![One day in December- A book review]()
review, Romance |
How do you feel about insta love or love at first sight? Well, that is what will make or break One Day in December by Josie Silver for you. And a lot of people, bloggers and bookstagrammers alike, love this book and might queue up to fight if you didn’t (I am kidding.. maybe). Let us see how One Day in December turned out for me in my book review, ok? Read on!
About One day in December
Book Name: One Day in December
Author: Josie Silver
Genre: Fiction – Romance
Characters: Laurie James, Jack O’Mara, Sarah, Oscar Ogilvy-Black
Setting: London, England, The UK
Plot Summary of One day in December
One Day in December Laurie is staring out the bus window and she chances upon a guy sitting in a bus stop reading a book. He looks up and they have an instant connection, so strong that she believes he is the one. She spends the next year looking out for the guy with her best friend Sarah.
During the next Christmas season, she finds him again at a party, only to find that he is Sarah’s boyfriend. When she realizes he doesn’t recognize her and that Sarah is in love with him and he likewise, she quickly gulps down her feelings and tries to stay the third wheel to the supposed “match made in heaven”.
Over the next decade, they spend time finding themselves with different partners and many missed opportunities. How they end up together forms the rest of One Day in December by Josie Silver.
Book review of One day in December
One Day in December has everything needed for a perfect winter romance – insta love, strong female friendship, falling for the said friend’s boyfriend and then getting friend zone. I enjoyed Josie Silver’s writing and her voice, that made it hard to put the book down.
I loved the first few chapters and I really tried hard to like the entire book the same way and I failed terribly.
My main problem was that I felt lukewarm about the protagonists. There was nothing special about them. And they were supposed made for each other and soul mates, we never see it. They do not even take any step whatsoever to be with each other.
Sigh. I really tried to like One Day in December more.
Things that worked for me
- The premise was cute and the angst was real.
- The writing and the pace were perfect for a winter afternoon read.
- I liked Sarah and her friendship with Laurie. I wish we saw more of Sarah and Laurie’s history.
Things that didn’t work for me
- I didn’t like the protagonists especially Jack nor did I warm up to them until the end even.
- I love British romance mainly for their witty banter. Nope not much on that front.
Bottom-line
If you are looking for a cute romance filled with angst, you can choose One Day in December by Josie Silver. Perfect for fans of Bridget Jones!
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![One day in December- A book review]()
Drama |
Does it ever annoy you when you expect something from a book because it was marketed so but then it turns out entirely different? I picked Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams because it had great reviews and it said it was ‘Bridget Jones meets Americanah’. But it turned out to be something different. Let us find out how Queenie was for me, shall we?
About the book
Book Name: Queenie
Author: Candice Carty-Williams
Genre: Fiction – Drama
Characters: Queenie, Tom, Diana, Darcy, Kyazike, Cassandra
Setting: London, England, The UK
The plot
Queenie is a 25 year old Jamaican British woman, a typical millennial living in the pricey London and working for a newspaper. She has a close friend’s circle and a long term Caucasian boyfriend. Her family consists of overbearing grandparents, a religious maternal aunt and an estranged mother – you know the typical Jamaican family.
Things spiral down fast when her boyfriend proposes a long break from their relationship. Her performance at work suffers and finally she gets fired. Her social life derails when she starts hooking up with men who have no time or interest in her personality.
How Queenie deals with it and gets out of the mess that is her life now with the help of her family and friends forms the rest of the story.
My initial thoughts
Queenie is a tale of a young woman who tries to find her identity between the two cultures. It is less of a love story but more about strong female characters and their friendship and family ties. The characters are flawed but they are relatable and their problems are real. Though set in the UK, their story is from everywhere.
I agree that the Jamaican culture took little back seat among the other themes but from what was described I found it was similar to the Asians. Especially the importance given to family and religious sentiment. I loved how Queenie spoke about the stigma around the mental health and that is something really close to my heart. If only more people get off that mentality soon.
Also when I picked Queenie looking for a cheesy love story but instead found an intense book that spoke about several themes like sexism, feminism, sexual harassment at work and fetishising of Black women’s body. Though they were touched lightly, I am glad Queenie opened the topic at the least.
Things that worked for me
- I loved the flawed characters and the pains were real.
- Queenie talks about the importance of female friendship that sees through every up and down of her life.
- It opens up the topic about the stigma around mental health and taking steps to improve it.
Things that didn’t work for me
- I wish Queenie had spoken more about the racial and other issues.
- I was totally misled by the genre classification and the summary.
Bottom-line
If you loved dry British humor like Chewing Gum (Netflix) or Fleabag, you will love Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams. It totally surprised me and I think it is one of my best reads of 2019, as of now.
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![One day in December- A book review]()
review, Thriller, YA |
Do you ever give a book a second chance? I mean quite literally – like you read the first time and you don’t like it, but then you give it another chance and ending up appreciating it more? Well, that is what happened with The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon.
About the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Book Name: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Author: Mark Haddon
Genre: Fiction – Drama, Young adult
Characters: Christopher John Francis Boone, Toby, Wellington, Siobhan, Mr. Jeavons, Mrs. Alexander, Ed Boone, Judy Boone, Mr. and Mrs. Eileen Shears
Setting: England, The UK
Plot summary of the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Christopher John Francis Boone, a fifteen year old kid on the Autism/Asperger’s spectrum, is on a mission to find out who murdered his neighbour’s dog, Sherlock Holmes’ style. While he has a gift for math, he has difficulty reading other people’s emotion and hates being touched.
His father finds it difficult to understand his needs. His mother did it all for him until she died suddenly and now they are left to fend for themselves. Did he find the murderer? What happened to his mother? Read the rest of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time to know more.
Book review of the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
I rarely give books that I DNF-ed a second chance and I decided to read it because the Classics N Christie book club chose it as the BOTM. And I really wanted to know what happened in the book after I gave up and why everyone goes gaga over it.
Even though it plays the stereotypical high functioning autistic kid, this book helped me take a look at what happens inside the head of an autistic teen.
If I had to wonder what the difference was between the first time I read it and now, it is that I am more educated about the autistic spectrum, thanks to mainstream media and other books.
Things that worked for me
- While I found it hard to get into the first time I read it, I liked the non linear writing style now.
- I was genuinely surprised when the big reveal came up and I hadn’t guessed it at all.
- Christopher is a classic example of unreliable narrators, whom I love in general.
Things that didn’t work for me
Christopher falls straight into the holes of the stereotypes of autism in the mainstream media.
Bottom-line
I am glad I gave The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time a second chance and I wish that I liked it more. Sure I didn’t love it, but I didn’t dislike it as much I did the first time.
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![One day in December- A book review]()
Review Shots |
Do you remember a while ago I made a decision to focus on reading more classics this year? Well, I am definitely sticking to it, more or less. I am happy to announce that there are 7 classics of the 28 books I have read as on date. It seems to me that reading them is a lot simpler than reviewing classics.
Classics with little boys in them
This month on review shots I have picked up three classics that have little boys as one of their main characters. So let us get on with it shall we?
Little Lord Fauntleroy
Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett
Genre: Fiction – Children Classics
No. of Pages: 164
This rags to riches children classics revolves around Cedric and his family. His mother and the seven year old Cedric are one of those nice, kind and goody good people who barely make their ends meet in New York City. He is found to the inheritor to earldom in England and his newly found grandfather invites them back home. The grumpy, stubborn Earl already dislikes them even before he meets them.
How the charming boy turns the misanthropic grandfather around forms the rest of the story. I read Little Lord Fauntleroy as a part of the children’s classics challenge and surprisingly have never read it before.
It is always difficult to review a children’s book given that we are not the target audience. Despite that, I enjoyed this book and it would still be suitable for kids even in the current age.
Final thought: Clean and charming children’s tale
Recommended to: Children of 4-7 years old.
Turn of the Screw
Author: Henry James
Genre: Fiction – Classics Horror
No. of Pages: 131
This is one of the classic horror stories with a twist. When a young governess is given a chance to run a forlorn estate and teach two young and lovely children she decides to do her best. Troubles begin when the young boy is expelled from the school and she starts seeing a shadow man. Smitten by the master of the house and in an attempt to appear competent she decides to solve things by herself.
It appears that there are two dark creatures that want her innocent students and the estate’s haunting past makes it difficult for her to believe it is all her imagination. To make matters worst, the children seem to enjoy these visits and do not seem as innocent as she thought they were. How does she escape the nightmare and does she win in safe keeping the kids form the rest of the story.
I loved the ending that left things for the reader to decide if indeed the haunting was true or it is just an attention seeking behavior of the lonely and lovesick governess. The Turn of the Screw might be tedious read and frankly I was happy that it was a short story, I might have given up if it were any longer.
Final thought: Despite the intriguing story the writing seemed too tedious to enjoy
Recommended to: Classic and horror lovers
The Giver
Author: Lois Lowry
Genre: Fiction – Classics, Fantasy
No. of Pages: 204
The Giver is set in a dystopian world where everyone is assigned a job that they are good at when they turn twelve. This perfect world is devoid of colors, emotions and free will. Except for Jonas, who is chosen as the Giver, the receiver of memories – basically the only one who can question anything in the society.
But when he realizes what people are denied in seeking this apparent utopia, Jonas has a change of mind, He is ready to give up his assigned family and his prestigious role in the society to have a real life. What happens further and did he escape his society forms the rest of the book.
I read The Giver as a part of the Banned book club and I was surprised on why it was banned. While I liked the premise of the book I didn’t end up loving it, like many of my friends did. I understand that this is just the first part of the Giver Quartet and that might be a reason why it was such an underwhelming read for me.
Final thought: Short novel with bits of sci-fi element to it.
Recommended to: Science fiction lovers
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![One day in December- A book review]()
Thriller |
It has been a while since I posted a review of a book as soon as I finished reading it. But today is one of those days! I finished reading The Big Four by Agatha Christie just yesterday and I spent more than half a day today talking about it and here I am ready to write a review.
Is that a good thing or not? Read ahead to know more.
About the Big Four
Book Name: The Big Four
Author: Agatha Christie
Genre: Fiction – Thriller
Characters: Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings, Li Chang Yen, Madame Olivier, Abe Ryland, Number four
Setting: England, The UK
Plot summary of the Big Four
We are used to reading and loving the various murder mysteries set in London or other British cities and suburban towns. But with The Big Four, Christie sets us for a crime thriller with not one but four international super villains aiming at world domination against the grey cells of our Poirot and his dear friend Hastings.
A random guy dies in Poirot’s apartment, which ends to be a foul play. This sets the duo on wild goose chase against The Big Four – A Chinese mastermind, a French woman, an American and a mysterious number four, who always seem to be a step ahead of our dear detective.
How does he stop them from reaching their evil goal forms the rest of the story in The Big Four!
Book review of the Big Four
The Classics N Christie has been reading Agatha Christie’s books based on the publication dates. This has been very helpful for me to understand the different writing and story telling styles that the author has been trying. I wish I could The Big Four is one of those attempts, that kinda bombed for me.
Earlier in the Murder on the Links, Dame Christie tried her hand at romance in mystery novels which I didn’t enjoy much. I enjoyed her take on spy thriller even lesser. I just can’t wait to get back to cozy little town mysteries from her.
Things that worked for me
- The Big Four reminded me a lot of Sherlock vs Moriarty (I love that).
- It may work better if you pick the book when you are in the mood to read a spy thriller.
Things that didn’t work for me
- The Big Four seemed like a bundle of short mysteries badly woven together, which I found out to be true later. The Big Four was indeed published as a twelve short mysteries during a particularly bad time of Christie personally.
- There are too many named characters and most of them do not even reappear after a scene or two.
- I don’t like how Poirot somehow turned into James Bond at the end of the book. That is so not our Belgian detective.
Bottom-line
If you are looking to read a typical Christie or Poirot’s mystery you will be disappointed. I never thought I would read Christie’s book that would disappoint me as much, but here it is.
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