Random Thoughts: Review Length

Posted September 26, 2014 by Charlotte in Random Thoughts / 10 Comments
Random Thoughts: Review Length

When I started this blog I was constantly worried about my review length.  The questions I kept asking myself was is it too short? Have I said everything? What happens if I missed something vital? I never seemed to panic if the review was long, instead, in those situations I had a feeling of smug satisfaction, of achievement. I probably bored everyone half to death… Sometimes every I could say was said in 200 words, at University 200 words could be banged out within an hour, easily – unless I was procrastinating… But for a review it could (and still can) take an hour or two to figure out actually what I want to say.  To keep it relevant rather than going off on a long ramble. These rambles are never very coherent. Most of the time it is me going “Oh my day! This book is sooooo good! You have to read it, promise? It’s just amazing. Trust me you will understand when you read it.” Or if I don’t particularly like the book moaning about how rubbish it was. […]

Blog Tour / Review: Eren by Simon P. Clark

Posted September 25, 2014 by Charlotte in Reviews / 0 Comments
Blog Tour / Review: Eren by Simon P. Clark

I received this book for free from Netgalley, Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.Eren by Simon P. Clark Published by Constable & Robinson on September 18, 2014 Genres: Children’s, Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult Pages: 197 Format: E-Arc, Hardback Source: Netgalley, Publisher Buy on Amazon Goodreads People are keeping secrets from Oli – about where his father is, and why he hasn’t come to join them at his uncle’s house in the country. But Oli has secrets too. He knows what lives in the attic. Eren – part monster, part dream, part myth. Eren who always seems so interested, who always wants to hear more about Oli’s life. Eren, who needs to hear stories to live, and will take them from Oli, no matter the cost. Learn more at http://www.erentales.com At first I thought that I wasn’t going to like Eren, I couldn’t quite get into it, and then – bam – about 10% in I was hooked. After that I couldn’t stop reading until […]

Review: Age of Iron by Angus Watson

Posted September 24, 2014 by Charlotte in Reviews / 0 Comments
Review: Age of Iron by Angus Watson

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.Age of Iron by Angus Watson Series: Iron Age #1 Published by Orbit on September 9, 2014 Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Historical Pages: 520 Format: Paperback Source: Publisher Buy on Amazon Goodreads Legends aren’t born. They’re forged. Dug Sealskinner is a down-on-his-luck mercenary travelling south to join up with King Zadar’s army. But he keeps rescuing the wrong people. First, Spring, a child he finds scavenging on the battlefield, and then Lowa, one of Zadar’s most fearsome warriors, who’s vowed revenge on the king for her sister’s execution. Now Dug’s on the wrong side of that thousands-strong army he hoped to join ­- and worse, Zadar has bloodthirsty druid magic on his side. All Dug has is his war hammer, one rescued child and one unpredictable, highly-trained warrior with a lust for revenge that’s going to get them all killed . . . It’s a glorious day to die. On the very first […]

Guest Post: Q&A with Edward Cox, author of The Relic Guild

Posted September 21, 2014 by Charlotte in Blog Tour, Guest Post / 0 Comments
Guest Post: Q&A with  Edward Cox, author of The Relic Guild

Today I am delighted to welcome Edward Cox, author of The Relic Guild on my blog today. I’m currently devouring The Relic Guild and have to say it is fantastic! Below is a Q&A with Edward Cox.   Q&A with Edward Cox: Tell us a bit about yourself / the book. I’m a husband and father and a geek. I’m vaguely confused about most things, especially technology, and I have a big love for stories. As for the book, it’s a fantasy adventure filled with magic, monsters and mayhem. I actually find this a difficult question to answer, so I’ve been working on a pitch. I’m currently down to this: At the heart of a labyrinth, in a city surrounded by walls a hundred feet high, Clara knows that an age-old menace has returned to her home. Only the last magickers of the Relic Guild can help Clara save the lives of one million humans. Together they must find a way to contact the lost worlds that lay outside the boundary walls. What / who do you get your influences from? From anything […]

Pastime Pleasures #16 – The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis

Posted September 19, 2014 by Charlotte in Pastime Pleasures / 0 Comments
Pastime Pleasures #16 – The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis

Welcome to my  feature, Pastime Pleasures, posted every other Friday. Today is the turn of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis. Here I will look at books that have given me great pleasure in the past. These are books I can read over and over again. The only rule is that the book must have been published five or more years ago.     This was a book that really set my imagination racing. Rather than detesting wardrobes or cupboards, rather like I imagine Harry Potter would, I spend the duration of my school holidays opening up random doors in the hope of stumbling upon Narnia, unfortunately I had no such luck. Having reread The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe and the rest of the series over and over again, it always feeling like I am catching up with an old friend. Each of the four children are completely relatable. And as C.S. Lewis wrote in his dedication: “But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.” “Once a King in […]