11. Honour - Elif Shafak ★★★★
I fell head over heels into this book and immersed myself with the characters from the very first page. They were honest, real and relatable. The story followed the lives of many people and generations spread across London and Turkey and Elif Shafak connected me, as the reader, to all of them. I felt their happiness and sadness with them.
I liked how the book explored a crime from both the victim and the perpetrators points of view, I found my opinions of both changing a lot throughout the pages. I did find the switching from past to present and between characters a little confusing at times although it didn't distract too much from the story and it was a fantastic read that I would recommend to anyone.
12. The Devil and Miss Prym - Paul Coelho ★★★★
'The Devil and Miss Prym' was based on a moral, and often religious, debate about good and evil. It explored the idea that we, as humans, are all innately evil and that it would take the right bribe, offer or threat to bring out our true selves. It was a very interesting read that explored the subject well and concisely and left me thinking about the ideas it raised for days after I'd finished reading.
13. When God was a Rabbit - Sarah Winman ★★★★
The book and it's characters were rather quirky and I found that I warmed to them pretty quickly. It explored so many difficult topics including death, abuse, sexuality and eccentricity and it did so in a fascinating way that didn't make me, as the reader, feel too uncomfortable reading it. The book was wonderful and I particularly enjoyed how it followed the close relationship of a Brother and Sister who find each other in a difficult world, lose each other after a horrifying event and fight hard to get each other back.
14. Girl with a One-Track Mind - Abby Lee ★★★
Overall I rather liked 'Girl with a One-Track Mind.' It was slightly different to read a book written in the form of/from a diary (somewhat like Bridget Jones' Diary) but it worked well and Abby's honesty drew me in. Yes, there was a lot of sex. Sometimes it was a little too much; I wanted to read a bit more about Abby and connect with the character/writer a little more but this is primarily a diary and secondly a book so it's never going to capture a character and all their quirks like a novel does. It was an interesting read and Abby led us through all of her sexual adventures (including all the, sometimes, gory details) and while she explored what she did and didn't like. I thought it was a good read but I think I prefer a saucy novel with a little more storyline to hold it up.
15. The Dead Heart - Douglas Kennedy ★★★★★
Loved it! It was a brilliant read; written superbly and carrying a fantastic storyline that included just enough humour to balance out the quite terrifying side of the book. Some parts were really rather gruesome but it added so much to the storyline and made the ending quite a fast paced, page turning frantic read to find out what was going to happen. I thought it was great and would definitely recommend it. I'll also be keeping my eyes peeled for other Douglas Kennedy novels.
16. Left Bank - Kate Muir ★★★
Set in glamorous Paris this book had all the elements to be fantastic but it just didn't quite deliver. It was a good read and I did enjoy it but it's not one I'd go back to or recommend. I think it stemmed from the massively unlikeable characters who were very self-obsessed and, at times, vile towards each other and their Daughter Sabine. It made it difficult to connect to the main characters. If you're looking for a book that encapsulates Paris I'd look elsewhere.
17. The Bonesetter's Daughter - Amy Tan ★★★★
Amy Tan tells a fascinating story filled with magic, love and suffering. We start with Ruth and her widowed Mother LuLing and their awkward relationship but as Ruth starts to uncover the truth about her Mother's past, so do we, and it is filled with difficulty, heartache and resilience. It was a wonderful read.
18. We Need to Talk About Kevin - Lionel Shriver ★★★★★
As a Parent this book scared the heck out of me. We follow Kevin, a mass murderer who killed 9 people just before his 16th Birthday, and his Mother all the way from before he was conceived, through his birth, childhood and adolescence up to his committing of the crime and his prison time. The story follows their awkward relationship and is written through the eyes of Kevin's Mother in letter's addressed to Frankin, his Father. It is a wonderful book that made me return to the 'nature vs nurture' debate and question where people are inherently evil. It also made me query his Mother's viewpoint; was Kevin really as she described and only she saw the real him? Or was it that she always saw, and brought out, the worst in him?
19. Atlantic Shift - Emily Barr ★★★★
Evie Silver is a rather unlikeable main character that decides to ditch her boring Husband for adventure and excitement and ends up finding herself somewhere very different indeed. With a big secret to hide and an ever more disturbing postal stalker Evie soon has a lot more to think about than her celebrity status, breaking America and her Husband and we follow her on the trail of it all. A good, well written read.
20. The First Assistant - Clare Naylor & Mimi Hare ★★★
Clare Naylor and Mimi Hare have come together to create a great chick-lit read set in the glamorous world of the Red Carpet, where not everything is as beautiful and glittering as it appears. Lizzie comes across many pitfalls and roadblocks on her journey, that are met with enough humour to balance out the rubbish luck she seems to be experiencing, but in true, chick-lit fashion everything seems to fall into place for her. It was an okay book, a generic chick-lit read but I did enjoy it and it kept me turning the pages.
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