Lazy Friday

This week has been a fun week for me, it's my town's carnival and air show so loads going on to see and do. I've been a little neglectful of my reading as a result! However this week I have reviewed :

Hired Guns by Mark Boss, an action novel
...and Night Falls by Tommie Lyn, a crime thriller and
Twists & Turns, A Red Adept Collection of short stories

I've just finished another anthology of short stories, review coming later, A Selection of Meats & Cheeses by Danny Gillan. I previously reviewed his novel Scratch and Danny is the focus of this week's special over at Webbiegrrls's Writings. Take a look to find out more on this Glaswegian author and his works.

And now onto Follow Friday. At parajunkee.com the question for today is:

If you could write yourself a part in a book, what book would it be and what role would you play in that book?

I don't have a particular book in mind, but I would love to be a kick-ass, adventurous, tough yet smart girl. I like to surprise people, hate the idea of being average, and I love new experiences so an outdoorsy type who turns their hand to all manner of extreme sports, acquitting herself well in hand to hand combat while would be kind of cool. I guess a Lara Croft kind of character would be great.

No Book Blogger Hop over at crazy-for-books.com so I'll try and come back to that later.

Last but by no means least I am excited about an upcoming promotion I'm taking part in. Author Scott Nicholson is running Be Nicholson's Agent, details are on his blog here. It should be fun and will give bloggers and readers the chance to win gift cards, freebies and prizes. Keep an eye out for more news on this soon.

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend, I'll be trying to relax and enjoy a break from running around like a maniac. TC x

Friday meme time

This week feels like it has been super-busy for me, which probaby explains why this week I haven't got a lot of reading done. However I did manage to post reviews for:

A Paradise for Fools by Nicholas Kilmer, due for release 6th Sept, from the Art Mystery series
Waiting for Pops by John Riffice, a biography about growing up dealing with lies and betrayal, and
Walking Through Shadows by Tara Manuel, connected short stories about small town life.

I also posted a Q&A with Jason Blacker earlier today. He was one of the authors who took part in my 200 follower giveaway, the draw for which took place on Monday. Congrats to the winners and thanks to everyone who took part, as well as all the authors of course!

Over at Webbiegrrl's Writing's Sarah has beaten me to the punch posting first despite the time zones (was a bit tied up at a wonderful music therapy session with Monkey this morning) Take a look at her post for three free e-books she has selected.

This Follow Friday the question from Parajunkee.com is:

How have your reading habits changed since you were a teen? or If you are still a teen what new genres are you in love with currently?

I left my teens quite a while ago (and thank goodness, life gets better as you get older I think) so part 1 of the question for me. I used to be quite serious and a bit of a nerd when I was younger, so in my late teens it was all about the classics and "serious" books. As a young teen I read a ton of Mills and Boons and Clive Cussler books. Now I wouldn't touch a M&B with a bargepole, but I do still read some of Clive's work and fit in the odd classic, but I think my tastes now are much broader. I definitely read more since I got the kindle, and I would never have picked up indie authors pre-kindle, so I think my habits have changed a lot!

Finally it's blog hop time.

Let’s talk crazy book titles! Highlight one or two (or as many as you like!) titles in your personal collection that have the most interesting titles! If you can’t find any, feel free to find one on the internet!

Wombling out to my bookshelves I think the ones that best fit the question are The Devil's Feather by Minette Walters (from the author's website - Devil's feather - [derivation: Turkish] - a woman who stirs a man's interest without realising it; the unwitting cause of sexual arousal) and Past Mortem by Ben Elton which I like as a play on words.

I love this week's questions and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone else's answers.

Have a great weekend,
TC x

Hopping following freebie Friday!

Nearly the weekend again so that means meme time. As a bit of a recap, this week I have reviewed

Sci-fi thriller Season of the Harvest by Michael Hicks
Comic fantasy The Cornerstone by Nick Spalding
and We the Animals by Justin Torres, due for release on Sept 1st

I also read Helper12 by Jack Blaine, my review of that book will be posted later.

I'm now just 7 followers from the big 200, please help me make it to that total, and join in my giveaway (link on the top right of the page)

Now on with the fun!

At Webbiegrrl's Writings it's freebie Friday. To find some great free e-books and find out how to get your hands on them take a look at the blog. Some are available for one day only! This week's offerings include fantasy, comedy and literary fiction.

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jenn at crazy-for-books.com You can find this week's link here. She's asking:

Highlight one book you have received this week (for review, from the library, purchased at the store, etc.) that you can’t wait to dig into!”

This is a bit of a cheat, as I started it yesterday but I was really looking forward to picking up In the Blood by Steve Robinson. It's a murder mystery with a genealogical twist, and set in Cornwall. I developed an interest in genealogy or family history years ago, picking it up from my Nan so that's an interesting dimension for me. The setting is good for me too, having looked at the author's blog some of the locations are ones I have visited in the past and it's a county I love visiting. I'm approaching half way through an it's pretty good so far.


Over at parajunkee.com it's Follow Friday. The question for this week is:

Let's step away from books for a second and get personal. What T-Shirt slogan best describes you?

Oh boy, slogan t-shirts really aren't my thing. I've just done a quick google looking for inspiration and I'm drawing a complete blank. I remember holidays to Spain as a kid and even then avoiding them like the plague. Sorry!

Thanks for stopping on by, have a great weekend!

TC x

Friday meme time

Phew, that was a short week! And boy am I looking forward to my first weekend at home for  a month. I've had a busy week on the review front, posting the following:

Lessons of Evil by Linda Myers
The Final Winter by Iain Rob Wright
Haunted Ground: Ghost Photos from the Gettysburg Battlefield by Hollister Ann Grant
The Accidental Father by Greg Williams,
and last but not least
The Hairdresser of Harare by Tendai Huchu

I'm also very excited to have launched my first ever giveaway, to celebrate hitting the 200 follower milestone. Take a look and enter by completing the form if you haven't already done so!

Moving on to my fave memes, first of all Sarah's Freebie Friday. Due to time zone differences I'll add the link to the specific post later but in the meantime have a nose at her blog - http://webbiegrrl.blogspot.com/ EDIT - here's the link for the specific post http://networkedblogs.com/kIRaI Sarah has included more new freebies for your delectation.

At crazy-for-books.com Jenn is asking:

What’s the ONE GENRE that you wish you could get into, but just can’t?

There aren't many genres I won't read but I do sometimes wonder if I'm missing out on some of the YA fantasy books and series. Vampires and werewolves just aren't my thing but when I hear people raving about them I wonder if I'm wrong.

Last but not least it's Follow Friday over at Parajunkee.com The question is:

Name 3 authors that you would love to sit down and spend an hour or a meal with just talking about either their books or get advice on writing from?

A while back there was a question about which authors we'd like to meet on one of the memes, so  again my answer would include Clive Cussler, I think he'd be fascinating. I suppose JK Rowling is a bit predictable but she would be amazing to shoot the breeze with, and for the third author...This is hard! I'm going to say Ben Elton, I love his books and he is a comedy genius.

Is it Friday already?

This week has flown for me, probably because we had a few days away basking in the Cornish sun. Camping with the monkey means I don't get any extra reading time, probably less in fact, but I have still managed to post reviews on the following in the last week:

The Backseat Virgin - a collection of noir short stories
The Quest for Nobility - a fantasy incorporating some great elements of legend
Dead Game - a crime novel about a vigilante seeking out child killers, and last but not least
The Oxford Virus - an intellectual crime novel

It was strange for me, going back to a physical book for the first time in quite some time, I kept going to middle right of the page for the button to turn it! I also finally got to test the kindle (now looking very nice in its new steel blue cover which arrived in swift time) in bright sunlight and it was great, not a hint of glare.

We're off on another trip a bit later so I ought to move swiftly on to the Friday memes.

Due to time zone differences no Freebie Friday post yet, but take a look later for the latest list of free e-books over at webbiegrrl.blogspot.com.

For Follow Friday Parajunkee.com is asking: Let's step away from besties...What is the worst book that you've ever read and actually finished?

I haven't got a great memory to come up with the worst ever, so going on the ones I have read since I started the blog it would probably be a close run thing between The Accident by Ismail Kadare and No Easy Road by Patsy Whyte. The first was just to abstract for me, the second was so let down by the writing style of the author (and the over-egging of the content)

Now I usually join in the Blog Hop too, but I need to be ready to leave home inan hour and half and the monkey and I are both in PJs still, in need of a bath and with all our packing still to do. As this week involves a task - posting about someone else's giveaway - I just don't have time, but I hope everyone else has great fun with it!

Have a wonderful weekend all x TC

Half the year down...

Wow, I can't believe it's July already and I imagine I'm not the only one who is wondering where the first half of the year went! To everyone in the US and Canada, enjoy your holiday weekend, must be a good way to mark what to me always feels like the start of the summer. This month is shaping up to be a busy one for me, lots of trips away planned and I can't wait.

This past week on the blog I reviewed:

Fezariu's Epiphany by David M. Brown

Clutter-free Home Living: The How-to Guide by Eugenia Orr and

Cold Hillside by Martin Cooper

A bit of a mix, but that's reflective of my tastes!

Earlier today I took the monkey to the library for Stories and Songs, she loved it and I came away with a couple of books - The Accidental Father by Greg Williams, which is apparently in the Nick Hornby and Tony Parsons vein, and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich which I've been meaning to read for years. I love supporting our local library, I'd hate for there not to be one when little 'un gets bigger, and I need to keep up with the Borrowed Book Challenge I signed up for over at Book'd Out.

I've finally had reason to put Amazon's customer services to the test. I've heard glowing reports about how great they are, so when the elasticated strap on my kindle cover came unstuck at one end (despite hubby telling me to just use an elastic band instead) I pinged them an email. It was pretty late so I was impressed to log on this morning to a reply saying usually they'd have already sent a replacement, but as the black cover was out of stock they were asking me to order a new one in another colour or order and wait for the black one, and they will refund the money in full. Result! I didn't tell my husband when he bought me the cover as a present that I really wanted the steel blue one, not the black, so I'm now getting a new cover and the one I was really after!

And finally before I move onto the Blog Hop and Follow Friday, author Sarah Yoffa has started a Friday feature on her blog, Freebie Fridays. She is providing a list of a select few free e-books for your delectation. They are available from Smashwords and some are free for one day only. Take a look at this week's list right here. 

Courtesy of Jennifer at crazy-for-books the question for the hop is:

“What keeps you reading beyond the first few pages of a book, and what makes you want to stop reading a book and put it back on the shelf?“

It's very rare I don't finish a book, so it doesn't take a lot to keep me reading beyond the first few pages. For me to put it down it would have to either be a case of mistaken identity, picking up a genre I don't normally touch, or absolutely full of spelling and grammar errors.

And over at parajunkee.com the question is:

ACK! Your favorite book/movie character (example Hermione Granger played by the Emma chick) just walked into the room! Who is it and what would be your first reaction? You get extra points if you include visual stimulation.

Oh, I'm rubbish at these fave character questions. If it was a character who has appeared in a film, like one of the HP gang I would probably be stood trying to look cool and trying to think of an original opening line to engage them in conversation. I'm not the type to get starstruck, but I'd hate to walk up and ask the same question or say the same thing they've heard a million times.

If you're read this essay thanks for persevering and thanks for stopping on by. As I'm edging ever closer to 200 followers look out for an announcement on a giveaway to celebrate! Have a great weekend all. x TC

TFI Friday!

Any regular visitors know what Friday means here at Booked Up - Blog Hope and Follow Friday time! I love these two memes, it's so interesting to hear other people's thoughts and recommendations. Before I get started though, later I'll be posting an author interview with Melinda Clayton, author of Appalachian Justice and recently released sequel Return to Crutcher Mountain (review on that coming later too) And, having passed the 150 follower mark last week I'm planning a 200 follower giveaway. I've got 5 authors on board already, with e-books from a range of genres to be won. Watch this space for more info as I get closer to that next milestone!

Over at Parajunkee.com the question is : In light of the Summer Solstice, also known as Midsummer...let's talk about fairies. What is your favorite fairy tale or story that revolves around the fae?

This is easy for me, I don't read many books including fairies, and it's been a long time since I read any fairy tales (still on nursery rhymes with Monkey) so it has to be Don't Breathe a Word by Jennifer McMahon I wasn't sure it would be my thing but I thought it was great and gave it 5*

Now over at crazy-for-books.com a question I'm not sure of the answer to: When did you realize reading was your passion and a truly important part of your life? I'm really not sure, I've always read a lot and can't imagine not having books to turn to when I have time. My mum tells me that as a small child if we were out and about and I was getting bored she could pick up any catalogue or flyer and give it to me and I'd be happy as larry. As a kid the family all called me Bookworm so I suppose I must have realised early on how important the company of a good book can be.

Book hop time

Phew, I survived working on a Friday, it was a bit of a shock for me, been a long time since I've done that and boy was it rubbish still there when everyone else was sloping off early. Glad to be home and relaxing now.

First up the Book Blogger Hop hosted by Jennifer at crazy-for-books.com. Today's question is How many books are currently in your TBR pile?

I'm not exactly sure but it's over 100, which should keep me going for a while! Fortunately most of those are e-books otherwise I'd be in trouble.

Over at parajunkee.com the it's genre wars! What's your favourite genre and which book in that genre made it your favourite?

I'm not sure I have a stand out favourite genre, I do love a good thriller but also I'm a big fan of historical fiction. I've been reading adult fiction since I was about 12, my parents would let me read anything I could lay my hands on, and I can't think of one particular book read back along that has led to me preferring either of those two. Silence of the Lambs is one that stands out for me though.

I'm looking forward to doing some hopping to see what other people's answers are, and would love to read your comments. Have a great weekend everyone! TC

Friday fun

This week has whipped past again, and I've managed to review a few books and will have another author Q&A later, from Puttypaw author Tom North. As it's Friday it's meme time.

Over at parajunkee.com this week's question is: Q. The magic book fairy pops out of your cereal box and says "you and your favorite character (from a book of course) can switch places!" Who are you going to switch with?

Hmm, this is familiar, last time a variation on this question came up I thought of one of the women from a Jane Austen novel first. I don't really have a favourite character from a book to be honest.

This week the book blogger hop is being hosted by lorisreadingcorner.com and the question is:

“Who is the ONE author that you are DYING to meet?

Ooh, this is a good one! I've read a lot of Clive Cussler and seen him involved with TV shows about diving to discover ship wrecks, so as a diver I think he'd be great to chat to about books and scuba!

Thanks for visiting the blog, please leave a comment even if it's just saying hi, and have a great weekend,

TC

Friday in the sun

Friday is here again, and what a beautiful day it is! First up the Book Blogger Hop hosted by Jennifer at crazy-for-books.com, and Follow Friday with parajunkee.com. Later I've got an author interview for you so please take a look.

Jennifer's question this week is: “Share your favorite post from the last month and tell us why it’s close to your heart!” I think that would have to be my post of May 5th, Finding Time. I don't post a lot on here that isn't a review or Q&A but that was posted during deaf awareness week and if anyone took the time to look at the links provided and have become a little more deaf aware I'll be very happy.

Over at Parajunkee's View the question is What are you doing to prepare for an upcoming zombie apocalypse and/or the return of Mel Gibson to the silver screen? (Both of which could be terrifying.) to which my answer would be absolutely nothing (on both counts) Sorry, not very exciting I know!
It's a beautiful day again here today, so I'm planning a nice weekend of fresh air and fun in the sun, hope everyone else has a great weekend. Thanks for hopping on by! TCx
 

Book Blogger Hop & Follow Friday

This week has felt like a long one, so I'm glad Friday is finally here. With 2 weeks off work, a camping trip with family and my scuba refresher course coming up it's shaping up to be a good fortnight! As usual I'm joining in with Jennifer and Parajunkee, to find great blogs and chat to others, so here are this week's questions:


At crazy-for-books.com Jennifer is asking "If you were given the chance to spend one day in a fictional world (from a book), which book would it be from and what would that place be?"

Oooh, this is hard! Plenty of places spring to mind but they are real places. I could go for the obvious and say Hogwarts but that is just too obvious. I'll have to think some more on this one.

At Parajunkee.com "It's circle time. Time for us to open up and share. Can you tell us FIVE quirky habits or things about you? We all have them..."

5? Right, let me think...I don't have a lot of quirky habits (at least I don't think so) so mainly things about me.

1) I talk to myself. A lot. All the time. It's great having a little person, you don't look quite so nuts as people assume you're talking to them. I was very pleased to read recently that talking to yourself is good for you, your mental health in particular. Apparently it helps reduce stress.

2) I'm a bit obssessive about checking whether I remembered to lock the car. I'll be 100m down the road and manage to convince myself I didn't lock it, then have to go back and check (sometimes more than once) Not sure why I'm so paranoid about it.

3) I really want another tattoo, one made up of 3 elements to represent hubby, Monkey and I, but I can't decide what to have done. I've been thinking about it since I got pregnant, but still no joy.

4) I'm learning British Sign Language. I absolutely love the logic behind a lot of the signs and one day I'd like to get the formal qualifications. My parents are also learning and they think it's great that they can communicate by sign through the window to one another.

5) I love Farmville on Facebook. I spend far too much time tending my farm and my husband thinks I'm bonkers, but I know I'm not alone

Thanks for dropping on by, have a great weekend everyone!

Good to be back!

Phew, it's good to have Blogger back, what was going on there then? Typically it goes down when I have 2 reviews to write and I'm looking forward to FF & the Blog Hop! Hey ho, just let's hope it's fully fixed now. I lost one post that was only partly saved in Drafts but hoiked it over from Goodreads and all is well again.

No word from Parajunkee or Jennifer yet so I'll add the memes later.
EDIT: It's later, so here's the blog hop:

Over at crazy-for-books.com the question is  

Are you going to Book Expo America (BEA) and/or the Book Blogger Convention (BBC) this year?

I'm assuming both are based in the States, I'm not aware of similar in the UK, so no I'm not going to either. To be quite honest while they sound interesting and a great way to meet people my holiday time is limited and I'd rather be somewhere sunny, diving.

And at parajunkee.com  - The Blogger Apocalypse made me a little emotional. What is the most emotional scene in a book that you have read lately?

I don't often cry reading books, so the only example I can think of is a scene towards the end of a book called Richard Wilde by Mary Fitzgerald. I loved the book, and I did have a bit of a blub!

I had a nice little trip to the library earlier and found myself dithering over which books to borrow and how many. I've got a few review copies that need attention first, so no point going overboard. In the end I plumped for Solar by Ian McEwan and Blue Shoes and Happiness from the No 1 Ladies Detective Agency series. I haven't read any of the others and I know now that this is the 7th book, but it's only a little library and they only had 2 of them so it was a random pick. These will be the next books towards ShelleyRae's Borrowed Book Challenge over at Book'd Out (there's a link to the challenge on my sidebar for anyone who wants to find out more)

I'm off now to sort out those reviews, have a great weekend everyone!

Book Blogger Hop & Follow Friday

It's the beginning of the weekend, so it must be time for some book blog visiting!

First up, the Book Blogger Hop, hosted by Jen at Crazy-for-Books.com. Her question this week is:

Which book blogger would you most like to meet in real life?

This is a hard question, there are some really nice people I've met on blogs but none I know well yet on a personal level. I think it would be great to meet up with anyone with similar tastes who is happy to talk books though. As a sensible adult of course if I was going to meet up with someone I'd met online I'd be meeting them in a public place to start with, and letting someone else know who I was meeting, where and when first, be safe people!

And moving on to Follow Friday, hosted at Parajunkee.com the question is

What character in a book would you most like to be, what character in a book would you most like to date?

Oooh, that's a goodie. I think I'd quite like to be a character in a Jane Austen book. The women of that period might not have had as much freedom as we do now, but for a woman of means life sounded pretty sweet. Alternatively I'd like to be a kick-arse character like Jaclyn Johnson in Sean Sweeney's Model Agent. I always thought Lara Croft was cool and she's probably the closest character I've found in fiction.

Who would I date? I've always had a soft spot for Dirk Pitt Jr, from Clive Cussler's Dirk Pitt/NUMA novels. He's good looking, athletic and adventurous and has a good brain too. Almost sounds too good to be true, so a few dates might help find out whether the guy has anything wrong with him.

Thanks for visiting my blog, I love to read people's comments so please say Hi, and have a great weekend!

Follow Friday & Book Blogger Hop

This week has been one of those good day/bad day mixes. The particularly good days were the ones I had off work, today which is my wedding anniversary and a family day out on Mon. The not so good days were yesterday, when I had a tooth out under sedation and today as I'm still feeling a bit woozy and definitely sore. Hopefully it'll soon be healing though.

On the book front I've read a few over the last week and a bit later I'll be bringing you a Q&A with the author of one of those book - Scratch - Danny Gillan. And I'll be really happy if I make it to 100+ followers today, am sitting at 98 right now and that would feel like a huge milestone for my little blog. For now, moving on to Follow Friday...

Over at Parajunkee's the question is:

Do you have anyone that you can discuss books with IRL? Tell us about him/her.

The only person I really discuss books with is my Dad. He loves to read too although his tastes aren't quite as wide as mine, so we only tend to talk about and share action, thriller and crime novels. I used to have a colleague who would chat about books, we'd suggest new authors to each other but she's retired now.

Usually I join in the Blog Hop, but not entirely sure what's going on with that, no Hop last weekend but then a midweek one and no indication of whether this weeks will be posted later or not. Will keep an eye and update later if it is posted.


Yeay, we now have a question or rather an activity!

Pick a character from a book you are currently reading or have just finished and tell us about him/her.

I have just finished the 4th book in Stephen Harper's King's X series (will review it later) I love the character Wendell Book. He's a vice cop, but hasn't been on the job long enough to be jaded. He's tough but cares about the people he meets on the job. During the series he has to deal with some massive, life changing revelations including what happened to his dad before he died. Yet at the same time he's looking out for teen runaway Molly. I'm just sad I've finished the first part of the series, the bright light being that Stephen has promised more King's X installments!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Friday has taken me by surprise!

I have just realised with a start that it's Friday, so that's made me happy - especially as it's a beautiful day and I'm off work next week. I think I was thrown by changing my work days this week, I'm easily confused! Of course Friday means meme time for me, thanks as always to Parajunkee and Jennifer for running Follow Friday and the Book Blogger Hop. The Hop has been delayed until later (probably tonight for me, so will update as soon as I can) but for now here's FF.


This week's question is:

Do you judge a book by its cover?

When I was mostly reading physical books I'd have said the answer was no, I'd look at the author and the blurb, browsing the shop by genre. When I got my kindle I thought as the picture was small and black and white that they'd be even less relevant. However I've found that browsing the kindle store I look at the covers first and foremost, make instant judgements about what sort of book it is and only pay much attention, going on to look at the product page of the ones that catch my eye.

I do love striking art, my walls are covered with water colours, prints and photos, and I think this is one of my fave covers, I have picked the book off my shelf in the past just to look at it.

Book Blogger Hop and Follow Friday

My fave day of the week has rolled around again astonishingly quickly (yeay, means work is out of the way for another few days!) so it's that time of the week, to meet other blogs, find out what they have to say on certain questions and to nose at other blogs.

First up, with thanks to Parajunkee, Follow Friday. The question is: What is the book that you really don't want to admit to loving?? 

I think the answer to that has to be the Red Dwarf books by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor. I have one of those in particular that has almost fallen apart from repeated reading as they're so funny. I don't usually admit to loving them because they come from a TV series and it seems a bit lame when there's so much amazing literature out there.

And moving on to the Hop:

 Since today is April Fool's Day in the USA, what is the best prank you have ever played on someone OR that someone has played on you?

Honestly I barely notice April Fools day, it's the same date here and even as a kid it was something I never really bothered with. I'm sure my sister and I did some of the stupid kiddie pranks but it's not really my thing. I hope you guys have better stories than me!

Follow Friday and the Book Blogger Hop

It's a beautiful sunny day and it's a Friday, so shaping up to be a good day. After a break last week while I was visiting family I'm back to the meme fun. First up Follow Friday hosted by Parajunkee.com -

Q. Inspired by the inane twitter trend of #100factsaboutme, give us five BOOK RELATED silly facts about you.

Ooh, this is hard, can't think of much that's particularly interesting or silly but I'll have a go!

1) The only books I can remember starting but not finishing are Don Quixote by Cervantes and Ulysses by James Joyce.

2) I am completely besotted with my kindle, it goes everywhere with me and having raved about it I know a few other people who have bought one.

3) My influence must be rubbing off on my daughter, at 17 mths old her 4th word was Book.

4) Although I never really read them I have loads of beautiful coffee table books on natural history and the marine environment, I love the gorgeous pictures.

5) I have one book in my collection I haven't read but love to look at and smell - a rather delicate leatherbound version of The Pickwick Papers from the early 1900s. If modern mass produced paperbacks were as wonderful I might have had a hard time switching to the kindle.

And from Jennifer at Crazy-for-books.com

"If you could physically put yourself into a book or series…which one would it be and why?"

Now this one is easy, I don't think I'll be alone but I wish I had received a letter from Hogwarts as a kid so it's got to be Harry Potter!

Thanks for visiting my blog, and have a great weekend.

TC

Book Blogger Hop & Follow Friday

The only good thing about days going by so quickly is that you get back to the weekend sooner! Once again it's time to link up with other book bloggers, thanks to Jennifer at crazy-for-books.com and Parajunkee at parajunkee.com. Here are the questions -


"If I gave you £50 (or $80) and sent you into a bookshop right now, what would be in your basket when you finally staggered to the till?"


I don't really buy physical books anymore, I prefer my kindle, but if I was being given vouchers for a bookstore I'd stock up with some that are pricier or not available as e-books. I'd like to pick up some more Val McDermid, want to finally get my hands on The Hunger Games having read so much about the series, Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer caught my eye when it was featured on TV recently, I could go on for ages, I'd be over-excited (but possibly also disappointed at how far the money would stretch now I'm used to free and cheap reads!

Who are You the Girl instead of You the Blogger?

Let's see, I'm in my early 30s, a mum of one (a gorgeous 16mth old girl) and wife of one! As far as pets go we just have two budgies - they're great fun to have around. I work a couple of days a week to keep my brain working properly, and spend the rest of my time in a complete whirlwind. When I'm not reading I love being outdoors, I live a 2 minute walk from the beach so can often be found wandering along the seafront. While I'm walking I'm usually wishing the sea here was warmer and the water was clearer so I could indulge in a bit of scuba diving without having to travel abroad. Although it's taken a backseat now I enjoy photography, especially taking snaps of the natural world.

Thanks for visiting the blog, if you have time to look around, especially at my latest author Q&A, that'd be great. Have a wonderful weekend!

It's the weekend! Follow Friday & Book Blogger Hop time.

I missed the fun last week, I was meant to be away but came down with flu so spent most of last weekend resting up in bed. Normal service is now resumed though, so here are this week's questions for my two fave memes.

On the hop, hosted by Jennifer at crazy-for-books.com the question is:

 "Who's your all-time favorite book villain?"

The first villain who sprung to mind for me was Hannibal Lecter, of Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal fame. He is just so creepy and evil, with such a cool facade and some of the best lines. I was quite young when I read the first two Thomas Harris books that feature him so I guess he made an even bigger impression!

No question yet at parajunkee.com, so I'll be back to that later! EDIT - Here we are:

What embarassing thing have you done on cold medicine?

I can't think of anything bad on cold meds but remember when I was still at school I'd torn something in my shoulder and was given some meds for pain relief. Problem was they kept making me fall asleep. As if that wasn't embarassing enough after it happened a couple of times in class my tutor took me to one side for a talk, asking me if I was taking illegal substances.

I hope you have time to look around my blog while you're here and please take a look at my latest author Q&A with Stephen Harper. Have a great weekend everyone

Book Blogger Hop & Follow Friday

It's my favourite day of the week again, no work until next week, a couple of memes to join in with and I've got a new author interview for you. Unfortunately I won't be out to play next Friday, visiting family, so I'll just have to make the most of it this week!

Parajunkee hosts Follow Friday, providing a great feature each week and getting book bloggers together. This week's question is :

If you are a fan of Science Fiction what is your favorite book? If you haven't read Science Fiction before...any inkling to? Anything catch your eye?

Got to admit Sci Fi isn't really my thing, although I'll dip a toe into any genre if I find a book that tempts me. In the past I have read a few Iain M Banks novels but they didn't set my world on fire. If it makes any sense I don't mind books with a leaning towards to sci-fi but I'm not into the full on ones.

The Book Blogger Hop isn't available on crazy-for-books.com as I type, so more of that later. EDIT: The post has finally appeared and this week's question is - What book(s) would you like to see turned into a movie?

That's a hard one, there are lots of books with good plots for a film but how well they convert over I don't know. I could see Mary McDonald's No Good Deed making a good film with someone like Matt Damon playing Mark Taylor. With the recent taste for nostalgia I could see Richard Wilde by Mary Fitzgerald making a good family saga type film too.