Book Fairy Event; Princess Diaries Novellas discovery!

Hi everyone! Recently I have just finished reading the four Princess Diary Novellas I found out about before christmas on the internet. If you, like me, are a huge fan of Mia and her hilarious rom com stories then I seriously recommend you read these! I know that you can read one of them online for definite, but if you want to buy them you have to order them from America. They are; Project Princess (between books 4 and 5), Valentine Princess (Mia disvovers her old journal from hers and Michaels first Valentines Day, aww), The Princess Present (Lilly and Michael come to Genovia for Christmas) and Sweet Sixteen Princess (Mia's 16th birthday). All are funny reads and will surely satisfy the most frantic Princess Diaries fan. You have been told, so go read and enjoy! Happy reading from RedHead :)

Finale

Hi all, hope you all had a great Christmas! I finally remembered to do this much needed post, so here it is! Finale, by Becca Fitzpatrick, is the final book in the amazing Hush Hush series. Filled with unexpected (and very powerful) plot twists and a few teary moments, I think it's safe to say this book is by far the most dramatic in the series. It starts with the same problem as Silence sends us off with; Nora is the new Nephil leader, but happens to be madly in love with their enemy, a fallen angel (Patch). Nora is constantly fighting for about the first half of the book to keep a balance between her new title as leader, and as Patch's girlfriend. I can't go into too much detail without ruining the plot twists, but lets just say that Nora is going through tough times. Dabbling in devilcraft, hiding her relationship with Patch from the Nephil leaders, having Marcie move in with her... Yeah, Nora has a tough old time in this book! Brief note on the plot twists; they are so unexpected and so dramatic there is no way you'll guess what will happen next. It's a VERY exciting read, that keeps you on edge pretty much throughout. Personally, I don't think Becca Fitzpatrick could have ended this epic series in any other way. Yeah, some parts I do wish hadn't happened, but that's because I'm a reader who will cry at anything (those of you who read this will understand what I mean!) I rate this a shiny 4 stars, and recommend for teen readers who have read the first three, obviously. I say, thanks Becca for a great series, can't wait to read what you write next!

Book Fairy Event; a promise and a question

Hello all Book Heaven readers! It's been a while since I last posted (for some reason the manic christmas rush has already begun for me!) and I have been neglecting my blog! I hereby promise to post my review of Finale by Becca Fitzpatrick very soon, even though its months later than it should have been done *blush*! I also have two questions for my readers; 1) Is a weekly "book club" really needed? (I dont really think so) And 2) Can anyone think of a christmas fictional book, aside from old Scrooge? I can only think of films, and I want to READ something festive! All suggestions and answers are much appreciated! Thank you, and enjoy your countdown to Christmas! RedHead :)

The Girl You Left Behind

The Girl You Left Behind by Jojo Moyes was one of the best books I have ever read. Its combination of the past and the present (cleverly linked) and an addictive story line will render you unable to put the book down. Jojo Moyes has an amazing writing style which keeps you hooked until the very last page.

The Girl You Left Behind features two main women, one named Sophie who lives in 1916 in German occupied France (in St Péronne) and one named Liv who lives in 2006 in London. Their very different lives are linked by one factor; a portrait of Sophie that was painted by Sophie's husband Edouard.

Sophie's life is one of struggle and hope. Edouard has already gone to fight at the Front, and now Sophie and her sister Hélene are having to serve Germans in the hotel they run. In St Péronne anyone seen to be positive towards the German oppressors are shunned, so Sophie constantly has to find the balance between being polite yet still hostile to her unwelcome German guests. The German Kommandant becomes fiaxted with Sophies portrait, and his behaivour to Sophie becomes much more friendly. Soon Sophie comes face to face with an option that risks everything, but that could ultimatley reunite her with her beloved Edouard...

Liv's life is one of routine and trying to forget. Her husband is dead after a short marraige, and in that marriage they bought Sophie's portrait. The painting, in many ways, symbolises Liv and her husbands short yet sweet life as a couple. After somehow managing to aquire a new room-mate, and discovering a potential new love, the painting is suddenly revealed as something uch more important than an impulse buy. Liv's new romance is threatened, as is her possession of the painting, and whilst trying to win the fight to keep it, a sisnister and passionate history is revealed...

The blurb of the books says; 'In The Girl You Lef Behind two young women, separated by a century, are united in their determination to fight for the thing they love most- whatever the cost.'
That one sentence basically summarises the book, but it cannot tell you the power and the emotion of the actual story. You can only discover that by reading the book, which I seriously reccommend you do.

Age: Teenager +
Rating: A full five shiny stars

Book Heaven Book Club; Crowfield Curse

Hi all readers, sorry that this is a day late! This weeks book has been suggested by a reader and its the Crowfield Curse. I don't know a thing about this book, but I am starting to read it tomorrow! Remember, lasts weeks book is still open for disscussion, and please read and rate this weeks book. Use you library! Thanks all, from RedHead

Book Heaven Book Club; Hush Hush

Those of you who are familiar with Book Heaven will know that i love Becca Fitzpatricks Hush Hush series, so this weeks book is the first in the series; Hush Hush. The next book will be decided next Thursday, but that doesn't mean the discussions end! They will always be open, and I will reply to all, I promise! :) Suggestions for next weeks book are wanted! Have fun reading, and use your library! From RedHead

The Classics Challenge; Wuthering Heights

Its a little funny that this will be my first post on one of the classics! I will admit to everyone now that I am not someone who reads all the classics. I know, its awful really, especially as I love reading and books. I am more or a modern classics girl myself; Birdsong, Flambards, all the really new must reads too like Twilight, and The Hunger Games. The truth is that I love and read all genres, but I am sadly lacking in the classics! So, a little while ago, I decided I would slowly work through the classics. My first choice was Wuthering Heights. Emily Bronte did a pretty good job! Wuthering Heights has a reputation for being a melancholy, dark, twisted romance between two people with serious faults in their personalities. At first, I will admit, I was confused and a little bored, probably because I didn't get what was going on. Then suddenly it all became clear, and I couldn't put the book down! Heathcliff and Cathy's love is very confusing. They scream and hate each other, but you can tell they are trying so hard to hate and not love, because of pride and bad feeling, that it ends up being impossible to ignore. Wuthering Heights is hard to post about because it is so complex, and nothing really makes sense taken out of the books context. When you start to read it, you might find it a struggle. But it will a suddenly click into place, and then you will be hooked until you finish it. Its not too long, promise! Join in with my mission to read the classics, and feel free to comment on what classic you've read. I will get through them all! Start with Wuthering Heights, though. Its amazing. (Classics I have read to date; the Sherlock Holmes Books, Wuthering Heights, Anne of Green Gables, Railway Children,Little Women, Pride and Predjudice, Importance of Being Earnest, Jane Eyre, maybe a few more. Join me on my Classics Challenge and tell me and other readers your opinions in comments! Thankyou! From RedHead)

Must-read blog; Head In The Clouds...

Hi to all my readers, this is a little recommendation for another blog that you might enjoy if you like Book Heaven! As all keen readers will know, imagination goes hand in hand with reading or writing. Crazygirl's blog is the imagination, the daydreaming, and I personally think it's a great read. Head in the Clouds is still in its early stages, so please give it support and comments, nothing is better than a load of comments on a blog! Please visit; http://www.carrieangel99sheadintheclouds.blogspot.com :) Thank you for all your lovely comments, much appreciated!

Dizzy

Dizzy, written by the amazing author Cathy Cassidy, is a real old favourite of mine. It's just one of those books that, no matter how many times you read it, you still gasp, laugh, cry and want to read it all again. Cathy Cassidy has an amazing way with words. You can tell that she's an author who loves writing, and consequently you end up loving her stories!
Dizzy was released a while ago, but I feel compelled to write about it because, even a few years after the first time I read it, I still love it and I think everyone should read it!

The book starts on Dizzy's 12th birthday. Dizzy lives with her Dad in Birmingham, has four great friends and is pretty happy with life. She isn't fussed about what she gets for her birthday, or what she'll do to celebrate it. What she is fussed about is much more serious than that. Her birthday is the one time of year that she ever hears from her Mum. A postcard, a letter, a rag doll, a floppy hat, a dreamcatcher... they're all things sent to Dizzy from her Mum who left when she was four. She went away to tour the world and live the free life of a hippy traveller, going to festivals and living a life of freedom, leaving Dizzy and her Dad to try and get on with life.

This year, Dizzy doesn't get anything from her Mum in the post. Instead something amazing turns up right on her doorstep, and she is whisked away on a summer adventure filled with festivals, fun, and freedom, all alongside broken promises and scary truths.
Laugh, cry and follow Dizzy through the summer that will never be forgotten.

I am not lying when I say this book is amazing. It may not be some clever mystery novel, or a chilling horror, or a big fat classic written a hundred years ago. It is, however, a lovely book that you won't want to put down. Cathy Cassidy writes in such a way that lets you feel her characters emotions and see what they are seeing. It will stay with you forever.

Ages 9+, probably more a girls book but not unsuitable for boys, a fabulous five stars and a big READ IT NOW from this RedHead!
P.S After you've read this fab story, read its sequel 'Lucky Star', which follows the story of the character Mouse after the events of Dizzy! You will love it!!!

Books vs. Films

After reading peoples comments on posts on this blog, I have decided to see what peoples opinions are on the battle between books and films! Which is better? I personally veer towards books, but films are pretty good too! If a film is like the book, eg. The first harry potter, then its great! If the film is not pretending to be like the book, like the princess diaries 2, thens its great! But if it just changes everything then its NOT good! (Eg. The teenage drama queen film, i didnt like it!) Opinions and recomendations for great books/films are much appreciated!

The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot

Mia Thermopolis is an ordinary 14 year old living in New York. Getting through the day without suffering from excessive embarassment is hard enough; her mum is dating her algebra teacher, she is flunking algebra, her best friend Lilly is bossy, Michael (Lillys elder brother) is kinda hot and Lana (total nasty/popular girl) constantly makes cutting comments about her lack of chest. Then things get worse. Her father springs the information on her that; a) he is the Prince of some small country called Genovia, b) he is now unable to have children so c) mia is now his sole heir to the throne. A princess. Suddenly life gets harder and way more embarassing for Mia; throw in the press, big makeovers and princess lessons with the totally evil Grandmere and you have a right royal mess! This funny, easy to get into series consists of 10 AMAZING books, all in the diary style and from Mia's point of view. You will laugh out loud as Mia goes through some crazy times. I wont spoil the plot by saying too much, but this series consists of almost everything; romance, drama, friendship and, importantly, all you need to know about being a Princess, courtesy of the (slightly evil) Grandmere. If you want the best chic flic, rom com, laugh out loud series around, I seriously recommend these books. Just a note, they are not really like the films, they are way BETTER! (for the older readers. Its a teen book!) Rating: five stars out of five, they are excellent! If you enjoy this series, check out the Princess Diaries from Michaels point of view on FanFiction.com; its excellent!

FanFiction

This post isn't a review on a book, its telling everyone about one of my new favourite websited, www.fanfiction.com! Its a great site where thousands of people have written stories based upon real books, films, tv series etc. These fan written stories are sequels, prequels,alternate endings and more, so if a story you like didnt end the way you wanted it to, check it out! Or if you want to read your favourite story from another characters point of view, look on the site to see if its on there! This site contains stories written by fans only, and theres a real mix of stuff on there. Theres a search bar, so you can look for the story you want quickly. You can also join the site, write your own fanfiction and comment on other peoples stories! Check it out! (if you like the books on this blog, a lot of them are on fanfiction!)

Hunting Lila and Losing Lila

Hunting Lila and Losing Lila are two amazing books written by the amazing Sarah Alderson. I'm doing a post on both of them so I don't spoil the story for any readers. Lila is a girl whose Mother is dead, apparently killed by a man called Demos who was not quite ordinary- he had a 'power', making him near invincible. Lila's father moved her to London to keep her safe, refusing to ever go in the USA ever again. Lila's older brother Jack and his best friend Alex stay in America, and join an organisation called The Unit who are tracking down Demos and other people like him who have these 'powers'. lila has never told anyone she has a 'power' too. The story starts when Lila, on losing her anger London, goes to LA to see Jack and Alex again. Lila has always loved Alex, abd is really desperate to see him. From then on thrilling events start to unfold, and Lila's life is changed completely. Everyrhing she knows, everything she's used to, is changing forever... These books are AMAZING! You MUST READ THEM!

Silence

Note: Sorry I forgot to post thise earlier! :-)

'Silence' by Becca Fitzpatrick is the epic third enstallment in the gripping 'Hush Hush' series. The book, once again, stars Nora. Readers will remeber the thrilling cliffhanger that the last book ended on, and I don't want to spoil it for any new readers, but it is such a great read I have to mention it on this blog.

Nora is back. She wakes up in the cemetary, and has no idea why she's there. On returning home she's told that she was abducted, and had been gone for a while. Nora seems to have some sort of amnesia, and doesn't remember a lot.

As the story unfolds Nora faces a lot, Scott returns, Nephiliums are out to gte her and she doesn't know why, Hank Millar moves in, and Nora meets a strange guy called Jev. He reminds her of someone, but she can't tell who...

Its a gripping read that will keep you hooked until the last page. It ends with you desperate for more, and Becca Fitzpatrick's website confirms that the 4th book, 'Finale', will be coming out in Autumn 2012! I'd give this book 4 out of 5 stars, and would recommend this book for 11+ readers who have read the last two in the series (Hush Hush and Crescendo). You need to read it.