Top Ten Tuesday: Beach Reads Week

It's time for Top Ten Tuesday from The Broke and Bookish! I've not done one of these in a long time to lets get started! What are you're top beach reads this year?

The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud 

I feel the beach is the best place to not be scared when reading a ghostly book. I've heard to many good things about this one that it's a must read for me this summer.

The Girl of Ink & Stars by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

Summer is meant to be full of adventure this sure is the perfect book for anyone looking for one! Also it is beautiful!

The Crooked Sixpence by Jennifer Bell

Just too excited to read this I can't wait past the summer to read this book full of magic. 

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

Is this so many peoples favourite book, it's been sat waiting for me to read it since christmas. It's time to actually read it.

Candle Man by Glenn Dakin

I discovered a lovely copy of this in a second hand book shop last week. Why haven't I heard of it before?! It sounds so good!

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Summer is a time for love. Time to feel smushy on the inside.

Never Ends by Tom Ellen & Lucy Ivison

I loved Lobsters so much! It was so light hearted. Beach reads are all about enjoying life, just like the characters in these books. 

Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens

I've not read these yet... so many books I haven't read and really should! Better use holiday beach time to catch up!

Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett

The last book from the late Pratchett with came out a few weeks go in paperback,  I feel this summer deserves a small nod to a writer that inspired so many. Time to finish the Tiffany Aching collection. 

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

This has always been my favourite of these classics however I have never actually read the book. Shame on me! I better put that right!

Review: IN THE DARK, IN THE WOODS BY ELIZA WASS

In the Dark,  in the Woods by Eliza Wass

Synopsis: 

IN THE DARK

Father wants sixteen-year-old Castley and her five siblings to hide from the world. Father wants to bury their family's secrets where no one will ever find them.

IN THE WOODS

Father says they are destined to be together for ever. In heaven. Father says the sooner they get there the better. But Castley wants to be normal. She wants to kiss boys and wear jean shorts.

CASTLEY WANTS TO LIVE

Review: There are few good points that I can think of for In the Dark, In the Woods. The plot seemed to have so much potential which didn't go very far. It was also very easy to find many plot holes.

SPOILERS!!

This was a quick one to read, which I am thankful for as I really didn't enjoy it. 

The main character was fine I liked her. However the adult characters in the book just made me so mad! The mother seemed to do nothing to help the poor children and get them away from such an awful father. I don't want to judge people in real life who find it hard to get away from these types of situations, however there wasn't enough depth given to her character that explained why she couldn't or wouldn't help.

The father is meant to be hated. That is fine, every story needs someone or something we hate.

The plot line where the neighbour turns out to be an uncle? Now that really did feel forced just to give the story a happy ending. I really felt this was going to go somewhere interesting. It didn't. We discover something quite major which was then dropped and not really mentioned again until the very end when the children went to live with him. It felt like the author just wanted a way to keep the children from being split up and put into care. I'm all for happy endings, just not when they are so clearly forced.

Are you really telling me that the whole family managed to get as far as they did without any adult thinking something odd was going on?  Scary things can and do happen in real life like this, but with the children being known around the town, going to school and an uncle knowing all about the family, could it have been that easy to do?

I was so disappointed with this read. It started with so much potential.

Review: LOBSTERS BY TOM ELLEN & LUCY IVISON

Lobsters by Tom Ellen & Lucy Ivison

Synopsis: Sam and Hannah only have the holidays to find 'The One'. Their lobster. But instead of being epic, their summer is looking awkward. They must navigate social misunderstandings, the plotting of well-meaning friends, and their own fears of being virgins for ever to find happiness. But fate is at work to bring them together. And in the end, it all boils down to love.

Review: Ugh! Being a teenager was so much hard work! Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison capture this perfectly. Lobsters feels like it was written by teens, how did you remember how awkward and embarrassing it can be so perfectly?!

After reading a couple of books that made me ball my eyes out, Kendra Leighton suggested that I gave this one ago as it wasn't so heavy going. Thanks for the suggestion, it was certainly a good read! 

Although Lobsters manages to take you back to all the awful parts of being a teen it also makes you laugh along with some brilliantly funny moments. A real pick me up after a long day. 

From page one you find yourself wanting to shout at the book because you want Sam and Hannah to stop being so stupid and just get together already! The thing is though, everything the characters think and feel are thoughts that most teenagers will have.

A great read for teens and adults alike. There are moments that will have you squirming in your seat and seconds later have you crying with laughter. 

I just need to know what happens next! Tell me everything works out great for Sam and Hannah, please?! 

Review: MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN BY RANSOM RIGGS

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children By Random Riggs

Synopsis: A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of peculiar photographs. It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in thrilling reading experience. 

As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. 

As Jacob explores its decaying bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that Miss Peregrine's children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow - impossible though it seems - they may still be alive.

Review: Read the book before the film adaptation comes out. 

This is yet again another lovely book to look at. The use of unusual vintage photos to create a plot is a brilliant creative idea. Some of the photos were a little bit creepy.

At the start of this book I was expecting it to be scarier that it turned out to be, which I am glad about but a little bit sad about all at the same time. Sometimes it's nice to be a little scared. All those fellow wimps out there will find this a safe read before bed!

I love the first half of this book, it set up the idea that the children under Miss Peregrines care could be dangerous. I was sadly disappointed that it turned out they we're just children with odd skills or talents. It felt a little bit like the idea behind the X-men. Having said that I did enjoy this read.

There are a another two books on this series. Reading the second would mainly be to find out what happens next, rather than because I have a love for the books. Maybe I'll be wrong and it'll turn out to be the best book I've ever read.

It'll be interesting to see what Tim Burton has done with this book in the film.