Absolutely adored "Me Before You" and was really not sure that a sequel was necessary but read it hoping to be proved wrong.
I found the story very predictable and very contrived and I struggled to finish the book. Don't get me wrong, it is a good book but JoJo Moyes has set the bar SO high with her last few books that this was such a disappointment in comparison.
Apparently the author wrote the book after requests from readers for a sequel. I think I would have prefered to have left it to my imagination!
Absolutely adored "Me Before You" and was really not sure that a sequel was necessary but read it hoping to be proved wrong.
I found the story very predictable and very contrived and I struggled to finish the book. Don't get me wrong, it is a good book but JoJo Moyes has set the bar SO high with her last few books that this was such a disappointment in comparison.
Apparently the author wrote the book after requests from readers for a sequel. I think I would have prefered to have left it to my imagination!
Someone recommended this to me but I wasn't keen tbh as I think some stories are best left as they are - you've confirmed what I suspected!
(I also think the same about the Rosie Project and haven't read that sequel)
167. Buried - Mark Billingham 8/10
Sphere (Hachette UK), 516 pages <Detective> Tom Thorne book 6. As stated before, this series is as good as the Rebus and Wallander books!, and this case continues in that vein. A former top cops' teenage son goes missing after been seen with a strange women outside his school… Thorne is called in, when the police begin to suspect kidnap. Thorne working with Louise Porter in the Kidnap Unit, begins to suspect that there's a lot more to the case than what meets the eye. Great case, great read, great series.
168. Avengers 2014-2015 - Jonathan Hickman, Lenil Francis Yu, Stefano Caselli, Mike Deodato etc. 5/10
Marvel Entertainment, 577 pages <Graphic Novel> The end of the Marvel Universe as we know it? Avengers #24-44 and Annual #1. … still a momentous period in the Marvel Universe. 169. New Avengers 2014-2015 - Jonathan Hickman, Kev Walker, Mike Deodato etc. 5/10
Marvel Entertainment, 518 pages <Graphic Novel> New Avengers 13-33… great idea, could have been done a lot better… end of the Universe?
170. Stray Bullets volumes 1-3 - David Lapham 9/10
El Capitan, 371 pages <Graphic Novel> Stray Bullets #1-12. Superb crime / grifter saga set mostly in the late 70s and early 80's in Maryland and 'Out West'. Wonderfully constructed with an eclectic and ever changing cast of people on the periphery of a major drug lord and his minions. Some highly engaging and enigmatic characterisations give the series a very original and compelling feel. Lapham's artwork and the black and white format compliment this great content. 171. Stray Bullets volumes 4-6 (and Amy Racecar specials) - David Lapham 9/10
El Capitan, 443 pages <Graphic Novel> Stray Bullets #13-24 and Amy Racecar colour specials #1-2. As more of the tale moves 'out west', we finally discover the Amy Racecar connection. Superb series with an amazing and eclectic cast of well crafted characters living, fighting and loving in the underbelly of Amercan life. 172. Stray Bullets volumes 7-10 - David Lapham 9/10
El Capitan, 406 pages, <Graphic Novel> Stray Bullets #25-40. The saga came to an abrupt end at issue 40, when things were still going so well. After the darkness 'out West' the series returned and ended back in Baltimore with Ginny's supposed reintegration into normality... Not! A truly great piece of work by David Lapham!
173. Fairest volumes 5-6 - Mark Buckingham, Russ Braun etc. 7/10
Image Comics, 299 pages <Graphic Novel> Fairest 'Clamour for Glamour' and 'Fairest In All The Land' mystery, sees the Fairest books come to an end in line with the the main Fables book. Agood sister title… with Fairest in the Land being a great Cinderella led mystery to end the series.
174. F (A Novel) - Daniel Kehlmann 6/10
Quercus (Hachette UK), 257 pages <Literary> A remarkable, eerie, innovative read… so innovative, that I am not sure that 'I got it'… maybe have to read again! But enjoyed it!
175. Family Life - Akhil Sharma 7/10
Faber & Faber, 210 pages <Literary> Sparse in style, yet deeply textured tale of an Indian family emigrating to the United States in the 70s… and their trials, joys and tribulations. Great read!
176. Private India - James Patterson & Ashwin Sanghi 5/10
Arrow Books (Random House), 473 pages <Thriller> Couldn't have been such a good read a few months ago, as it was not until half way through it, that I realised, I read this earlier this year!
177. Death Message - Mark Billingham 8/10
Sphere (Hachette UK), 458 pages <Detective> Tom Thorne gets sent a death message, recording of murders! Pursuing the case sees Thorne having to take huge gambles that may cost him friendships and his badge! Kitson works on a random murder, and Louise is still around. Great book, superb protagonists and a truly absorbing case.
60. The Last Detective by Peter Lovesey. The first in the Peter Diamond series. A good plot with the story told from several perspectives. Peter Diamond isn't particularly likeable in this book and and there's not much mention of his wife, nor characterisation of colleagues. Not as enjoyable as the later books.
247) Carole Matthews - The Cake Shop In The Garden
Chick lit - woman runs cafe business from her home by the canal while caring for her mother. However her world is about to be turned upside down. Pleasant read but predictable
248) Robert Goddard - The Corners of The Globe
RG has always been one of my top 3 favourite authors and his new books were always a highlight of my year. However this is book 2 of his trilogy and I am not enjoying it. Too many characters, too complicated trying to follow plots a year apart. Please Mr Goddard go back to what you do best
249) Emily Bleek - Wreckage
A bit unusual. A private jet crashes and there are three survivors who end up on a desert island. The story then flips back and forward between the time on the island and the time after the rescue. Got a bit tedious
250) Things We Have In Common - Tasha Kavagnah
Didn't enjoy this. Really it was YA read and I wish they would warn of this. Yasmin ia a very overweight unhappy 15 year old with no friends. She suspects that a popular girl will be abducted. Very strange book
Book 2 in the Tyler Locke series of treasure hunting/adventure/Dan Brown type novels.
I enjoyed the first one but this wasn't as good. Unoriginal and formulaic with a weak poorly described plot and bland cardboard cutout characters. Unmemorable.
251) Don't Need the whole Dog - Tony James Slater
A (supposedly) humorous tale of the author's travels but was a bit self indulgent and covered too many aspects
252) The Falklands Intercept - Crispin Black
A spy thriller set mostly in Cambridge and the Falklands, OK - have read better
The latest Dirk Pitt novel, a generous 6 as these novels hold a special place in my heart but this latest continues the recent downward trend. They are pale imitation of what they used.
Reading them was once a pleasure, now it feels little more than an obligation.
58. All together Now - Gill Hornby
4/10 - I disliked this and couldn't wait to finish it and start something else! It's about a group of people setting up a choir in a small town - I felt the author was trying to hard to be funny and most of the characters were dull. Let's face it the premise even sounds boring. I only finished it as I was reading it for the book group I belong to.
59. Small Sacrifices - Ann Rule
10/10 - I rarely read true crime but I bought this book not realising it as that genre - it was an excellent read, brilliantly written and very detailed, hence it took me 3 weeks to read. It's about a woman, Diane Downes accused of murdering. attempted murder of her 3 young children because her lover didn't want a family. I will definitely be reading more of her books in the future.
29. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte 7/10
I actually didn't enjoy this as much as I thought, especially for a classic Found it a bit of a struggle in places. Glad I have finally read it though.
30. The Diary of a Nobody - George & Weedon Grossmith 6/10
The humorous diary of Charles Pooter's mundane life and unconscious sense of his own importance. A nice, easy read.
59. Small Sacrifices - Ann Rule
10/10 - I rarely read true crime but I bought this book not realising it as that genre - it was an excellent read, brilliantly written and very detailed, hence it took me 3 weeks to read. It's about a woman, Diane Downes accused of murdering. attempted murder of her 3 young children because her lover didn't want a family. I will definitely be reading more of her books in the future.
60. Gardens of Water - Alan Drew
8/10 - set in Turkey after the earthquake of 1999 a young Kurdish girl falls in love with the son of an American aid worker. This was a really good read, the author obviously has great knowledge of Turkey and the descriptions of Turkey brought the book to life,
[that's my target achieved!]
61. Ruth's First Christmas Tree - Elly Griffiths
7/10 - a sweet short story from the author I "discovered" this year - I saved this to read on Christmas Eve but it left me wanting more. I will definitely re-read this series in the future, and it's really unusual for me to do this,
50s/60s Vegas and Sinatra's rat pack mixed with gangsters and politics.
A mixed bag, some good some not so good. Potentially a fantastic subject that didn't quite manage to come alive and leap off the page.
Doesn't look like I'm going to hit my target of 60 - I blame Albert Speer and those pesky Nazis, it was his book that took me about 3 weeks to get thru!
31. Advent of Dying (Sister Mary Helen #2) by Sister Carol Anne O’Marie – I was delighted to discover this series in my library. Sister Mary Helen is invited to see her mousy secretary Suzanne sing at a bar, and the next day Suzanne is dead. A lover of mysteries and feeling that she owes her secretary to discover who murdered her, Sister Mary Helen sets off to do some detective work. I loved the book and I’ll try to read the entire series now.
32. Where There’s a Will (Nero Wolfe #8) by Rex Stout – Nero Wolfe takes a case for the Hawthorne family, who are shocked when their brother Noel dies and in his will he leaves only a fruit for each of his sisters, April, May, and June, and little else to his widow or other relatives. The bulk of his estate is left to his mistress, and they feel that surely something is amiss. They want Wolfe to convince the mistress to give them more of the money, but when it is revealed that Noel was actually murdered, the entire situation becomes even messier. I enjoyed the book. It seemed a little different from the other Nero Wolfe books which I’ve read, not because Wolfe actually leaves the house in this one (he also left the house in one of the other books I’ve read), but because it had some sort of suspended, surreal quality to it. The widow wears a veil because of an accident caused by her husband, and Archie is obsessed with seeing beneath it. Wolfe leaves the house but it seems like he had to flee back home to be able to really solve the mystery.
177. Death Message - Mark Billingham 8/10
Sphere (Hachette UK), 458 pages <Detective> Tom Thorne gets sent a death message, recording of murders! Pursuing the case sees Thorne having to take huge gambles that may cost him friendships and his badge! Kitson works on a random murder, and Louise is still around. Great book, superb protagonists and a truly absorbing case.
Last books read in 2015:
178. From The Dead - Mark Billingham 7/10
Sphere (Hachette UK), 470 pages
<Detective> Tom Thorne book 8. A woman starts receiving pictures of a man that was 'murdered' 15 years ago! Thorne gets on this case, which leads to the Spain and lots of casualties on the way!
179. Good As Dead - Mark Billingham 7/10
Sphere (Hachette UK), 520 pages
<Detective> Tom Thorne book 9. An Asian newsagent suddenly takes a policewoman and a civilian hostage and calls for Thorne. Thorne, newly single, is on a timer, he has to investigate a possible miscarriage of justice, with the lives of the hostages at stake!
180. Miss, Better Living Through Crime - Philippe Thirault, Marc Riou & Mark Vigouroux 9/10
Humanoids, 202 pages <Graphic Novel> Outstanding crime stories set in early 20th century New York, about a white woman and a black man becoming business partners in the underworld… and surprising originally written in French! Great read, with foreword by Ed Brubaker.
181. Heart Sick - Chelsea Cain 8/10
Pan Books (PanMacMillan), 420 pages
<Thriller> Serial killer thriller; centred round Gretchen Lowell, a beautiful blond, very high IQ, manipulative killer who still appears to have so much power despite being 'caught'… and having totally ruined the life of Archie, head of the serial killer squad. Also reportes Susan Ward is aked to write Archie's story. A truly memorable and compelling read.
182. Becoming Johnny Vegas - Johnny Vegas 5/10
<Biography> At times rather unsettling look at Johnny Vegas' life and how the real JV tried hard to subvert the character of Johnny Vegas throughout his life. Quite interesting!
Last ones of the year - fairly boring Christmas and New Year holiday so caught up with reading!
253) Emma's Secret - Steena Holmes
254) The Generation Game - Sophie Duffy
255) The Defence - Steve Cavanagh
256) Letter from America - Geraldine O'Neill
257) The Christmas Cafe - Amanda Prowse
258) Hercule Poirot's Christmas - Agatha Christie
259) A Parcel for Anna Browne - Miranda Dickinson
260) Follow Me - Angela Clarke
261) Disclaimer - Renee Knight
262) The Worst Day of My Life So Far - M.A. Harper
263) Race to Death - Leigh Russell
264) Let It Be - Chad Gayle
265) Disappearing Home - Deborah Morgan
266) Abi's House - Jenny Kane
267) 3 and a half heartbeats - Amanda Prowse
268) Daddy Was A Punk Rocker - Adam Sharp
Comments
Absolutely adored "Me Before You" and was really not sure that a sequel was necessary but read it hoping to be proved wrong.
I found the story very predictable and very contrived and I struggled to finish the book. Don't get me wrong, it is a good book but JoJo Moyes has set the bar SO high with her last few books that this was such a disappointment in comparison.
Apparently the author wrote the book after requests from readers for a sequel. I think I would have prefered to have left it to my imagination!
Someone recommended this to me but I wasn't keen tbh as I think some stories are best left as they are - you've confirmed what I suspected!
(I also think the same about the Rosie Project and haven't read that sequel)
Solid entry in the Poirot series.
168. Avengers 2014-2015 - Jonathan Hickman, Lenil Francis Yu, Stefano Caselli, Mike Deodato etc. 5/10
Marvel Entertainment, 577 pages <Graphic Novel> The end of the Marvel Universe as we know it? Avengers #24-44 and Annual #1. … still a momentous period in the Marvel Universe.
169. New Avengers 2014-2015 - Jonathan Hickman, Kev Walker, Mike Deodato etc. 5/10
Marvel Entertainment, 518 pages <Graphic Novel> New Avengers 13-33… great idea, could have been done a lot better… end of the Universe?
170. Stray Bullets volumes 1-3 - David Lapham 9/10
El Capitan, 371 pages <Graphic Novel> Stray Bullets #1-12. Superb crime / grifter saga set mostly in the late 70s and early 80's in Maryland and 'Out West'. Wonderfully constructed with an eclectic and ever changing cast of people on the periphery of a major drug lord and his minions. Some highly engaging and enigmatic characterisations give the series a very original and compelling feel. Lapham's artwork and the black and white format compliment this great content.
171. Stray Bullets volumes 4-6 (and Amy Racecar specials) - David Lapham 9/10
El Capitan, 443 pages <Graphic Novel> Stray Bullets #13-24 and Amy Racecar colour specials #1-2. As more of the tale moves 'out west', we finally discover the Amy Racecar connection. Superb series with an amazing and eclectic cast of well crafted characters living, fighting and loving in the underbelly of Amercan life.
172. Stray Bullets volumes 7-10 - David Lapham 9/10
El Capitan, 406 pages, <Graphic Novel> Stray Bullets #25-40. The saga came to an abrupt end at issue 40, when things were still going so well. After the darkness 'out West' the series returned and ended back in Baltimore with Ginny's supposed reintegration into normality... Not! A truly great piece of work by David Lapham!
173. Fairest volumes 5-6 - Mark Buckingham, Russ Braun etc. 7/10
Image Comics, 299 pages <Graphic Novel> Fairest 'Clamour for Glamour' and 'Fairest In All The Land' mystery, sees the Fairest books come to an end in line with the the main Fables book. Agood sister title… with Fairest in the Land being a great Cinderella led mystery to end the series.
174. F (A Novel) - Daniel Kehlmann 6/10
Quercus (Hachette UK), 257 pages <Literary> A remarkable, eerie, innovative read… so innovative, that I am not sure that 'I got it'… maybe have to read again! But enjoyed it!
175. Family Life - Akhil Sharma 7/10
Faber & Faber, 210 pages <Literary> Sparse in style, yet deeply textured tale of an Indian family emigrating to the United States in the 70s… and their trials, joys and tribulations. Great read!
176. Private India - James Patterson & Ashwin Sanghi 5/10
Arrow Books (Random House), 473 pages <Thriller> Couldn't have been such a good read a few months ago, as it was not until half way through it, that I realised, I read this earlier this year!
177. Death Message - Mark Billingham 8/10
Sphere (Hachette UK), 458 pages <Detective> Tom Thorne gets sent a death message, recording of murders! Pursuing the case sees Thorne having to take huge gambles that may cost him friendships and his badge! Kitson works on a random murder, and Louise is still around. Great book, superb protagonists and a truly absorbing case.
Chick lit - woman runs cafe business from her home by the canal while caring for her mother. However her world is about to be turned upside down. Pleasant read but predictable
248) Robert Goddard - The Corners of The Globe
RG has always been one of my top 3 favourite authors and his new books were always a highlight of my year. However this is book 2 of his trilogy and I am not enjoying it. Too many characters, too complicated trying to follow plots a year apart. Please Mr Goddard go back to what you do best
249) Emily Bleek - Wreckage
A bit unusual. A private jet crashes and there are three survivors who end up on a desert island. The story then flips back and forward between the time on the island and the time after the rescue. Got a bit tedious
Didn't enjoy this. Really it was YA read and I wish they would warn of this. Yasmin ia a very overweight unhappy 15 year old with no friends. She suspects that a popular girl will be abducted. Very strange book
Book 2 in the Tyler Locke series of treasure hunting/adventure/Dan Brown type novels.
I enjoyed the first one but this wasn't as good. Unoriginal and formulaic with a weak poorly described plot and bland cardboard cutout characters. Unmemorable.
A (supposedly) humorous tale of the author's travels but was a bit self indulgent and covered too many aspects
252) The Falklands Intercept - Crispin Black
A spy thriller set mostly in Cambridge and the Falklands, OK - have read better
The latest Dirk Pitt novel, a generous 6 as these novels hold a special place in my heart but this latest continues the recent downward trend. They are pale imitation of what they used.
Reading them was once a pleasure, now it feels little more than an obligation.
59. Small Sacrifices - Ann Rule
10/10 - I rarely read true crime but I bought this book not realising it as that genre - it was an excellent read, brilliantly written and very detailed, hence it took me 3 weeks to read. It's about a woman, Diane Downes accused of murdering. attempted murder of her 3 young children because her lover didn't want a family. I will definitely be reading more of her books in the future.
I actually didn't enjoy this as much as I thought, especially for a classic Found it a bit of a struggle in places. Glad I have finally read it though.
30. The Diary of a Nobody - George & Weedon Grossmith 6/10
The humorous diary of Charles Pooter's mundane life and unconscious sense of his own importance. A nice, easy read.
60. Gardens of Water - Alan Drew
8/10 - set in Turkey after the earthquake of 1999 a young Kurdish girl falls in love with the son of an American aid worker. This was a really good read, the author obviously has great knowledge of Turkey and the descriptions of Turkey brought the book to life,
[that's my target achieved!]
61. Ruth's First Christmas Tree - Elly Griffiths
7/10 - a sweet short story from the author I "discovered" this year - I saved this to read on Christmas Eve but it left me wanting more. I will definitely re-read this series in the future, and it's really unusual for me to do this,
50s/60s Vegas and Sinatra's rat pack mixed with gangsters and politics.
A mixed bag, some good some not so good. Potentially a fantastic subject that didn't quite manage to come alive and leap off the page.
Doesn't look like I'm going to hit my target of 60 - I blame Albert Speer and those pesky Nazis, it was his book that took me about 3 weeks to get thru!
21) A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini 8.5/10
31. Advent of Dying (Sister Mary Helen #2) by Sister Carol Anne O’Marie – I was delighted to discover this series in my library. Sister Mary Helen is invited to see her mousy secretary Suzanne sing at a bar, and the next day Suzanne is dead. A lover of mysteries and feeling that she owes her secretary to discover who murdered her, Sister Mary Helen sets off to do some detective work. I loved the book and I’ll try to read the entire series now.
32. Where There’s a Will (Nero Wolfe #8) by Rex Stout – Nero Wolfe takes a case for the Hawthorne family, who are shocked when their brother Noel dies and in his will he leaves only a fruit for each of his sisters, April, May, and June, and little else to his widow or other relatives. The bulk of his estate is left to his mistress, and they feel that surely something is amiss. They want Wolfe to convince the mistress to give them more of the money, but when it is revealed that Noel was actually murdered, the entire situation becomes even messier. I enjoyed the book. It seemed a little different from the other Nero Wolfe books which I’ve read, not because Wolfe actually leaves the house in this one (he also left the house in one of the other books I’ve read), but because it had some sort of suspended, surreal quality to it. The widow wears a veil because of an accident caused by her husband, and Archie is obsessed with seeing beneath it. Wolfe leaves the house but it seems like he had to flee back home to be able to really solve the mystery.
Last books read in 2015:
178. From The Dead - Mark Billingham 7/10
Sphere (Hachette UK), 470 pages
<Detective> Tom Thorne book 8. A woman starts receiving pictures of a man that was 'murdered' 15 years ago! Thorne gets on this case, which leads to the Spain and lots of casualties on the way!
179. Good As Dead - Mark Billingham 7/10
Sphere (Hachette UK), 520 pages
<Detective> Tom Thorne book 9. An Asian newsagent suddenly takes a policewoman and a civilian hostage and calls for Thorne. Thorne, newly single, is on a timer, he has to investigate a possible miscarriage of justice, with the lives of the hostages at stake!
180. Miss, Better Living Through Crime - Philippe Thirault, Marc Riou & Mark Vigouroux 9/10
Humanoids, 202 pages <Graphic Novel> Outstanding crime stories set in early 20th century New York, about a white woman and a black man becoming business partners in the underworld… and surprising originally written in French! Great read, with foreword by Ed Brubaker.
181. Heart Sick - Chelsea Cain 8/10
Pan Books (PanMacMillan), 420 pages
<Thriller> Serial killer thriller; centred round Gretchen Lowell, a beautiful blond, very high IQ, manipulative killer who still appears to have so much power despite being 'caught'… and having totally ruined the life of Archie, head of the serial killer squad. Also reportes Susan Ward is aked to write Archie's story. A truly memorable and compelling read.
182. Becoming Johnny Vegas - Johnny Vegas 5/10
<Biography> At times rather unsettling look at Johnny Vegas' life and how the real JV tried hard to subvert the character of Johnny Vegas throughout his life. Quite interesting!
253) Emma's Secret - Steena Holmes
254) The Generation Game - Sophie Duffy
255) The Defence - Steve Cavanagh
256) Letter from America - Geraldine O'Neill
257) The Christmas Cafe - Amanda Prowse
258) Hercule Poirot's Christmas - Agatha Christie
259) A Parcel for Anna Browne - Miranda Dickinson
260) Follow Me - Angela Clarke
261) Disclaimer - Renee Knight
262) The Worst Day of My Life So Far - M.A. Harper
263) Race to Death - Leigh Russell
264) Let It Be - Chad Gayle
265) Disappearing Home - Deborah Morgan
266) Abi's House - Jenny Kane
267) 3 and a half heartbeats - Amanda Prowse
268) Daddy Was A Punk Rocker - Adam Sharp
269) Murder Ring - Leigh Russell