John Bishop – How Did All This Happen?

I think this book frustrated me so much that it’s put me off writing slightly!!

John Bishop is a well known name in this household and I purchased this for my mum’s birthday back in December, it was one of many that has since sat in my unread pile.

It may be that because we know so much of John Bishop, and if you have read it my mum was one of the few people at his first Edinburgh fringe show, that this autobiography just didn’t hold my attention. It was that dull and slow running that my colleague said about a week and a half in ‘Are you still reading that?’ – which to be honest was the kick up the bum I needed to finish it. I think I spend on average a week reading a book.

John Bishop seems a lovely bloke with a now very happy family and decent life but as a comedian who uses his life as his material, I know most of his story. Maybe if he was to write another about the later comedic side of him it would be better.

This book has been donated to our local library.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Lesser Evil – Lesley Pearse

Another one from my new favourite author Lesley Pearse.

It still amazes me that I can pick up any of her novels and they are completely unrelated to the last. They don’t even seem like they’re written by the same person.

‘A Lesser Evil’ focuses on a young married couple who move to a dysfunctional and criminal inflicted street in London. Whilst there Fifi accidentally stumbles across dangerous territory in regards to her neighbours the infamous Muckles.

The book is a harrowing story of how crime can affect the youngest of people as the Muckles young daughter Angela is found dead with no sign of the murderer.

Is it as simple as the vile parents finally abusing their daughter to death?

You’ll have to read it and see. A twisted love story that finds its happy ending eventually.

Don’t Want To Miss A Thing – Jill Mansell

I really enjoyed this book, for a quick chick lit read it was fantastic but there is always one flaw and to some it may be a major one- it’s predictable.

Even from the blurb you can easily predict what is going to happen, and although you end up willing it to there is still little air of surprise.

It follows Dexter, his little niece (then daughter) Delphi and his lovely neighbour Molly. As you can probably guess it’s all romantic with some disruption.

Dexter fights to bring up Delphi in homage to his sister after previously living a playboy lifestyle, helped along the way by Molly.

As a household Jill Mansell’s books are well read, it only took me a day to read this and something can therefore be said about the style of writing.

It’s easy. The narrative is lovely, there’s nothing too strenuous and not too long. The perfect book if you’re in to that sort of thing!

 

Pages: 432

To Buy: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/075535589X

Author Website: http://www.jillmansell.co.uk/

Never Look Back – Lesley Pearse

A big one this time which is why there has been such a gap between this post and the last. Lesley Pearse’s ‘Never Look Back’ is a whopping 737 pages and I enjoyed every single one.

I usually lose interest in a book this long and as per usual it took me a little while to get into but I think that’s my reading style opposed to the novels story.

The narrative centres around Matilda Jennings, a young girl rescued from the slums of London just about keeping her family together who is surprisingly intelligent and self confident for a child of the era and upbringing.

She is welcomed into the family home as a nursemaid for the priest’s daughter later on growing to see her as her own child. It is hard to remember that there is a mere 15 years between the two by the end of the story.

Without ruining it the pair endures some pretty horrible things across their lives, from gaining and losing multiple ‘family’ members to nursing during the war and saving innocent but abused women from the streets.

You’ll have moments of happiness reading the novel but also moments of pure sadness, especially in the end when the content Matilda seems to be perfectly peaceful.

This is not the first book I’ve read by Lesley Pearse and I doubt it’ll be the last, my mum and I are good fans of her work now, but she is capable of something few authors seem to do – write books that are entirely different from one another.

I honestly think you could read her novels back to back and think it was a different writer every time.

I would recommend this novel to anyone, if it takes a while to get into then just give it time it’s worth it in the end.

Buy here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Never-Look-Back-Lesley-Pearse/dp/0141046031/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1373723879&sr=8-1&keywords=never+look+back

Authors website: http://www.lesleypearse.com/