On Dublin Street by Samantha Young

About the book

On Dublin Street is an Adult/ New Adult novel by Samantha Young. It was published by Penguin on 17^th January and the book is 414 pages long. Thanks to the publisher for providing me with an e-book for review.

Synopsis (Taken from Goodreads.com)

Jocelyn Butler has been hiding from her past for years. But all her secrets are about to be laid bare ...

Four years ago, Jocelyn left her tragic past behind in the States and started over in Scotland, burying her grief, ignoring her demons, and forging ahead without attachments. Her solitary life is working well - until she moves into a new apartment on Dublin Street, where she meets a man who shakes her carefully guarded world to its core.

Braden Carmichael is used to getting what he wants, and he's determined to get Jocelyn into his bed. Knowing how skittish she is about entering a relationship, Braden proposes an arrangement that will satisfy their intense attraction without any strings attached.

But after an intrigued Jocelyn accepts, she realizes that Braden won't be satisfied with just mind-blowing passion. The stubborn Scotsman is intent on truly knowing her . . . down to the very soul.

What I thought

Although this book has been marketed as an adult novel, it also has a crossover into the new adult genre.

On Dublin Street is told through the narrative of Jocelyn, a recent graduate. Originally from America, Joss has gone from foster family to foster family after a tragic accident that killed her whole family. Her mother was part Scottish and Joss wanted a fresh start. After graduating, Joss’ best friend moved away to London, leaving her to find somewhere new to live. With an inheritance she has barely touched, Joss decides to splash out when she sees a room in a flat up for rent. However, on the way to the viewing, Joss has a run in with an insanely handsome man who goes to share her taxi. The two have instant chemistry but Joss doesn’t have relationships of any kind. Joss heads to her apartment viewing, where she instantly hits it off with Ellie and moves in straight away. Shame the guy she met in the taxi is Ellie’s brother and owner of the apartment.

I really liked Joss as a character and the protagonist of this book. She is extremely feisty and says exactly what she thinks. Both her past in America and her job at a bar have definitely helped with this. As the narrator, Joss has a really strong voice and I enjoyed getting to know her. It was clear that she was far from being a push over but past life experiences got in her way when it came to being happy. After their meeting in the taxi, Joss and Ellie’s brother Braden have quite a few funny meetings. I loved the way that Joss reacted to Braden and she really put him in his place… for a while anyway.

While Joss is determined to not have anything to do with Braden, he has other ideas completely. This is where Joss began to change as a character and not always in a good way. Braden is very possessive and even though he had Joss have nothing going on to begin with, he has no problems telling her that he doesn’t like to share and that he always gets what he wants. While the arrogance did make him kind of hot at times, I also wanted to punch him in the face for being an ass. Braden is soon telling Joss what she can and cannot do this part of their relationship was what I hated. Also, speaking of their relationship, at times it came across as something out of Pretty Woman without the money, sometimes Braden was a bit like Edward Cullen (Ergh!) and then there were times when he really was just an ass. As I was reminded of these things, I cannot say that I completely loved seeing Braden and Joss together.

Although I did have problems with the relationship in this book, it was ridiculously steamy and I loved that part! As a new adult/ adult book, sex scenes are much more explicit than in young adult novels, like I normally read. If you’re not wanting to read anything like this, then this is definitely not the book for you. Joss and Braden have a friends with benefits kind of relationship, although it is really Braden who calls all of the shots. There is a lot of talking dirty to each other, sexting and sex and foreplay in some quite exciting places. Although On Dublin Street does have a serious storyline as well, this aspect of the book really lightened things up.

Speaking of the more serious side of On Dublin Street… Joss has some big problems due to her past but she isn’t the only one. I was surprised to see that Braden wasn’t the perfect character and he had some issues himself. Due to these things, both characters go through massive changes over the course of the book, making the character development fantastic. Although there are some serious issues being tackled here, it isn’t all doom and gloom. Samantha Young adds in humour and some more fun scenes, along with the sex, to give this book something for nearly everyone.

I had really mixed feelings about On Dublin Street. While there were some aspects that I loved, such as secondary characters, the humour and character development, there was also things that I hated. 

Book to Film Review: The Grey

About the film 
The Grey is an American thriller film that is released on DVD and Blu Ray on 21st May 2012. The film is rated 15 due to scenes of extreme violence and bad language. The Grey has a run time of 117 minutes. The film is based on the short story Ghost Walker by Ian MacKenzie Jeffers, who also co-wrote the screenplay.. 

Plot 
At a refinery in Alaska, crude oil is broken into various elements for commercial use. Workers endure gruelling five-week shifts working extremely long hours. While getting ready to have a much earned two week holiday, one group of men encounter a brutal storm on the flight home. Crashing in the middle of Alaska, the crash kills most people on board except for eight men. Their only hope of survival is to head for civilisation which is a long way away. If the harsh weather conditions weren't enough, the men are hounded by a mysterious (and big) pack of wild wolves looking to protect their home. 

Self-appointed leader of the group is John Ottway, a sharpshooter hired to keep the refinery safe from any wild animal. While killing things like wolves is his job, out in the wilderness he has no weapons to hide behind. The lead the men to safety, John must rely on instinct and smart choices as well as being quick on his feet to get away from the wolves in time.

What I thought 
Going into this film, I wasn't really sure what I was expecting. I hadn't seen a proper trailer for it nor did I know anything about the plot. All I had seen was a poster on a bus stop with Liam Neeson's face taking up all of the space. However, my boyfriend was really interested in seeing this one so I gave it a go regardless of not knowing anything about it. 

As soon as the film started I realised that this film really wasn't going to be anything like what I thought it was going to be. The Grey doesn't take long at all to get straight into the main plot of the men being stranded in the middle of nowhere. Once the plane begins to hit turbulent weather, I soon understood what the film was going to be about. Liam Neeson's character does not fare well with flying and the panic in his eyes, as well as the panic of the other passengers, made me realise that they were going to be in some massive trouble once they crashed. The plane crash was not done in the best way however and it did look a bit cheap at times. The shots were very shaky which showed how bad the weather was but it could have been a lot more dramatic. 

Once the plane has crashed, reality kicks in for the men that survived and there are only eight of them. The crash was massive and destroyed nearly everything that had been on board so the men are left in a very bad situation, especially as they are in the middle of nowhere in Alaska. Passengers and crew are dead all over the place and the surviving men have to figure out how the hell they're going to get home. To begin with, the weather conditions and upcoming blizzards are the main concern but as soon as night falls, the wolves come out to play. Aggressive and annoyed wolves begin to kill off the men one by one, not wanting to be threatened and the group realise that they have a massive battle on their hands. 

For the main part of the film, there is a very small cast. With only eight men surviving, it gives the film a chance to explore a couple of minor sub-plots regarding their lives back home but this never overshadows the main story. The sub-plot with John's wife was a nice touch to add in as it gave the film a bit of romance. Without this aspect, the film would have just been one massive adventure and with not a lot for girls who aren't into this kind of thing. A small amount of added romance widened the audience by a lot which could only do good things for the ratings as well as the takings. 

Out of this small cast, I only knew who two of the actors were; Liam Neeson and Dermot Mulroney but this wasn't a bad thing. While Liam Neeson plays leading man John, the other men are focused on nearly as much. Playing the leader of the group, John is a very demanding and headstrong man who knows what he is doing. Although this is partly down to his job which he obviously knows really well, he is also calm and collected in a bad situation which many of the other men aren't. Neeson plays the role perfectly and is just the right amount of cool and authoritive when needed. At the same time, he is also really likable as a character even when he is being tough. Even though he is the biggest name in the cast, he doesn't completely steal the show which was a good thing.

While the characters in the group of surviving men were quite clichéd, I didn't mind. Yes, there could have been a little more originality and diversity when it came to the character's personalities but the ones that were there made the film interesting and exciting. Dermot Mulroney is someone I have loved in everything I have seen him in so far and The Grey is no exception. His performance is quiet and subdued but a well written character to complement Neeson's character. The banter between the group was great to watch and I liked getting to know a little more about each of them as the film went on. 

As scary as the wolves were, they could have been better. Their size alone was one of the scariest things about them as there was something quite unnatural about the pack. Never have I seen a wolf (apart from crazy werewolves in the Twilight films) as big as these. The wolves are also sly and cunning, clever in the way they act and they did seem to be able to outsmart a group of men. The dark scenery and the contrast in their colour with the snow was a good thing though as it showed them dominant in their natural habitat. 

The story is exciting and fast paced and considering the film is close to two hours long, this was a very good thing. Nothing every drags in the story as something is always happening whether it be the wolves coming back or the men getting to know each other better. The Grey has a great mix of adventure and thrills as well as some softer, more tender moments so there was a really good range of emotions being felt while I watched it. I wasn't quite ready for how much gore there was in this film but I am not against it at all. I actually think that the gore was really well done and very realistic so it was only a plus point for the film in my eyes. 

Something that has to be said about this film is the cinematography. With scenes of remote Alaska, the film takes us on a journey of terror and panic as the blizzards kick in. The men already have a lot to deal with considering the wolves killing them off and having barely any supplies and then they have to deal with a vast amount of land to cover as well. I loved seeing these crazy snowy scenes and apparently, none of them were shot with green screens or special effects which if true, are very impressive. As well as the snow scenes, there are some amazingly stunning views of Alaska from different sides which were great to see. This change in scenery broke up the monotony of seeing so much white all of the time. 

While I didn't know what to expect from this one, I ended up loving it. If you like films like Into The Wild, you will probably like this one as well.

Shadows by Paula Weston

About the book

Shadows is the first book in the Rephaim series by Paula Weston. It was published by Indigo on 3^rd January and the book is 400 pages long. Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy.

Synopsis (Taken from Goodreads.com)

It’s almost a year since Gaby Winters was in the car crash that killed her twin brother, Jude. Her body has healed in the sunshine of Pandanus Beach, but her grief is raw and constant. It doesn’t help that every night in her dreams she kills demons and other hell-spawn.

And then Rafa comes to town. Not only does he look exactly like the guy who’s been appearing in Gaby’s dreams—he claims a history with her brother that makes no sense. Gaby is forced to accept that what she thought she knew about herself and her life is only a shadow of the truth—and that the truth is more likely to be found in the shadows of her nightmares.

Who is Rafa? Who are the Rephaim? And most importantly, who can she trust?

What I thought

I have been so into reading contemporary young adult or new adult novels recently that I haven’t read much else. When I finally needed a bit of a break, I picked up Shadows by Paula Weston. I love a good book about angels and had heard so many good things about this one. Once I started reading this one, I couldn’t stop.

Shadows follows Gaby, a girl recovering after being in a terrible car accident that killed her brother. Due to what happened in the crash, although the sun and living in Pandanus Beach has healed her body, she is still quite broken. Gaby can barely remember anything but she has strange dreams filled with a seriously hot guy and fighting demons. Even though it is clear from the beginning of this book that Gaby had a whole load of problems, I loved her. She is witty and quick with the one liners and is one hell of a fiery character. Her narrative voice is a strong one and along with Paula Weston’s beautiful writing, this girl had me hooked.

Once Rafa appeared, things got a whole lot more exciting. Immediately, I was drawn to him, much like Gaby. He has the whole bad boy thing going on and an attitude to go with it. Rafa is such a complicated character due to many different things. The plot of this book is quite complicated but once things are explained, it becomes clear why Rafa acts the way he does. I really liked getting to know Rafa and to be able to decide for myself what kind of guy I thought he was… apart from being smoking hot of course.

There were a few things which really made this book stand out for me. One: it is set in Australia. I think there are only maybe 2 or 3 other books that I have read that are set here and Shadows was a most welcome change in scenery. I get a bit bored of reading books set in America all of the time, and even those set in the UK too. Two: Paula Weston’s mythology is outstanding. There is a hell of a lot of background information weaved into this book but Weston does it in such a way that it is not daunting or intimidating at any point. The mythology was so intricate and detailed that I just wanted to know more all of the time.

Not only does Shadows have a great basic plot, but there is a lot of action involved too. Seriously, this book is so fast paced at times and I didn’t know if I was coming or going… in the best possible way. There is a lot going on and Shadows is paced extremely well. While there is time given to explanations, there is time given to the super exciting parts too, which I couldn’t get enough of. I think that this is one of the most well paced books I have read in quite some time. I was never bored, even for a second but I was also glad to be able to catch my breath at times.

Shadows is possibly the best book I have ever read about angels. I am dying to get my hands on the sequel, Haze, which is out this summer. There are so many answers I want and I cannot wait to see what happens next.

Not so guilty pleasures

After hearing Michelle (@cloverness) talking about her not so guilty pleasure not so long ago on Twitter, it inspired me to do a post of my own explaining about a few of mine. These are definitely not ‘guilty’ pleasures though because in no way am I embarrassed or secretive about any of them. I hold my hands up loud and proud about loving the things spoken about below!

Musical/ dance films

I own near enough to 500 films on DVD and I know a whole load of them are musicals and dance films. These films are my happy place. I can easily put on any one of these in my collection and watch it over and over again... not on the same day of course! I do have my favourites though which I will always put on if I can't decide what else to watch, these being Step Up 1 or 2, Dirty Dancing and Hairspray. All of these are feel good films and never fail to make me smile and sing along to them. It also makes me incredibly jealous of anyone who can actually dance. 

Wedding Shows

A lot of my followers already know that I'm getting married in September and how excited about it I am. When John and I were talking about marriage, I was a bit addicted to weddings shows and I still am. I just cannot get enough of seeing other people get married and how they do it so I will watch anything like Don't Tell The Bride, Four Weddings or Celebrity Wedding planners. What I love so much about these are being able to see so many different types of wedding and realising that everyone wants their big day to be something different. 

Cheesy Music

It is absolutely no secret that I have terrible taste in music. My i-Pod is filled with so much (what other people would class as) rubbish. When I open up at work, I have a dedicated playlist for cheese which includes Steps and the Spice Girls. Cheesy music is uplifting and it puts me in a good mood for the day. I don't care if other people can hear me blasting it on the bus. Who wants to hear depressing, slow music first thing in the morning? 

This video posted below, although I hate Justin Bieber with a passion, I cannot help but love it! It's so much better than the official music video which does seem a bit wrong really. 

So there we have a few of the things I am proud to love even though people will class them as 'guilty' pleasures. Do you agree with any of mine and what are your own? I'd love to know!

Hidden Among Us by Katy Moran

About the book

Hidden Among Us is the first book in a series by Katy Moran. It was published by Walker Books on 7^th March and the book is 304 pages long. Thanks to the publisher for providing me with an ARC for review.

Synopsis (Taken from Goodreads.com)

When Lissy meets a mysterious and strangely beautiful boy on her way to Hopesay Edge, she is deeply unsettled by their encounter.

She discovers that they boy, Larkspur, is a member of the Hidden, an ancient group of elven people, whose secrets lie buried at Hopesay Reach. Before long, Lissy and her brother Rafe find themselves caught by a powerful magic and fighting to escape a bargain that can never be broken.

What I thought

I’ve been on a massive contemporary kick recently so anything else has taken a backseat. I think I may have overdone the contemporary a little bit though and felt like reading something different. Hidden Among Us immediately stood out to me on my shelf.

Hidden Among Us is told through narratives from multiple characters. Instead of using the usual two characters, this book is different. The beginning of the book begins with Rafe, a young boy finding that his sister has gone missing. The opening of this book was very strong and immediately piqued my interest. I felt the mystery and excitement and I wanted to know where Lissy (the sister) had gone, considering she was only a baby at the time.

Also narrating is Miriam, the mother, Lissy and Joe, Miriam’s boyfriend’s son. There is a lot going on in this book from all angles which is why this style of narration works so well. The family has a past which is best explained through Miriam while Rafe, Joe and Lissy are really the characters who have the most going on. All of these characters are extremely important so the separated chapters are a good way to get to know each of them on their own. I’m not sure if I had a favourite out of the whole bunch though as they mostly all had really good things going for them.

The Hidden are a mysterious race and the information surrounding them is let out in small amounts but quite quickly at the same time. Different chapters reveal things about who they are now, what they want and why they do certain things while others reveal things about their past. I really enjoyed learning about the Hidden, especially once we got a glimpse into their own world. However, one of them, Larkspur is at the center of the story and I wanted to know him better. While he is sort of the instigator of everything going on, I didn’t really get to find out much about him – not as much as I wanted to anyway.

I wasn’t expecting for this book to be anywhere near as exciting as it was. I think I was expecting more backstory for some reason. In a book about wonderfully beautiful and chillingly strange elven people, I wasn’t quite expecting to read about car chases and breaking in to people’s houses. However, I loved that there was so much in this book that was unexpected. There were surprises the whole way through and so many twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. The latter half of the book brings in some ideas which should be explored further in the next book in the series and things which better explain Lissy and the Hidden.

Overall, Hidden Among Us was a great book full of folklore, excitement and a hell of a lot of mystery. 

Shine by Jeri Smith-Ready

About the book

Shine is the third and final book in the Shade trilogy by Jeri Smith-Ready. The book was released on 7^th June 2012 by Simon & Schuster and it is 416 pages long.

Synopsis (Taken from Goodreads.com)

Life can change in an instant, and no one understands that better than Aura. It’s been almost a year since her boyfriend tragically died. She’s finally letting go of Logan’s violet-hued ghost, but not her search to uncover the truth about her past.

As the first in a generation that can see ghosts, Aura is convinced she has a connection to the Shift. She’s trusted Zachary, ever patient and ever by her side, with all that she knows. But when the government threatens his life in an attempt to learn Aura’s secrets, she will stop at nothing to protect herself and the one she loves...even if that means betraying her own heart.

What I thought

I absolutely loved the first two books in this trilogy but due to uni work and a stack of review books to get though, I only bought this one in January, months after it was released. However, I couldn’t wait to start reading it once it finally came though.

Jeri Smith-Ready hasn’t been afraid to give us some exciting but also heart breaking plots in the previous books in this trilogy and she definitely doesn’t stop with this one. Things with the DMP are heating up and they’re hot on the trail of Aura and Zachary. The DMP try to control everything possible to do with ghosts and shades but after the events surrounding Logan in book two, they know something is seriously wrong. There are some absolutely shocking things that happen in this book and although they aren’t good things, I loved the twists and turns.

As the protagonist, Aura is as fantastic as she has been throughout the whole trilogy. She has been through so much by this point and although she does break down now and again, it was so good to see her bravery shine through. Aura isn’t afraid to take on the DMP and challenge the things they believe is right and she doesn’t. She isn’t afraid to stand up for herself or her friends, both living and not. What I loved so much about Aura was that she saw the bigger picture and everything wasn’t about her.

Then there is Zachary. As much as I loved Logan, Zachary also has a place in my heart. Much research has gone into Zachary’s heritage and where he comes from so as a Scottish character, he is very believable. His accent and the language he uses are fantastic and very real. I really liked how Aura didn’t understand some of his words and was a bit confused by what he was saying at times. Certain things made me feel much more sorry for Zachary than I had done in the past and his parts of the plot were great, even though they were sad too.

Shine gave me everything that I wanted in this final book and more. The plot mixes time spent in America and getting to know the DMP more, with time spend in both Scotland and Ireland. The history and background information is so strong in this book and so much is elaborated from ideas used in the first two books. I feel as though everything in Shine was wrapped up very nicely and nothing was left unanswered. Overall, I don’t think I could have asked for a better finale. 

Geek Girl by Holly Smale

About the book

Geek Girl is the debut novel by Holly Smale. The book was published on 28^th February by Harper Collins Children’s Books. Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a copy for review.

Synopsis (Taken from Goodreads.com)

Harriet Manners knows a lot of things. She knows that a cat has 32 muscles in each ear, a "jiffy" lasts 1/100th of a second, and the average person laughs 15 times per day. What she isn't quite so sure about is why nobody at school seems to like her very much. So when she's spotted by a top model agent, Harriet grabs the chance to reinvent herself. Even if it means stealing her Best Friend's dream, incurring the wrath of her arch enemy Alexa, and repeatedly humiliating herself in front of the impossibly handsome supermodel Nick. Even if it means lying to the people she loves.

As Harriet veers from one couture disaster to the next with the help of her overly enthusiastic father and her uber-geeky stalker, Toby, she begins to realise that the world of fashion doesn't seem to like her any more than the real world did.

And as her old life starts to fall apart, the question is: will Harriet be able to transform herself before she ruins everything?

What I thought

As soon as I heard about Geek Girl, I knew it was a book for me! I couldn’t wait to read it.

Holly Smale tells the story of Harriet Manners, a girl who is not ashamed at all to be a geek. In fact, Harriet couldn’t be happier about her geek status. She isn’t popular nor does she want to be. Harriet is content with her one and only friend and not so content with her weird stalker who is also a geek. However, she would very much like to stop people making jokes about her and thinking that being a geek is a bad thing. Harriet’s voice was a fantastic way to narrate this story. She’s such a strong character with such strong opinions about things.

When Harriet is ‘spotted’ at The Clothes Show, her life changes completely. Harriet never wanted to be a model, that’s her best friend’s dream, and she definitely never thought she had the look for it. Seeing Harriet thrown into the world of modelling was hilarious as she has barely any social skills and dresses nothing like anything in the fashion magazines. However, Harriet believes that trying modelling will stop people from making jokes about her. I loved seeing how Harriet coped with all of the new things going on in her life and the new people she had to meet.

What really made this book for me was Harriet’s individuality. At such a time when peer pressure can completely change a person, Harriet refuses to be anything but herself. I found her to be extremely brave when voicing her opinions and not wanting to do certain things, especially when these things concerned the modelling world. It was great to see a character being completely themselves the whole way throughout the book, no matter what happened.

Although the modelling/ geek aspects of this book were great, there was more to it as well. Harriet’s new life means than people get hurt along the way. Lies are told, people are deceived and all kinds of crazy things happen. It was really interesting to see the friendship between Harriet and Nat change over the course of the book. Nat has always wanted to be a model so you can imagine how she feels about Harriet being spotted instead of her. I liked Nat as a character though and felt that she was justified in all of her decisions and reactions.

Overall, Geek Girl is an utterly fabulous read full of interesting characters, fun situations and a sweet building romance!