They answered an ad entitled “Artists’ Retreat: Abandon your life for three months.” They were picked up at bus stops along the way to their final destination which ends up being an old theatre with artificial sunlight, freeze dried food and no way out. As they live in this isolation they tell each other stories. Some of the most horrifying and sickening stories I have ever read. But I don’t think it was the stories that got to me. It was the background story of them living in the theatre. These people, who came here to find themselves and find that novel/screenplay/whatever that they have been meaning to write, are making this three months the worst three months imaginable. They destroy all the food. They turn the heat off. They smash all the light bulbs. They self harm. They eat each other. All for that goal of making it so terrible that some film producer will want to buy their story and show it to the world. They totally sidetrack from writing and focus on how terrible they could actually make it become without killing themselves. Someone else dying is fine. Its one less person to split the cash with. I found it hard to read because I couldn’t comprehend why they wanted it to be so bad. It could have been a wonderful experience of their time writing and surviving in this bleak place and although it wouldn’t have made for as good a novel, it would have been easier for me to get through. I know this sounds like I totally didn’t enjoy the book but I really did. I just like to relate to a character in the story which I didn’t in this book. There was not one character or one story that I could have related to and I think that was my struggle. As for the stories within the story - Exodus was hands down the hardest story for me to read, emotionally I mean. Guts was a breeze compared to that one. They were both sickening but in very different ways. I’m leaving it up to you to go out and read it to see for yourselves what I mean.

Chuck Palahniuk once again doesn’t disappoint. He just really got me on this one.

Okay, okay so I royally suck. Big time. I have a very genuine reason for the suckage though so you’ll have to hear me out. I have been reading Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk for four weeks now. Four, whole weeks. In my standards that is terrible. Its not even an extremely long book either - only 404 pages. And its not even that I’m not enjoying it. I am. Sort of. I’m finding it very, very hard to read. I only have about fifteen pages left now so I’m hoping to get it all finished tonight so that I can come back and do the review that I’ve had in my head for the past few weeks. I don’t know why its taking me so long to get through but I’ve not wanted to blog because I’ve been keeping everything for the review. This book definitely needs my full attention so expect something long later on tonight.

By the way, I’m going to blog more in general. I’ve gotten my other, other blog back on track and I’m trying to do the same here. I’ll be doing a lot of book news and things so there will be something else to read other than my ramblings about my readings.

I’ve read a lot of books. Very few of them make me dream about them. But this one did. And if you’ve ever read this book, you’ll imagine what kind of crazy dreams I was having. Diary is my second Chuck Palahniuk book I have read, the first being Fight Club. Diary pulls you into the story from the first page. It starts off with the attempted suicide of Misty’s husband and ends with pretty much a completely different story. Throughout the story it changes from third to second person which catches you off guard at times. Something ‘got’ me with this novel. There’s something about the story that really got me thinking. I wasn’t just reading the book, I was trying to figure out what the hell was going on. I predicted the ended but I was completely wrong. My prediction was only the way it was because I couldn’t actually comprehend that people would treat other people in that manner. That someone would use someone to their advantage to that extreme. I guess I was wrong! Its a very dark novel and at times I was quite disgusted with what I was reading. All of this said, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I cannot wait for the next Chuck Palahniuk to fall into my hands.

After reading four books of the same subject in a week and then reviewing each book one after another, I needed a little break from this website. I got sick of writing about books and if you noticed, my reviews got poorer and poorer as they went on. I found to quite hard to define each book from the other as I was reading in succession. I still have five books in that series to read but I’ll be having a break in between them.

For the past four/five days I have been ploughing my way through Diary by Chuck Palaniuk. I say ploughing because its so strange. I’m really enjoying it but after reading books narrated by a fourteen year old girl, its something different. I knew what I was expecting with a Palahniuk book as I read Fight Club sometime last year but I sometimes find it hard to follow. Especially when I’m tired, I’m finding myself re-reading parts of the book because I just didn’t understand what went on at all. I’m around 80 pages from the end and I think I’ve figured out whats really happening/happened. I’m hoping to get it finished by tomorrow at the latest. I have stack of ten library books to read after this one and I want them all read before I go to Leeds Festival in five weeks. I’ll need a lot of luck to get that much read in five weeks!

This, is the best out of the four. I know there are nine books now but out of the four I have read, Dancing In My Nuddy Pants is the funniest. I laughed like two loons on loon pills near the end when Georgia says, “I’ve got this weird feeling of reliefiosity” and Jas replies with “What, like when you need a poo and then you have a poo?” That is genius! These books bring out my inner thirteen year old self and I love it. I have to admit that by the end of book three I was ready to give up with these books and have a break but once I have finished with it, I could easily read the other five in succession. I am giving myself a bit of a break from them until I’ve read my current book but I can’t wait to read book five. Like someone said on another review I read, this is a must read for all girls and any boy that wants to understand a teenage girls mind.

Book three. Girlfriend of Sex God. LIFE IS FAB! Until Vati comes back from Kiwi-a-gogo land. Oh and until Georgia keeps snogging Dave the Laugh “by mistake.” It opens up with Georgia expelled from school (from what I can’t remember, she’s always getting into trouble) and is the beginning of another hilarious book. I didn’t find it as funny as the first two if I’m honest but I still had a good few laughs. There’s lots of teen emotions flying around like the whole snogging Dave the Laugh thing. Obviously being the girlfriend of the SG is just not good enough. I supposed it doesn’t help that his band are practicing and touring a lot and plus he’s four years older than Georgia. Now on to the next one!

Georgia, again. Abandoned by Sex God after said Sex God getting her hopes up. Launch project Red Herring - Dave The Laugh. The second in the series is just as funny as the first but I always seem to have the urge to laugh when I’m in bed reading next to Alex who is fast asleep. I relationship between Georgia and Jas, her best friend is the funniest thing ever. If I spoke to my best friend like that I think she’d probably dump me from best friend status. In this book we see the Red Herring go totally wrong and it ends once again with a both happy and unhappy ending. One problem I have with these books; I’m finding myself adding “osity” onto the end of words like Georgia does. Its not really a good plan when your twenty-two years old, not fourteen.

Meet Georgia: Fourteen, no eyebrows, big nose and lover of Sex God. Not your typical teenager since I totally don’t remember doing anything she does at the age of fourteen. At fourteen, I was sat in watching WWE wrestling on Sky Sports. I’ve read this book before and I have to say that it was a lot funnier the first time around. Saying that, I was about sixteen last time I read it so that’s probably the reason why. She’s still hilarious and I’d love to hang around with Georgia for a day. Plus Sex God aka. Robbie from The Stiff Dylans sounds HOT! The long black hair got me. The adventures of Georgia’s kissing lessons and stalking Sex God’s girlfriends are very amusing. The best character is her little sister, Libby who calls everyone a “tosser” which cracks me up every time - “Want some milk tosser?” I’d teach Meghan to say it just for the hilarity of it if not for me being such a good parent. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series - I’ve actually already started on the next one. They are pretty much aimed at teens who will get it a little bit more but for those people (like me) who love stupid humour that’s not actually meant to be funny then you must pick up this book. They are great little fillers in between your crime novels about murderers. Tosser.

When Shay Bourne killed June Nealon’s husband and daughter, she didn’t think things could get any worse. Eleven years later her other daughter is desperate for a heart transplant and Shay is the one offering it to her when he is killed for his actions. How as a mother and a wife supposed to except a heart from the man who killed the two of the people you love the most, to save another? Change of Heart is a very touching story and it really wasn’t what I expected at all. The blurb on the cover doesn’t really give the novel justice. Shay isn’t the cold hearted killer that you expect and hetruly has reasons to give his heart away to June’s little girl. The story is based a lot around religion as Shay keeps performing ‘miracles’ and many people think he may be the Messiah. I actually enjoyed reading about the religion even though I am not a religious person myself. Once again Jodi brought in a character - Ian Fletcher - from a previous book, Keeping Faith like she did with Nineteen Minutes which I really enjoyed. I did think his character had got slightly annoying though, I didn’t like him as much as I did in Keeping Faith. It has a nice ending which rounds everything off and also ends with the character Claire - June’s daughter- speaking which she hadn’t throughout the book. I’mthoroughly looking forward to reading another Jodi Picoult book. I just hope I don’t have to wait too long.

Today marks the end of my keeping a list of every single book I read during a year. I only realised this morning that it has been a whole year and it shocked me to be honest. I remember reading that first book on my list - Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone - and it didn’t seem like a whole year ago at all. In a year, I have read 29 books which in my eyes isn’t that impressive but when you break it down, its just over two books a month. Six of those books were by Jodi Picoult (I’m now on my seventh in the year), three were from last years Richard and Judy’s Book Club and four were part of my ‘Must Read Before I Die’ list. Out of them all, there were only three that I didn’t really like that much - Apples by Richard Milward, My Swordhand is Singing by Marcus Sedgwick and Zenith by Julie Bertagna. There we lots of favourites over the year, many that I will read again or buy, since most of them were from the library but I think my favourite overall has to be The House at Riverton by Kate Morton. I’ve talking about this book a lot and I still think everyone should read it. It was actually the book I gave away on my first book contest over at Faster The Chase. I plan to re-read it at some point this year when I get time.

I liked keeping a list of what I read. There have been many times where I’ve forgotten what I’ve been reading. I’ll keep at it again for another year and I think this year, I’m going to try and make it to 40 books. Wish me luck!