The Perks of Being a Wallflower

I just finished reading this book and have to tell you, I feel the urge to pick up again and reread it! Yes, this book is that good!

I loved the fact that we were reading the letters written by Charlie and that we got to understand how he saw the world, his perspective and how he dealt with issues that at the age of fifteen mean the world to us. Charlie is definitely a special character; he's naive and true to himself  and even though he was exposed to a lot of things - sex, drugs, alcohol, among others - he always remained genuine and didn't become a completely different person. I also liked his relationship with Bill, his English teacher, and how important books and reading were to him during his journey on this book.

I really enjoyed the fact that it was about real people and that it was the kind of story that dealt with a lot of the issues that we have to deal with throughout our teen years (mostly); it made the story a lot more realistic.

This book was everything I was expecting it to be and more! It captivated me, it fascinated me, it made me laugh, it made me think ... overall, it was intense! A must read! 

5 out of 5 stars

Perfect Chemistry

“Two different worlds. One true love”

After reading this and seeing the cover of this book I kind of knew what I was getting myself into. I knew this was going to be the typical love story between two teenagers that belonged to different and never should have fallen in love with each but, surprise surprise (or not) …. they did!

I’ll admit, the book was entertaining and I couldn’t put it down; I flew through the pages and I actually delayed all the work I had to do just to finish the book. Yes, it’s incredibly cheesy and it’s filled with all the clichés that we’ve all grown to love but sometimes we just need to read something like that. There were times I said to myself “Oh God, I can’t believe you used that cheesy line!” but I just couldn’t put the book down!!

It’s not brilliantly written and the characters aren’t that special but this is like when you’re on a diet but you’re really craving for chocolate or candy – you know  you shouldn’t  and that there are better options but you just can’t help yourself and you pick it up any way because you know you’re going to enjoy it!!

4 out of 5 stars 

Read in November

Night Flight

My Aunt Margaret's Mirror (included The Highland Widow)

The Shining

Let me just start by saying that this was not only my first horror book but also my first novel by Stephen King. This book had been sitting on my bookshelf for years but last week I finally decided it was time to get out of my comfort zone and read something different, from a genre and an author that I didn't know that well.

I think there was something addictive about this book because there were moments when I couldn't put it down! I loved how the plot kept building up and getting more complex and how the characters developed. But I also have to mention the hotel where the whole story took place because, for me, that was one of the strongest points of the book;  I think it was really interesting the way this place was almost personified - to a certain extent, it actually was - and how it influenced the characters' behavior. There were times I felt that the hotel was practically one of the main characters of the book!!

I have to say that even though we had well written characters with very specific traits and complicated backgrounds that made them stood out, what really surprised me was how powerful this family was as a unit, how they tried to overcome, together, the harsh period they were going through, how they hoped for better times.

I haven't seen the movie adaptation yet but I'm planning on doing it soon, especially because I've heard great things about it; however, some people have pointed out that it's different from the book but just as good, so I'm really curious about it.

I have to say, overall this book was a surprise because I wasn't expecting to like it  as much as I did! There were some creepy moments that actually scared me but I wanted to know - so badly - what was going to happen next that I just kept going. I would definitely recommend this book. 

4 out of 5 stars

I selected this post to be featured on my blog’s page at Book Review Blogs.

Quote of the week #6

“It is a good rule after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between.”

C. S. Lewis

Think of a Number

When I read the synopsis of this book I was like "I have to read it!"; the fact that a stranger could guess - on a letter - a randomly picked number from 0 to 1000 grabbed my attention! This seemed different from what I had already read within the crime/mystery genre.

For me, the strongest point of the book was the fact that it was really focused on the criminal investigation and didn't dwell too much on personal issues. However, by the end of the book I couldn't help but feel that it had been taken to an extreme; there were some issues regarding Gurney's (main characters) personal life that deserved some development.

Unfortunately there were some other issues with this book: I think there were some inconsistencies regarding the serial killer - his method didn't seem solid and sufficiently coherent, which ended up damaging the credibility of the plot (at least to a certain extent) - and some moments were a bit dry, especially during Gurney's self examinations.

I'm not particularly fascinated by this book but I'll be checking out the second instalment of this serie.  

3 out of 5 stars

An Unfinished Portrait

I’ve always been really curious about Agatha Christie’s work as Mary Westmacott so I decided to start by reading An Unfinished Portrait.

First of all let me just say that I’ve always been a great fan of her work and for that reason my expectations towards this book were high - unfortunately they weren’t met. I didn’t like the main character – thought she was too submissive and naïve – and the writing was a bit dry. The plot wasn’t that appealing; I kept hopping that something interesting would happen but it didn’t.

Reading this book was a bit of a challenge but I managed to finish it; I wouldn’t recommend it, especially if you more accustomed to her crime novels.

2 out of 5 stars