The Red Notebook

Title: The Red Notebook
Author: Antoine Laurain
Type: Paperback
Read: 21st February - 24th February
Rating: 5/5
Published: 7th April by Gallic Books

Heroic bookseller Laurent Letellier comes across an abandoned handbag on a Parisian street. There's nothing in the bag to indicate who it belongs to, although there's all sorts of other things in it. Laurent feels a strong impulse to find the owner and tries to puzzle together who she might be from the contents of the bag. Especially a red notebook with her jottings, which really makes him want to meet her. Without even a name to go on, and only a few of her possessions to help him, how is he to find one woman in a city of millions?

This is a cute story that centers around a lost handbag, found by Laurent one morning. Although taking the bag to the police station is his inital thought, delays there mean that the bag is taken home with him and a mini adventure begins to track down the owner. With nothing but the items inside the bag detailing the owners life, Laurent goes through Paris hoping to connect the owner once again.
It's really sucha lovely story. I brough this on a whim and basicially loved the french colors of the cover. I didn't even know at the time what this book was about nor that it was set in Paris and written by a french author.
I'm sometimes very confused when i read books translated but this one was excellent. I loved the characters, and i just think the ending was perfect. I'm so happy i picked this up.

Go get it from: Amazon UK | Book Depository | Waterstones 

Frozen: Stories From Arendelle

Title: Frozen: Stories From Arendelle
Author: Landy Walker Quinn, Elizabeth Rudnick
Type: Hardback
Read: 19th February
Rating: 4/5
Published: 1st December 2014 by Parragon Books Ltd

An anthology of stories from the Disney series Frozen featuring both
-The Phantoms of Arendelle
-Olaf & Sven On Thin Ice

If you love the frozen film then this book is a must have. It's nothing like the film. There are two stories in it.
First is Anna and Elsa both planning on throwing the other a surprise party. But nothing goes to plan after a phantom appears.

The second story is Olaf and Sven. They plan to help Kristof with his ice deliveries. But they don't plan on telling him of their plans. Cue drama and adventure with a little chaos for good measure.

Both stories are fun and cute and kids or adults will love them. Plus a nice added book to the frozen mania!   

Go get it from: Amazon UK | Waterstones  

The Best of Me

Title: The Best of Me
Author: Nicholas Sparks
Type: Paperback
Read: 13th February - 19th February
Rating: 3/5
Published: 26th August 2014 by Grand Central Publishing

"Everyone wanted to believe that endless love was possible. She'd believed in it once, too, back when she was eighteen."

In the spring of 1984, high school students Amanda Collier and Dawson Cole fell deeply, irrevocably in love. Though they were from opposite sides of the tracks, their love for one another seemed to defy the realities of life in the small town of Oriental, North Carolina. But as the summer of their senior year came to a close, unforeseen events would tear the young couple apart, setting them on radically divergent paths.

Now, twenty-five years later, Amanda and Dawson are summoned back to Oriental for the funeral of Tuck Hostetler, the mentor who once gave shelter to their high school romance. Neither has lived the life they imagined . . . and neither can forget the passionate first love that forever changed their lives. As Amanda and Dawson carry out the instructions Tuck left behind for them, they realize that everything they thought they knew -- about Tuck, about themselves, and about the dreams they held dear -- was not as it seemed. Forced to confront painful memories, the two former lovers will discover undeniable truths about the choices they have made. And in the course of a single, searing weekend, they will ask of the living, and the dead: Can love truly rewrite the past?

I just love books by Nicholas Sparks, its my aim to read them all eventually. However this one, it wasn't or didn't appear to be as good as previous books. I'm not sure why and I can't put my finger on what it was that made me feel so uninterested.
It has your romanace and drama and the happy ish ever after ending. But something didn't feel right, perhaps it was all the evil-ness of two characters that for me, didn't fit in with the usual books Nicholas writes.
Or perhaps it just didn't flow great and I wanted to just be done with it. I'm not sure. It annoys me so. But I did love Dawson as a character, he was just a wee hunk. He came from the wrong family and fell in love with a girl on the opposite side of the track. But life moves on, history doesn't always have a way of leaving things behind.
Oh i also loved Tuck. Yes, i wish i had a grampa like him, someone with so much history and knowledge.

I'm sure others will love the book, it just wasn't for me.  

Go get it from: Amazon UK | Book Depository | Waterstones 

A Single Breath

Title: A Single Breath
Author: Lucy Clarke
Type: Paperback
Read: 6th February - 12th February
Rating: 4/5
Published: 27th March 2014 by Harper

The deeper the water, the darker the secrets

There were so many times I thought about telling you the truth, Eva. What stopped me was always the same thing…

When Eva’s husband Jackson tragically drowns, she longs to meet his estranged family. The journey takes her to Jackson’s brother’s doorstep on a remote Tasmanian island. As strange details about her husband’s past begin to emerge, memories of the man she married start slipping through her fingers like sand, as everything she ever knew and loved about him is thrown into question. Now she’s no longer sure whether it was Jackson she fell in love with – or someone else entirely…

The truth is, it was all a lie . . . 

I won this book as a prize on twitter over christmas, along with two others. This is the first in the set i've read.
The basis of the story is good,although i thought it started off really slow and Eva kind of annoyed me which i can't pinpoint as to why. But it gradually grew and towards the end I didn't want to put it down.
I did guess some of the story though halfway through or at least I had an idea of what was due to happen, which is a shame as i like the element of surprise. There are some great descriptions of the area of which Eva visited to understand Jacksons past. Tasmania sounds like a really wonderful place to visit.
I think my favourite character was Saul, Jacksons brother. He had this claming nature about him and i genuinly believe he loved Eva towards the end. It was tough for him.
The end left me confused, I'm really not sure in the end what decision Eva made. Perhaps thats good, we can decide ourselves what happened.

Overall an enjoyable read. 

Go get it from: Amazon UK | Book Depository | Waterstones

Little White Lies

Title: Little White Lies
Author: Lesley Lokko
Type: Paperback
Read: 27th January - 5th February
Rating: 4/5
Published: 3rd April 2014 by Orion

In a beachfront mansion in Martha's Vineyard, Annick and Rebecca relax, safe in the knowledge that their young children are in the care of life-long friend Tash. But by the end of the afternoon, one of the children will have vanished...

Annick, daughter of an actress and an assassinated president, has spent her life running from the truth of her family's wealth.

Rebecca has always done the right thing. Perfect daughter. Perfect wife. Perfect mother. She's beginning to wonder if she'll ever get chance to live for herself.

And Tash, free from the poverty of her heritage, has the world at her feet. So why is she struggling to keep a grip on her life? This is the sweeping story of three very different women; their pasts, their secrets, and their friendship.

I'm so unsure if giving this four stars is right. It's a toss between three and four. I'm also so very clueless at the storyline. It started off good, although took a while to get into but was interesting enough. The basis of a child going missing however doesn't seem to be the main reason of the story. It's pretty much the history of the three friends, their families and what brings them together and apart.

I liked Annik the most out of the characters although at first she annoyed me. But out of the three girls, she was the most likeable. Tash was just a drunk and Rebecca didn't have a back bone.

The ending let me down though. It just suddenly finished. Without explanation of what really happened. But guess thats books for you. Anything can happen.

Go get it from: Amazon UK | Book Depository | Waterstones