Going Beyond the Blurb

  It's hard to believe it's been two years since I moved into the house with no exit. Of course, I didn't know there was no way out at the time as everything seemed so normal. I don't remember much of my life before he came into it. I struggle to remember the person I was, either. All I   know is I was very different from the person telling you this story.   We met for the first time one evening at a local bar. I was a marketing professional in her mid-twenties who had just earned her first big promotion to Marketing Executive. I was out with my friends to celebrate and we hadn't long popped the champagne when a tall, handsome-looking man came across to our table. Little did I know that the attractive appearance and gentlemanly manner were merely a disguise he wore to hide his true self. Caught off guard and swept up in the celebrations, I couldn't help but be mesmerised by him. So when he asked for my number, I found myself giving it to him almost in a daze, ba...

Title: The Lies of Locke Lamora  Author: Scott Lynch  Published: 2006 Genre: Fantasy Blurb: The Thorn of Camorr is said to be an unbeatable swordsman, a master thief, a friend to the poor, a ghost that walks through walls.  Slightly built and barely competent with a sword  Locke Lamora is, much to his annoyance, the fabled Thorn. And while Locke does indeed steal from the rich (who else would be worth stealing from?), the poor never see a penny. All of Locke's gains are strictly for himself and his tight-knit band of thieves; The Gentlemen Bastards. The capricious, colourful underworld of the ancient city of Camorr is the only home they've ever known. But now a clandestine war is threatening to tear it apart. Caught up in a murderous game, Locke and his friends are suddenly struggling just to say alive... Plot   Within the first few chapters, this book reminded me of an Oliver Twist/Robin Hood Mash Up. Locke Lamora who is orphaned as a child finds himself under ...

           Title: A Gathering of Shadows Author:V.E Schwab Published: 2016 Genre: Fantasy  Blurb: Kell is one of the last magicians with the ability to travel between parallel universes, linked by the magical city of London. It has been four months since a mysterious obsidian stone fell into his possession and he met Delilah Bard. Four months since the Dane Twins of White London fell, and the stone was cast with Holland's dying body back into Black London.  Now Kell is visited by dreams of ominous magical events, waking only to think of Lila. And as Red London prepares for the Element Games - an international competition of magic - a certain pirate ship draws closer. But another London is coming back to life. The balance of magic is perilous, and for one city to flourish, another must fall... Plot  This is the second book in this three part series and carries on four months after the story ends in book one. You really do need to read the firs...

    Title: Balancing the Scales  Author: Laura Carter Month: December  Blurb:   A Hotshot Manhattan Attorney.  Drew Harrington knows exactly who he is—a legal shark with a love ‘em and leave ‘em attitude that works just fine in his cutthroat world. He’s on the cusp of promotion to named partner, but only if he can prove to his colleagues that he has a more human side. A Sweetheart of a British Patisserie Chef. Becky Fletcher is running from her past, so the last thing she’s looking for is love. What she does want is a friendly face in a cold city. Her sunny outlook is the sweetness Drew never knew was missing from his life. One fateful meeting at a bagel cart. They sound like a match made in heaven—or is it a car crash? If they have any chance of finding happiness, Drew and Becky are going to have to rethink their life plans. Until then, is there really any harm in having some fun between the sheets? All’s fair in love and lox! For my twelfth and final read...

  Blurb: Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary men and women extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics. But Epics are no friend of man. With incredible gifts came the desire to rule. And to rule man you must crush his will.  Nobody fights the Epics...Nobody but the Reckoners. A shadowy group of ordinary humans, they spend their lives studying Epics, finding their weaknesses, and then assassinating them.   And David wants in. He wants Steelheart - the Epic who is said to be invincible. The Epic who killed David's father. For years, like the Reckoners, David's been studying, and planning - and he has something they need. Not an object, but an experience.  He's seen Steelheart bleed. And he wants Revenge.  After my last book review I was eager to get back into reading Fantasy books again so I looked up all the Fantasy author's I could think of and realised that I have never read a Brandon Sanders...

  Title: A Darker Shade of Magic Author: V.E. Schwab Month: November  Blurb:  Kell is one of the last travellers - magicians with a rare ability to travel between parallel universes connected by one magical city. There's Grey London, without magic and ruled by the mad King George III. Red London - where magic is revered, and where Kell was raised alongside the heir to the empire. White London - where people fight to control the remaining magic and magic fights back. And once there was Black London... This is the first time, in a long while, that I have felt quite emotional about finishing a book. Not crying emotional (that, i've been plenty of times this year) but the bitter sweet emotional of clinging on to the last pages of a book, trying to read each sentence, each word as slowly and carefully as possible to delay the inevitable conclusion of finishing the book. I stumbled coincidently upon a saying for this feeling on instagram today which is probably well known but o...

      In my last post I mentioned how on my first experience of NaNoWriMo I was super unprepared and only reached about a third of my total word target. The biggest problem was I hadn't made much of a plan in advance, but I've since realised that it's not just about the pre-planning, it's also about keeping yourself motivated throughout the month! 50,000 words is a lot to write in 30 days, especially if you've also got a full time job to go to and other commitments to juggle. So this year I've put together a NoNoWriMo survival kit/checklist which is something I've seen a lot of people doing and will hopefully keep me going throughout the month!  NaNoWriMo Survival Checklist 2020: 1. Weekly Word Target This is something I do with my writing goals when I have deadlines to meet. Although breaking the target down into daily word counts may seem more manageable (and for some it might be) I am one of those people who find that no matter how much I plan out each da...