Review ~ One Hundred Names - Cecilia Ahern

ARC paperback received from Harper Collins in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: 4th July 2013

Publisher: Harper Collins

Description:
Everyone has a story to tell...Journalist Kitty Logan's career has been destroyed by scandal, and she now faces losing the woman who guided her and taught her everything she knew. At her mentor's bedside, Kitty asks her - what is the one story she always wanted to write? The answer lies in a file buried in Constance's office: a list of one hundred names. There is no synopsis, nothing to explain what the story is or who these people are. The list is simply a mystery. But before Kitty can talk to her friend, it is too late. With everything to prove, Kitty is assigned the most important task of her life - to write the story her mentor never had the opportunity to. Kitty has to not only track down and meet the people on the list, but find out what connects them. And, in the process of hearing ordinary people's stories, she uncovers Constance's - and starts to understand her own...

My Opinion

When this came in the mail I did groan slightly, I really didn't want to read it after previous books by Cecilia Ahern are still left on my shelf unfinished. Her writing is really not for me - or so I thought - so I was hesitant to start reading this. The premise did catch my attention though so I took a gamble on it and even though it took a while for it to win me over by the end I think it just about did it and I was glad I stuck with it.

One Hundred Names did have some interesting and thought provoking sections about life stories and how you view yourself which were developed throughout the novel with increasing intensity as the plot moved on. Like I said, I went in with a preconceived idea about this book and didn't expect to like it so it was a nice surprise to find that I found it an interesting concept with some beautifully written sections. 

I could feel for Kitty and although I didn't agree with her situation and sometimes she was slightly irritating I liked how her character developed. She transformed nicely and by the end I could engage with her. As well as this the people she talked to were my favourite part. They were created brilliantly and I could really engage and connect with them as I found out about their life with drip-fed information - which was also something I liked, there wasn't much info-dumping. We were given the information in small chunks which kept you reading as you wanted to know more.

The main thing that kept me reading this book was the mystery about what linked all the people and what the story was about. From past experience I could guess the main theme and as much as I wanted some secret society, scandal or big cover up I knew there wouldn't be due to Cecilia's writing style. Ahern did a good job of concealing the real story until the end though and the last few chapters were definitely my favourite; the relationships in those sections really worked for me.

Although I liked the build up when the big reveal happened I couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed. I knew it wasn't going to be something big, but rather something subtle with a meaning but I couldn't help but wish for the link we are lead to believe is there. As well as this I couldn't help but feel some stories are left incomplete and didn't give me full closure or a proper resolution - especially Kitty's. Some character's stories ended brilliantly, like Birdies but others I wanted to know more.

The only other thing I didn't like was I did find some bit were incredibly slow and did drag on with excessive description. I found myself skimming some paragraphs or even chapters as I felt the information was too much, slightly predictable or not necessary. 

Overall though I'm glad I gave this book a chance. I'm not sure I will be rushing out to buy or try Cecilia's other books but it's definitely taught me not to go into reading a book with preconceived ideas. This was a simple read with some great moments and likeable characters that was an easy read to relax with on a sunny day.

3.5

                               

Review ~ Lessons in French - Hilary Reyl (ARC)

Paperback received from HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review

Expected Release Date:  1st June 2013
Publisher: HarperCollins

Description
First love: first heartbreak. First job: first nightmare boss. A seductive coming-of-age tale set in the most romantic city on earth.

Fresh out of university and determined to dream big, Kate can hardly believe her luck when she lands a job as a ‘little-bit-of-everything’ to the world famous photo-journalist Lydia Schell. Better still, the job is in Paris, and her guide to the most romantic city on earth is the handsome Olivier. The Berlin Wall is about to come tumbling down, and the world feels full of possibility.

But the oh-so-charming Lydia turns out to be the boss from hell. The ‘little-bit-of-everything’ includes collecting under-the-counter diet pills and walking a flatulent dog round the rainy streets of the sixth arrondissement. And the gorgeous Olivier? He happens to be dating Lydia’s daughter…

As the two worlds of her disastrous job and exciting flirtation look set to collide, Kate is about to get a fast education in the French approach to having it all.

My Opinion

When I got this book in the post I was really excited to start reading it. The cover looked interesting like a sweet romance, something I would like - and I really did want to like this book even though I couldn't bring myself to by the end of it. No matter how much I wished I could engage with the book and grow to love it I just couldn't.

The main thing I struggled with while reading this book was the language. The author seemed to use too many words to describe something insignificant where, for example she could have said it in four. Because of this there was massive paragraphs of description that left me bored as the story moved along too slowly. As well as this the author appeared to go from one extreme to the other in terms of description and parts I actually wanted to read about were skipped with an off the cuff comment for example "We had sex." There was no description - and I don't mean graphic detail - but there wasn't even a romantic build up and at times the author seemed to state facts rather than show the audience what she meant, allowing them to visualise it. 

Due to this fact, I did find it very hard to connect with the characters. They felt stiff and unrealistic, especially Kate who seemed incapable of being able to think for herself. I mean it took her the whole book to figure something out that really wasn't that hard. The family she lives with are shallow and just as irritating as they make her run after their every whim. I don't know if this disconnection was down to the lack of detail and jumpy style of writing but I really felt nothing for the characters - I just found myself not caring either way.

As well as this the author used random French phrases throughout the novel and although this gave the book an authentic quality I found them slightly pointless and irritating. For one, I dropped French when I was fourteen so struggling with pronunciation made me just skip the sections in French as they detracted from the flow too much. Also I did find myself questioning what their point was as it seemed at times like a way to add extra words as the author would have to translate some of the phrases after. For me it didn't make sense to have them if they just had to be translated.

The book did however pick up slightly about three quarters of the way in (a little late, but better late than never right?). The writing began to flow better and so did the speech, especially when Kate and Oliver were together. It seemed more natural and even though I was dying for there to be more romance, I was able to read these sections without skipping parts, which is why I put my rating up to two stars.

Overall I got to the end of the book and no matter how much I wanted to like it I ended up feeling I had just wasted a lot of my time. This book did sound like 'The Devil Wears Prada' from the description but it didn't really go anywhere. There was a lack of actual romance and heartbreak and the characters were impossible to engage with, especially when apart. There was one redeeming quality but for me it wasn't enough for me to wish I had stopped reading when I first got bored as it didn't pick up enough for me to change my attitude towards it.