehow. I can say that I liked the ending without saying much and the whole story really stuck with me.

All in all, this was a thrilling story and it left me staring at the walls after finishing it with lots of thoughts (which I'm not going to spoil here on this post). And the way those chapters were divided between the past and present was great too. It wasn't a mess like it can be when reading about both past and present

I can't write anything else here without ruining things so I'm going to make a separate post with spoilers because I just have to get it out :P

So this is my non-spoiler review and I know I'm still not that good at writing these but hey! Still Norwegian.

Bye xx

Spoilers

5/5

Currently Reading: The Girl on the Train - Paula Hawkins

Before I Go To Sleep - S. J. Watson

Before I go to sleep is S. J. Watson's debut novel and the second book I've read from this author. Second life was the other one which I've also written a review on. I'm glad I read this as well, because I could not simply put it down without having a reason...

The Blurb:
Memories define us.

So what if you lost yours every time you went to sleep?
Your name, your identity, your past, even the people you love - all forgotten overnight.
And the one person you trust may only be telling you half the story.

Welcome to Christine's life.

My Thoughts:
Wow...what a novel! I was hooked from the start! Last night I even ended up reading till 4.30 in the morning because there was a lot of things that suddenly happened. After I noticed light coming through the window I knew I had to stop and try to sleep :P So yeah... this was a book that I just couldn't put down without having a reason.

I'm gonna try and not spoil the whole book, but I think I can say a few things that is not really spoilers. Christine got amnesia. She only remember the things that has happened during the day, but when she falls asleep she forgets everything. So when she wakes up, she doesn't remember anything that have happened the day before or her past. Even her husband, who lies right next to her in bed every morning when she wakes up. The same questions every day, forgotten the next morning, until a doctor gives her a journal. She starts to write down most of the things that has happened during the day, so she can read it when she wakes up. The memories that comes and goes, the feelings of something bad that has happened. And that's what this whole book is about. Her journal, the things she has written, things that she has started to remember but fades as quick as they have come and occasionally comes back. And I can say that some things might not be true.

I liked the ending, although I wish the author had written some more! It was a thrill read and I'm glad that Second life made me wanting to read more from S. J Watson! There's also a film version of it that came out in 2014 if you don't want to read it :P I think I might gonna watch it one day and see if it is as good as the book ;)

5/5

Next book to read: Wool by Hugh Howey

Second Life - S. J. Watson

Second Life is the first book I've read from S.J. Watson. It took me a while to finish it because I ended up watching every single episode from season 1-6 of The Walking Dead during Easter :P Wanted to check it out and ended up binge-watching it... oh well... But now I'm finished and here's my review!

The Blurb:
She loves her husband.
She's obsessed with a stranger.

She's a devoted mother.
She's prepared to lose everything.

She knows what she's doing.
She's out of control.

She's innocent.
She's guilty as sin.

She's living two lives.
She might lose both.

My Thoughts:
Like I wrote on the blog last time, I mentioned that this book was slow in the beginning and that things might speed up a bit after some chapters. I was right. But it took some time to get to the part where things did actually happen. I think one of the reasons that it took me so long to finish this was because there wasn't that much things that happened in the beginning and I also got a bit annoyed at the character. The way she thought about this stranger and that she continued to do things even though she knew it was a bad thing to do. Of course, it can be difficult to get away if you really like someone. I get that, but it was just annoying that she came back to this person again and again while I sat there thinking: No! Don't! Please get away!God you're stupid.... -.-'
When things really started to happen (over halfway through), I could barely put it down. It was a huge twist in the end of the book and I wanted to know what happened after the last page.

I bought the debut novel Before I Go To Sleep by S. J. Watson today so if that's not proof enough that I ended up liking this book then I don't know ;)

3/5

Variant - Robison Wells

Variant by Robison Wells is the first book I've read from him. There's also a sequel to this book called Feedback. If you liked the Maze Runner, I'm pretty sure you will like this one as well! It's similar, but with a twist. And by a twist, I mean things turned out to be completely different from what I imagined.

The Blurb:
Benson Fisher thought that a scholarship to Maxfield Academy would be the ticket out of his dead-end life.

He was wrong.

Now he's trapped in a school that's surrounded by a razor-wire fence, where video cameras monitor his every move - and where breaking the rules equals death.
All Benson wants is to find a way out. But when he stumbles upon the real secret the school has been hiding, he realizes that escape may be impossible.

My Thoughts:
When I started reading this, it wasn't like I could barely put it down like other books that's been so good that I can't leave it, but I wanted to see if Benson made it out in the end. It wasn't boring or anything because stuff happened all the time and the way the school was run by teens, I wanted to know what this was all about. Same as Benson.

And then, after halfway through the book when he finds the truth about this place, I couldn't put it down! Seriously, I finished this book around 4 this morning. I couldn't stop reading and when I finished it, I jumped out of the bed and got the sequel out of the bookshelf and continued. When the clock turned almost 5 a.m, I told myself that I had to put it down and go to sleep :P Everything changed and trust me, I did not see this coming, at all! At one minute, things felt a bit strange about this place, but nothing really happen and then everything changed when he found out what was really going on. Usually, you have an idea about how a book might end, but this was something else.

It went from ok, this reminds me of Maze Runner..they're stuck in this school and Benson's the only one in this place who actually wants to escape to What is happening?? What is this place? Omg! I did not see this coming!! You can't trust anyone here! What's going to happen now? and so on.. It ended up becoming a thriller more or less.

Of course, this is my thoughts about this book and I thought this turned out to be one awesome story. Some people might not think that this was any good at all or maybe thought the twist sounded weird or something :P But, if you like the Maze Runner (and I don't mean the movie version) then I'm pretty sure you will like this one too.

4/5

Wake - Lisa McMann

Wake by Lisa McMann is the first book in the Wake/Dream Catcher Trilogy. This is also the first book I've ever read from her. Before I read this, I thought that this was going to be a bit creepy and stuff. Some dangerous dreams or something. I don't know :P But this was something completely else! And in a good way too! Well, at least I think it was good tho..

The Blurb
Not all dreams are sweet.

For seventeen-year-old Janie, getting sucked into other people's dreams is getting old. Especially the falling dreams, the naked-but-nobody-notices dreams, and the sex-crazed dreams. Janie's seen enough fantasy booty to last her a lifetime.

She can't tell anybody about what she does - they'd never believe her, or worse, they'd think she's a freak. So Janie lives on the fringe, cursed with an ability she doesn't want and can't control.

Then she falls into a gruesome nightmare, one that chills her to the bone. For the first time, Janie is more than a witness to someone else's twisted psyche. She is a participant...

My Thoughts:
Like I said in the beginning, I did not expect this. Anyway. This is one of the books you read, but at the same time it doesn't feel like it at all. (If that made any sense? )I started reading this before I went to bed and suddenly it was time for me to put it down and sleep. You know those kind of movies/episodes/youtube vids that is so great that, when it's over, you feel like no time has passed and you look at the time and it's suddenly much later than you'd thought? That's the feeling I got from this book. Probably a bad example but you get the idea.. I hope? It's difficult to describe.

The way this story has been written is so different and peculiar from the others that I've read (apart from a few) with a date and time. There are chapters, but it's split up by day to day and time of day "entries" in Janie's life. I think that this was also one of the reason why it felt like I read it the way I did because the chapters was split up the way they had and the "entries" were short so it wasn't so "heavy" to read.

Seriously... especially this book! Ahh..

From trying to describe the feeling of reading this to how I thought about this book. I really enjoyed reading this and it was surprisingly great. Like I said earlier: I thought this was another creepy book that I would read this week (thanks to the blurb) but nooo. This was a lovely book and with a complete different plot than I thought. Instead of creepy psycho killers with horrible dreams, there was a guy with bad dreams and Janie and him becomes close. The only "creepy"dreams was his and her friend's. Other than that there was some weird dreams and a few sweet dreams. And that was it. No scary stuff at all :P And I'm looking forward to begin on the next book in this trilogy tonight! :)

This must be one of the worst reviews I made, but hey! At least I'm trying to describe my thoughts the best way a Norwegian can to describe things in English!
(Yes...that's my best excuse for writing bad! Ha!)



4/5

The Accident - C. L. Taylor

The Accident is the debut novel by C. L. Taylor and the second book I've read from her. After reading The Lie last week, which is the second novel from her, I wanted to read this right away because The Lie (in my opinion) was creepy, but at the same time a thrill read.
Here's what I think about her debut novel. (Contains spoilers)

The Blurb:
You took my child. Now I'll take yours...

Sue Jackson has the perfect family but when her teenage daughter Charlotte deliberately steps in front of a bus and ends up in a coma she has to face a very dark reality.

Retracing her daughter's steps she finds a horrifying entry in Charlotte's diary and is forced to head deep into her daughter's private world. In her hunt to discover the truth, Sue begins to mistrust everyone close to her and is compelled do delve into the murky depths of her own past.

Sue will do anything to protect her daughter.
But what if she is the real reason that Charlotte is in danger?

Fast-paced, suspenseful, this is a book with more twists than a helter-skelter. Prefect for fans of Before I Go To Sleep and Gone Girl.

My Thoughts:
It started a bit slow, but after some chapters it started to pick up. It wasn't like The Lie were I wanted to continue to read right after I'd put it down, but it got better after round 100 pages in. After I had finished her previous novel, I had some expectations with this story. Of course, this was her debut novel I started to like it more and more in the end. So much that I ended up finishing it round 4 o'clock this morning. Long night, but it was worth it. Lot of things happened in the last few chapters that I couldn't just put it away and sleep. I needed to know what happened and was not disappointed at all. In one of the last chapters I thought that maybe Sue had been so delusional that none of the things that had happen in the present time was real. But she was right all along and am glad that she trusted her instincts when no one else did. Finding the true reason why her daughter had walked in front of the bus was scary. I understand why she wanted to find out the truth because her past had caught up with her (literally). And not in a good way.
The way the chapters went back and forth with present day and diary entries from the 90's made it better than if there only was about the present day, because so many things happened in the 90's and reading the entries, I got to know more about the reasons why she acted the way she did and why she was so caught up with finding the truth. And that's all I want to tell you about this novel without spoiling that much (although there are spoilers at the end of this post)

This book started slow but ended up being one suspenseful read. I'm glad I continued to read this and I'm looking forward to read more from her. After reading The Lie and The Accident I know that the novels will be better and better. The Lie was so good that I couldn't put it down and The Accident might have been slow in the beginning but all in all, I can't wait to read more from C. L. Taylor!


4/5





SPOILERS:
There was also entries from her diary from the 90's about her psycho ex-boyfriend. In the beginning I got a bit annoyed because obviously he was manipulating her and she made excuses for not leaving him. And then I started to think from her p.o.v and understood that it's difficult to just up and leave when someone manipulate you the way he did. One second he was nice and all, and then out of nowhere he accused her of cheating and couldn't bare the thoughts of her having dated guys before him and wanted her to throw away her bed (because other guys had slept in it), her presents from previous boyfriends (because he thought she kept them 'cause she missed them or something) and so on. Even I got scared of the way he treated her! And got so, so angry at him! I mean, he even locked her up in his mum's house where they both lived so she couldn't leave! He treated her like garbage and called her things and he also made her stand naked in front of the window so everyone could see how ugly her body was and that no one could believe how anyone would touch a fat girl like her. That was the kind of creepy messed up guy he was. I completely understood why she was so scared when she found out that he had found her again after all these years and was after her daughter. I'm not going to say anything else because you just have to read it yourself.

The Lie - C. L. Taylor

The Lie is the first book I've read by C. L. Taylor. I found it when i was at a local bookstore and was trying to find one more book since it's 3 for 2 on all english books there and I wanted to find books that was on my wish-list. I couldn't find any one and then I see this one and I looked at it and read on the back and I knew I needed this. Found out when I got home that day that this book too was already in my wish-list on goodread.com! So all three books that I had bought that day was on my list after all :P Anyway... so here's my thoughts of The Lie.

The Blurb:
I know your name's not really Jane Hughes...

Jane Hughes has a loving partner, a job in an animal sanctuary and a tiny cottage in rural Wales. She's happier than she's ever been but her life is a lie. Jane Hughes does not really exist.

Five years earlier Jane and her then best friends went on holiday but what should have been the trip of a lifetime rapidly descended into a nightmare that claimed the lives of two of the women.

Jane has tried to put the past behind her but someone knows the truth about what happened. Someone who won't stop until they've destroyed Jane and everything she loves...


My Thoughts:
First thing first: This book was creepy! And I could barely put it down because of all the things that continued to happen! I got hooked from the beginning and wanted to know what happened in Nepal. And of course, who the mysterious person who knew who Jane really was. It was a thrilling read and it almost felt like I was there with them and I wanted to jump in there and save them from that horrible place!

Let's just say that this was me most of the time during this novel:

Seriously... I couldn't stop reading and I wanted to find out what happened in Nepal and who the person was that threaten Jane.

This is the kind of book that, when you have a break from it you just want to grab it again and continue to read. That's what it was like with me. I took a break because of dinner or something and while I was away from the book I just wanted to go back in the sofa and continue! There was so many things, horrible things that happened and I felt sorry for Jane, angry about some of the others...
The way the story goes, from five years ago and to present day was great written, though I got "annoyed" when something bad happened on the last page in a chapter and suddenly the next chapter was either about the present day or five years ago. So I had to read a few chapters to get back to where that chapter had ended. But then again, that makes you wanting to continue to read :P

I'm glad I found this book and am excited to read another book from C. L. Taylor right after I've finished this review. I think this author is going to be a new favorite of mine. I like the way she writes and I look forward to check out more of her books!



4/5

Career of Evil - Robert Galbraith

The third novel in the Cormoran Strike series by Robert Galbraith. Enough said! :P Anyway, I've finally finished this book so here's my thoughts for J. K. Rowling's Roberts Galbraith's newest book in this amazing series! (might contain some spoilers)

The Blurb:
When a mysterious package is delivered to Robin Ellacott, she is horrified to discover that it contains a woman's severed leg.

Her boss, private detective Cormoran Strike, is less surprised but no less alarmed. There are four people from his past who he thinks could be responsible - and Strike knows that any one of them is capable of sustained and unspeakable brutality.

With the police focusing on the one suspect Strike is increasingly sure is not the perpetrator, he and Robin take matters into their own hands and delve into the dark and twisted worlds of the other three men. But as more horrendous acts occur, time is running out for the two of them...


A fiendishly clever mystery with unexpected twists around evert corner, Career of Evil is also a gripping story of a man and a woman at a crossroad in their personal and professional lives. You will not be able to put this book down.

My Thoughts:
Where shall I begin? I've read the other two books in this series and was excited to read this one knowing that I wouldn't be let down. I was right. So many things happened and I also got to know the main characters background as the story made them think back to the past about things that they had gone through. I feel like I've gotten to know them more now that I've done from the previous books. Although I got to know things from Strike's past, there was so much more, more about his mum, where he had grown up, his stepfather and his special friendship with Shanker... Many things you will learn from this book.
Aaand, when it comes to the murderer... once again I was surprised! Over halfway through the book, I started to think that one of them could be the one who was the murderer, but I was wrong, again.. Usually you get the idea that one person is the guilty one and you're right in the end, but Rowling? Nooo... she get you to think that that person sounds more and more guilty and then... Nope! Wrong person! After reading all three I still haven't figured the right person out, at all!

My dad have complained a little bit about her descriptions of buildings and such (and the way she write is difficult to understand), but I haven't really thought about it at all to be honest. The one thing I would "complain" (hardly a complain at all) about is the crossover between Robin and Strike. First you read about Strike and then, the next sentence is about Robin and then suddenly it's Strike (or the other way around). It's a bit confusing, but after reading some chapters I get used to it though.

Anyway, I love this series and I just saw that she is currently writing a fourth book! Yey! And I also found out (probably bit late to the party) that this series is going be adapted into a tv-series on BBC One! Hope it will come on the telly here in Norway as well!

5/5

The Cuckoo's Calling - Robert Galbraith

The Cuckoo's Calling is the debut mystery novel in the Cormoran Strike series that J. K. Rowling have written under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. The Silkworm and  Career of Evil are the next books in this series. I've read the second book, The Silkworm and going to buy the latest one in this series, Career of Evil, soon.

The Blurb:

When a troubled model falls to her death from a Mayfair balcony, it is assumed that she has committed suicide. However, her brother has his doubts and calls in private detective Cormoran Strike to investigate.

Strike is a war veteran - wounded both physically and psychologically - and his private life is in disarray. The Case gives him a financial lifeline but comes at a personal cost: the more he delves into the young model's world, the darker things become and the closer he gets to terrible danger...

My Thoughts: 

For someone who just started to read mystery/crime books, this was a great read. I enjoyed this book and could barely put it down. All the mystery and drama and trying to figure out what happened to the girl. I tried to find out the killer and still got shocked when Strike reveals who had done it! It's a story that will keep you guessing who the real killer is and all the mystery around this whole investigation.



5/5