Book Review: The Last Werewolf Glen Duncan

If I ever become a werewolf, I would target people who talk before they think as my victims. Its been one of those days.

YOU'RE THE LAST. I'M SORRY. THE END IS COMING.

For two centuries Jacob Marlowe has wandered the world, enslaved by his lunatic appetites and tormented by the memory of his first and most monstrous crime. Now, the last of his kind, he knows he can't go on. But as Jake counts down to demise, a violent murder and an extraordinary meeting plunge him straight back into the desperate pursuit of life.


This book was alright. It’s the start of trilogy that recently has finished, it didn't leave me running out to find the next one (I did check if the library had it, they did not).

It features of an old werewolf who have become endangered and then a organisation decides to just fuck it and killed them all because eradicate a whole sub-race (most would say species but don't like that the biology of that. It is more Hybrid than actual species- I could go on but won't. It's topic for another post) of humanity is going to be positive. Jacob doesn't care if he dies. I didn't care if he died.

The characters are generally unlikable. Not because they kill people, just because most are defined by what they are/do so are boring. Except Harley, poor idiotic Harley who in old age gave up reading which is stupid. Any sympathy for Jacob I had just slowly disappeared. The characters aren't very distinctive from each. Also this is tiny bit of a spoiler so still want to read this and be spoiler free do not high-light the following. [ There is a case of instanter love, it could be played off as a supernatural thing. I mean doesn't play well for were/vamp books to have such things since that other certain book. Yes, Duncan if you reading this (which I doubt but who knows) I just compared your book to Twilight. I mean its not my biggest issue though. I just sigh and read on now. ]

It meant to be journal but it just reads as first-personal narration of life as it happens mostly. It also has parts and chapters. It has a few memorable scenes. It’s sort of poemy. This also random reference to a Robert Browning poem I think. I mean it exact same line; expect the Pronouns are different. But frankly it is a line that I found myself repeating out loud. You almost can't help yourself. And no I won't tell which one. Read all his poems and then this book to find out (or you could just search through my BookTube channel till you find the one that involves the same Robert Browning poem. My first suggestion is funner).

The actual mythology was interesting. Based off common werewolf myth, but with a slight spin. It typical lack of females (another thing I could discuss about werewolves; I have theories,) and full-moon transformations. 

Overall, I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars for smelly c*nts (you could make a drinking game out of how many times that word was used. I think 3 specifically to do with smelling them). It was alright book, definitely not the worst werewolf book I've ever read. I would continue the series if they fell into my lap one day; with my whole TBR guilt that's probably only the only way I will finish the trilogy. I would recommend this book to werewolf lovers, who prefer high action plot than developed characters (I could see the effort for both but characters just fell flat for me).

I have a bed with no Mattrex

Haló peeps, so I've spent the pass two days building a bed. Yes, I finally got one. A few issues building it, so I couldn't recommend it. It's a lift bed from Argos. Certain screws just wouldn't go where they were meant to be go. There is literally two sticking out because we could not get them to go any further so we had to give up. Something is mainly attached to the bed by cellotype. Its not important part of bed so it should be fine. There also not a bottom in it because it impossible to build it with it in and it shit as it will take no weight.

The corner where went/desk briefly was.

I also moved a armchair upstairs into my bedroom. There is literally no floor space in my room at the moment. There should be some more once I've to sort out some the boxes and other stuff. That's a job for another a week because I'm not sure how to tackle it.

There is basically not going to be a lot of floor space in my room. It is something I have come to accept. Books and bed mean its not a thing I can have. Its the attic roof fault. I could have taller bookcases otherwise. I actually have a tall bookcase I've had since I was child but it was cut in half when we move. The chair was unnecessary but I wanted a chair in my room. I was expecting this fantasy to only happen once I go to uni and get a apartment. Maybe if we do ever do move. It getting up there was quite the challenge. My mum had to move stuff downstairs so we could fit it through. I also trapped in the corner and had to climb over it. We knocked several monster high dolls off my wardrobe.

What behind my bookcase looks like.

My desk was meant to be in the corner that the chair ended up. It has done a circle around my room and has ended up where it's started. It spent a few days right next to the window. I still need a computer chair though.

That all I've been really doing this past week. I know I lead a life of excitement.

There are pests behind my bookcases.

The chair that just fits.

Mandy inspecting the backs of my books.

Book Review: The Dead Wife's Handbook by Hannah Beckerman

Why is when I share my name with a character they’re  always dead?

'Today is my death anniversary. A year ago today I was still alive.'

Rachel, Max and their daughter Ellie had the perfect life - until the night Rachel's heart stopped beating. Now Max and Ellie are doing their best to adapt to life without Rachel, and just as her family can't forget her, Rachel can't quite let go of them either. Caught in a place between worlds, Rachel watches helplessly as she begins to fade from their lives. And when Max is persuaded by family and friends to start dating again, Rachel starts to understand that dying was just the beginning of her problems. As Rachel grieves for the life she's lost and the life she'll never lead, she learns that sometimes the thing that breaks your heart might be the very thing you hope for.

I really like the premise of this book and it done well. Rachel has glimpses of her husband and daughter’s lives. I guess you would say she in purgatory, well that the feel I got from it. She spends most of her time in bland white room so another spin on the afterlife.

The characters are very distinct from each other and all add a different spill to Rachel's death. The main characters are sympathetic and can relate to them which is obviously important with this type of book.

The book is separated into the 7 stages of grief and it really works with the premise and doesn't feel forced. It goes over the impacted someone life has on other people's lives. Especially deals with the loss of a parent and all that goes with that.

Overall, I gave it 5 out of 5 stars for hurt feelings. It good read that will have you on the verge of tears throughout the book so maybe not read it in public (I almost started crying in a dentist waiting room). The book ends at the right point.

Book Review: Bird by Crystal Chan

I admit that I have been tempered to jump off my roof.

'Grandpa stopped speaking the day he killed my brother, John. His name was John until Grandpa said he looked more like a Bird with the way he kept jumping off things, and the name stuck. Bird’s thick, black hair poked out in every direction, just like the head feathers of the blackbirds, Grandpa said, and he bet that one day Bird would fly like one too. Grandpa kept talking like that, and no one paid him much notice until Bird jumped off a cliff, the cliff at the edge of the tallgrass prairie, the cliff that dropped a good couple hundred feet to a dried-up riverbed below. From that day on, Grandpa never spoke another word. Not one.

The day that Bird tried to fly, the grown-ups were out looking for him – all of them except Mom and Granny. That’s because that very day, I was born.'

Twelve-year-old Jewel never knew her brother, but all her life she has lived in his shadow. Then one night, on her birthday, she finds a mysterious boy sitting in her oak tree. His name is John. And he changes everything.

This book is very tearfully. I cried a lot because there is some sad parts. I mean it deal with family and different forms of abandonment. It done very well and it is a good read. I could probably write essay on the themes in this book (but won't because this is a review after all). 

This is a character driven book. It centres on the family's relationships with each other. Bird's death overshadows everything and has messed up their relationships. There very much still in a state of extreme grieving. Jewel is very lonely and doesn't feel like she can actually talk honestly to anyone in her family. I don't want to say much about John (the boy in the tree) as it bit spoiler, but I really like the contrast his family background brings in comparison to Jewel's.

There also interesting stuff about duppies and generally spirits, like how to ward them off. 

Overall, I gave it 5 out of 5 stars for erratic rocks. It book that you will make you feel things and it very relatable.

Valentine's and Loving things.

So it was Saint Valentine's Day and I bet you all dying to know how it went with my imagery boyfriend. Well, Batman and Sherlock Holmes were both busy being gay with Superman and John Watson (can you believe that they all went on a Double date without me. I was the one who introduced them to each other).  Great, I've just gave myself another fict idea that I will never get around to writing but now I have a fun idea to think about. Is it weird that my imagery boyfriends have my boyfriends of their own in my mind?

Seriously, I don't really see Valentine's as a big deal. Even if I did have a special someone, whose was real, I doult I would want to do something special especially since every other couple seems to be out at the same time.  Wouldn't any gift you gave them be cheaped? Also Valentine's is meant to be when you confess your love? The person you're in a relationship hopefully already knows that love them. That said, I would totally accept any chocolate they want to give me. Especially if they brought it today cause it's probably on sale.

I spent most of the day in bed with my usual lover. Yes, my laptop who has a escaped a name unlike Gerard Arthur (my middle-aged typewriter remember). I think I might have once named it. Have no clue what it name was. Been playing Facebook games whilst listening to CreepyPasta. I even started writing one. Not sure if it will work out well. But it there.

I have also been visiting my mistress again. It mistress right now as I'm not meant to be buying books. I recently brought books off Waterstones not thinking they would be coming till April. Well, some of them came this week. So now I have packages awkwardly lying in a pile on bookcase waiting to be dealt with. It shouldn't be so hard to avoid buying books. Maybe if I get into my head that I actually have no money in my bank as I really have to save for Flordia especially since I got the weirdest letter off Income Support where my money randomly lowers for a week and then rises tiny bit the next.

 I've been feeling rather tired lately. I've been having issues with the course thing I'm on. Life is diffcult.

I'm hopefully going to be building my bed next week as I'm off offically and also getting armchair in my room which is something I thought would never happen. I have to get my room ready though. I'm also a bit panicked about my reviews as I need two up this Wed and I haven't read them yet. But hear I did finish a book series this week so that is something.

That's enough about my love life. I shall write to you next week (which will hopefully have two book reviews). Now I'm off to read like the wind.

I took photos of that fallen tree today.

Book Review: The Girl With A Clock For A Heart by Peter Swanson

No, this book does not actually feature a girl who literally has a clock for her heart. It’s metaphor.

George Foss never thought he'd see her again, but on a late-August night in Boston, there she is, in his local bar, Jack's Tavern. 

When George first met her, she was an eighteen-year-old college freshman from Sweetgum, Florida. She and George became inseparable in their first fall semester, so George was devastated when he got the news that she had committed suicide over Christmas break. But, as he stood in the living room of the girl's grieving parents, he realized the girl in the photo on their mantelpiece - the one who had committed suicide - was not his girlfriend. Later, he discovered the true identity of the girl he had loved - and of the things she may have done to escape her past. 

Now, twenty years later, she's back, and she's telling George that he's the only one who can help her . . . 

I like the writing style of this book, it sort of poetic. The book does switch between the now and when George first met Liana. The format works for the suspense. 

George is not very likable character. Certain parts of the novel you do feel sort of sorry for him but I don’t think I would actually be best buds with him. He’s in his 40s, he single and works for a slowly failing business: so not a lot to lose when Liana shows back up. The other characters are alright. The motives are bit mystery; there are meant to be that way. George is surrounded by strongish woman; his life is mostly influenced by woman during the book. Females do sort of play big part of the story. However, there something about the portrayal of the woman that bugs me. It not like I can define the thing that’s on the tip of my tongue. Maybe it the fact that none of the woman actually talk to each other in the book. 

Overall, I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars for descriptive nipples. I enjoyed reading it. I’m finding it hard to find hings to say that wouldn’t be a spoiler. There lot of things this book for people to enjoy. The ending does leave with some questions, not clear answer to what went down fully.

Book Review: The Vintage Girl by Hester Browne

Reeling is a traumatic experience for every Scottish child.

When Evie Nicholson is asked to visit Kettlesheer Castle in Scotland to archive the family heirlooms, she jumps at the chance. Evie's passion for antiques means that, for her, the castle is a treasure trove of mysteries just waiting to be uncovered.

But in each heirloom lies a story, and in the course of her investigations Evie stumbles upon some long-buried family secrets. Add handsome, gloomy heir Robert McAndrew and a traditional candlelit gala to the mix, and Evie's heart is sent reeling with an enthusiasm that may just extend beyond the Kettlesheer silver...

To be honest I requested this book because it was meant to be set in Scotland, but sadly it turned out to be the bad side of Scotland. That’s right; once again its in the Borders. Besides having a bias against this part of my home country, there other issues about it being  set in Scotland.

For one thing a Full Scottish Breakfast is said to be Porridge, Black Pudding, Haggis and whatever the hell kippers are. I guess it could be have been in jest. But then there have a full English. Scots do not have full English. We have Full Scottish which is eggs, bacon, Tatty Scones, square sausages, normal sausages and sometimes Black Pudding and haggis. Sure, the big difference is the squareness of sausages and the tatty scones but tatty scones are the best thing in the world.

This is romance is bit er. Evie was rather annoying. I didn't really like her. None of the characters were that likable. Being obsessed with the past is bit old. It was enjoyable at parts and there were some nice scenes. I just think my issues with the settings overshadowed anything. There is some interesting family issues with both the main characters.

Overall, I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars for rooms of furniture. It was alright. I just don't think it was the right book for me. It more the sort of book if you know nothing about Scotland and just looking for a romance that features Castle-like-house and family scandals.