Top Ten Tuesday: Chocolate anyone?

 

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the topic is  Books with [___] On the Cover (Pick a thing (a color, an item, a place, an animal, a scripty font, a sexy person, etc.) and share covers that have that thing on the cover.) My thing is chocolate! Originally I was thinking about posting this last week in honour of Easter but then I saw that this was the next theme it seemed perfect for this week!

I'll start with the chocolate themed books I have read, then a few that I want to read.

Friends, Lovers, Chocolate by Alexander McCall Smith - The second book in the Isabel Dalhousie series set in Edinburgh (review here)

Bread and Chocolate by Philippa Gregory - I read this short story collection more than 15 years ago. I don't remember a thing about it though! (review here)

The Chocolate Run by Dorothy Koomson - I read several Koomson books and then haven't read another for years. I do remember really liking this one

The Chocolate Thief by Laura Florand - Laura Florand has an entire series of books with chocolate titles, and then a couple of others. If you love foodie romances, especially set in France, then this series is for you. (review here)

The Chocolate Tin by Fiona McIntosh - This book was chock-full of chocolate history, set just after the end of WWI.

Chocolate Cake for Breakfast by Danielle Hawkins - I've been known to have chocolate cake for breakfast on occasion! (review)

The Chocolate Chip Murder by Joanna Fluke - This ws the first book in the Hannah Swensen cozy mystery series. I read about 8 books in the series until I got annoyed with the love triangle. There are now 28 books in the series, many with chocolate titles, but I won't be going back seeing as it appears that the love triangle thing is still going.

The Chocolate Promise by Josephine Moon - Last year I read The Jam Queens by this author, and I still have this on my Kindle to read at some point.

The Chocolate Maker's Wife by Karen Brooks - I have this book sitting on my Kindle for a while too.

The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris by Jenny Colgan - I have read a number of books by Jenny Colgan over the years, but this one is still on the TBR list.

Have you read any other chocolate themed books?

Top Ten Tuesday: Things That Make Me Smile

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is Books that Make Me Smile. I am very conscious though, that many of the books that make me smile are the ones that I have already mentioned multiple times, so I was trying to think of other ways to spin this topic.

I did think I was onto a good thing when I thought that I would look for books that I have read that had words like smile in the title. It turns out I have read very few books with this word in the title, or grin, or any words like that. I needed a different tact.

My TTT list today is therefore a list of things that make me happy. So there are two books about music, two about cake, two about books, two about chocolate, and then finally two books with happy in the titles because these are just a few of the things that make me happy. And the fact that a couple of these books are set in Paris is a bonus. I have added a link to reviews where possible.

The Lost Love Song by Minnie Darke (review)

Music and Silence by Rose Tremain

Cake: A Global History by Nicola Humble (review)

Chocolate Cake for Breakfast by Danielle Hawkins (review)

The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (review)

The Chocolate Run by Dorothy Koomson

The Chocolate Thief by Laura Florand

Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts

The Garden of Happy Endings by Barbara O'Neal

I did want to cheat and share one more book this week. This is a performance of a children's book that I listened to this week, and it made me smile so many times. It is Taika Waititi and some of his friends reading Roald Dahl's James and the Giant Peach. It is pure joy to listen to, so here is the first episode.

Teaser Tuesday: The Ice Cream Girls by Dorothy Koomson

This week my teaser comes from The Ice Cream Girls by Dorothy Koomson. I first read this author a few years ago when I read the oh so good My Best Friend's Girl and ever since then I have been working my way through all her books. The premise for this one feels a bit different than her other books, so it will be interesting to see how it all pans out in the end.

My teaser comes from page 48:

When all the dots are joined, when he gets to the end of the puzzle, the policeman's face gives him away. It freezes in its inquisitive expression as everything falls into place and he connects the dot of my old name with the dot of my general description with the dot of my alleged crime. And there he has it; who the woman he's just pulled over is.

Tuesday is hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading. Head on over to find out  all about it, and how to join in!

The Cupid Effect by Dorothy Koomson

There's something magical about Ceri D'Altroy...

After departing London to follow her hearts desire to become a psychology lecturer, Ceri D'Altroy vows to leave her matchmaking ways behind her for good. Unfortunately, all she seems to do is inspire the new people she meets to change their lives.

There's Ed, who's decided to declare his love to a woman who is way out of his league; Mel and Claudine, two long-term friends who are now tempted to start an illicit affair; and Gwen, the chain-smoking head of department who has a deep, dark secret she only wants to share with her new employee.

No one who comes into contact with Ceri is ever the same again. Could this unsuspecting young woman be a modern-day Cupid?

When Ceri decides to follow her dream, that means leasing out the London apartment that she has worked so hard to obtain, and moving into a share house in Leeds and starting to lecture of psychology whilst doing some research. It's also a chance to leave the past behind, and for Ceri that means a chance to be able to stop being that person who everyone comes to to try and sort out their problems. To aid in that, Ceri writes herself a list of commandments:

1. Thou shalt sort out thy cardiovascular system

2. Thou shalt NOT get involved in other people's lives

3. Even if they're really, really nice thou shalt remember Commandment 2

4. Thou shalt think before thy speaks

5. Thou shalt think again before thy speaks

6. Thou shalt watch less Angel

7. Thou shalt remember that Angel is a 250-year-old vampire who dated Buffy The Vampire Slayer, not the man you're going to be with forever and ever.

As a character Ceri herself was a lot of fun. She is a trekkie who has a rather unhealthy obsession with Angel from Buffy and who people like to talk to. She also does seem to have an affect on people where she makes them feel like they need to be in love and when they do have love problems, she is always available with good advice. In Leeds that means walking a fine line between Mel and Claudine, two best friends who can't decide if they want to be together or not. There is also Ed, her housemate who is in love with a girl who seems to be completely out of his league, her boss, several of her students and a couple of random strangers! Of course, there is also that strange man who just stares at her all the time as well.

I did enjoy hearing about Ceri's previous disastrous love affairs, including the one with Whathisname Tosspot! Made me laugh every time I saw that because, quite frankly, it pretty much could be my ex's pet name!

This was Koomson's first book and honestly you can tell. It is not as good as My Best Friends Girl but certainly has charm and you can tell that as an author Dorothy Koomson has got talent and potential. If anything this book suffered a little in trying to come up with a theory as to why Ceri has the effect that she has on people - it just seemed a little try hard.

Despite the reservations I have about this, her first book, I am looking forward to reading more from her. When I read My Best Friend's Girl, that was the only book of Dorothy Koomson's that was in my library system. Fortunately for me, they have now got this one and another two beside, and hopefully will be getting the newest book Goodnight Beautiful which is out in the UK in August.

My Best Friend's Girl by Dorothy Koomson

Kamryn Matika has no responsibilities - one birthday card will change that for ever.... Best friends Kamryn Matika and Adele Brannon thought nothing could come between them - until Adele did the unthinkable and slept with Kamryn's fiance, Nate. Worse still, she got pregnant and had his child. When Kamryn discovered the truth about their betrayal she vowed never to see any of them again. Two years later, Kamryn receives a letter from Adele asking her to visit her in hospital. Adele is dying and begs Kamryn to adopt her daughter, Tegan. With a great job and a hectic social life, the last thing Kamryn needs is a five-year-old to disrupt things. Especially not one who reminds her of Nate. But with no one else to take care of Tegan and Adele fading fast, does she have any other choice? So begins a difficult journey that leads Kamryn towards forgiveness, love, responsibility and, ultimately, a better understanding of herself.

I first heard about this book over at Karen Scott's blog. The review that she wrote was one of those that made me go...I have to read this book now! Yes, it took me 3 months to do so (and a bit longer to get to write this review), but it was definitely worth getting this book out of the library.

The only problem I had was that I started reading it on the train on the way home from work one day, and given that I started crying on the second page that was probably a mistake! I went back to read Karen's review when I got home to see if there was sufficient warning that this was going to be one of those books that made me cry...and there really was! Once I kept reading, in the privacy of my own home, I cried and laughed throughout this book and thoroughly enjoyed my read!

Please don't think that this is a morose or depressing book because it really isn't! The story IS emotional, but there are sufficient moments of joy and humour (and love) to be able to balance out those emotional moments, without trying to undermine the backbone of the novel or resorting to cliches.

In closing, I would really encourage you to read Karen's review of this book by clicking on the link above! She has done an excellent job of dissecting the characters and the story - far better than I can possibly do!

This is the only Koomson book that my library has, which is a shame because I would love to read more by this author! Watch out Book Depository here I come!

Rating 4.5/5