Book Review #654 - Rebellious Daughters by Various Authors

Good daughters hold their tongues, obey their elders and let their families determine their destiny. Rebellious daughters are just the opposite. 

In Rebellious Daughters, some of Australia’s most talented female writers share intimate and touching stories of rebellion and independence as they defy the expectations of parents and society to find their place in the world.

Powerful, funny and poignant, these stories explore everything from getting caught in seedy nightclubs to lifelong family conflicts and marrying too young. Beautifully written, profoundly honest and always relatable, every story is a unique retelling that celebrates the rebellious daughter within us all.

Not every woman is a mother, grandmother, aunty or sister – but all women are daughters.

My Rating: 4/5

I received this book for review from Ventura Press.

This book is a compilation memoir pieces depicting daughters rebelling against their parents mostly because of cultural divide. 

Given that I am 5th generation Australian I found this aspect really interesting as it is something I know nothing about. 

There are 17 stories in this book, all told by authors that I had no prior knowledge of. I found them all very easy and fast to read.

I am not really that much of a non-fiction reader (although it is a genre I want to read more of) and so the fact each story was only around 15-20 pages long really helped.

I loved how diverse each story was and yet they all conveyed such a strong sense of family and the complexities that come with that. 

Reading this book also opened my eyes to how easy I have it with my family and how I have never had to rebel against them in any serious way. 

All the authors are strong, independent women who show tremendous courage to share their personal stories of forging their own way in life. 

It is also worth noting that a percentage of sales of this book goes to Women's Legal Service Victoria. 

Book Review #653 - Fifty Shades of Grey (Fifty Shades of Grey #1) by E.L. James

When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too—but on his own terms.

 

Shocked yet thrilled by Grey’s singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success—his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family—Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey’s secrets and explores her own dark desires.

Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever.

My Rating: 3/5

I swore I would never, never ever read this book (I think I may have even made that statement here on my blog at some stage), however, after I had the flu I wanted something rather light to ease me back into reading and I saw this book on my shelf and I though why not, even your grandfather has read it (true story). 

First of all, I went into this book with absolutely no expectations. I'd obviously heard a lot about it but I like to form my own opinions about books. 

The book was first written as Twilight fanfiction and at first I was over aware of the similarities between the two (for example both are set in Washington state). It didn't take me long however just to ignore that part. 

The sex scenes is what made me most hesitant to read this book/series because I have never read erotica before, however I think watching/reading Game of Thrones has desensitized me more than I thought as I had no issues with them. 

The main thing that bothered me with this book was how repetitive some of the language was. For example the number of times Christian told Ana not to bite her lip. Also the amount of times Ana referred to her 'inner goddess' was really annoying. 

Christian was a very intense and intimidating character. He obviously has a very troubled past which I am interested to learn more about. 

Anastasia in comparison was rather plain and I am not sure if it is because the book is told through her or not but I found her rather predictable. 

Overall, I am really surprised by how much this book compelled me and if I hadn't started it over the weekend I probably would have finished it in one sitting. 

The ending was rather abrupt, almost like the author decided to add a little cliff hanger in at the last second. 

Book Review #652 - Voyager (Outlander #3) by Diana Gabaldon

Their passionate encounter happened two centuries ago when the gallant renegade Jamie Fraser sent her back to her own time, pregnant with his child, believing he would be killed in the bloody Battle of Culloden in 1746. Now their daughter has grown up and Claire discovers that Jamie survived. Drawn back across the chasm of time she seeks once more the man she could never forget, the destiny she cannot ignore... 

My Rating: 3.5/5

It has been a while since I have been in the Outlander world by page but since I have spent all last week binging out Outlander season 2 I thought it was the perfect time to read on with theis amazing series. 

Because I am really interested in ancestry, I really enjoyed Claire, Brianna and Roger's research and could really relate to it. 

This book is set roughly 20 or so years after the last book and so I found it a new experience having to rediscover the characters. 

It was also for that reason that I felt kind of distanced from them and made this book my least favourite of the series so far.