Book Review #354 - The Lonely Hearts Club by Elizabeth Eulberg

Love is all you need... or is it? Penny's about to find out in this wonderful debut.

Penny is sick of boys and sick of dating. So she vows: no more. It's a personal choice. . .and, of course, soon everyone wants to know about it. And a few other girls are inspired. A movement is born: The Lonely Hearts Club (named after the band from Sgt. Pepper). Penny is suddenly known for her non dating ways . . . which is too bad, because there's this certain boy she can't help but like...

 

 

My Rating: 3.5/5

 

 

Beneath the massive amounts of Beatles references, this book has a very interesting plot. The references always had an explanation with it for non Beatles fans like myself.

 

 

I knew I was going to love this book when I discovered that I was unable to put it down. The short nature of the chapters and the writing style were the reason behind this.

 

 

At first I thought that Penny's club was a little immature and was just her way of getting over a heartbreak.

 

 

Although by the end of the book the different reasons why girls joined and the ways that being a member of the club helped them grow changed my mind.

 

 

There were some parts I thought were unrealistic, like Penny and Diane not talking for 4 years and then suddenly becoming best friends again almost instantly.

 

 

I also thought that the principal's reaction to the club was unrealistic and was only written that way for a further plot twist and also as an antagonist.

 

 

Given the plot, I was surprised by the amount of male characters. Although not very many of them were portrayed in a positive light.

 

Book Review #353 - Piece of Cake by Kate Forster (Smitten)

On the morning that Lola is due to fly to London, her dad's in an accident. There's no time to whinge about ruined plans - Lola has to just unpack her bags and act like an adult by taking over her dad's cafe.

Finding a new chef and working seven days a week is not the gap year Lola had in mind. But then she meets Sam, a hot backpacker and cook extraordinaire with a tragic secret past.

In a whirl of perfect pastries and delicate cupcakes, Lola and Sam start to realise that it's not just the kitchen warming up. But can their romance handle the heat?

My Rating: 5/5

Having read and enjoyed Beauty and the Beat I thought I would read the other Smitten books. This one seemed to have the most intriguing plot, so it's no surprise it is my favourite so far.

Lola was such an interesting character. Even though she didn't really know what she wanted from life, there was a strong sense of maturity about her. She was also very quirky which I liked.

Sam was another character that I really liked. He seemed very genuine and the chemistry between him and Lola was evident from their very first meeting.

Being set in Melbourne, this book has a very Australian feel about it which I loved because very little contemporary novels are set here. I especially liked that my city was included for a small period.

This book felt very realistic and although it didn't include very many plot twists it was never boring.

I am looking forward to reading the rest of the Smitten books especially if they are all of the quality of the two I have now read.

Book Review #352 - Out of His League by Pat Flynn

When Ozzie, an Australian exchange student, arrives in the West Texas town of Hope, life in America seems completely foreign. But his skills on the rugby pitch translate onto the football field as he becomes the star of a team in desperate need of a miracle to save their losing season.  As Ozzie settles in, America really does feel like the land of opportunity, and he soon finds himself torn between the lure of this new country and the ties that bind him to his home in Australia.

This co-mingling of cultures offers a fresh perspective of life in a Texas town where football is life, winning is everything, and the rest is just details.

My Rating: 2.5/5

Given that the only thing I love more than reading is sport, I had expected to enjoy it a lot more than what I did.

When I first started reading it, I really enjoyed it. It wasn't until Ozzie moved to the US that I started losing interest.

Ozzie was a character that I didn't like at all. He was under developed and I just wasn't able to connect with him at all. He also seemed too stereotyped.

This was a very smart concept for a book, but I just don't think it reached anywhere near its potential. I think this was largely to do with the writing style. It felt very choppy and had no continuity to it.