CHILDREN'S BOOKS

Don't you just love children's books? They're so cute. Takes me back to the days when I was young and I pestered my dad to make me some bookshelves which he did and then paint them, which he did - bright pink with purple stripes! But I was ever so proud because then I could put all my books on my shelf and show it off to my friends. Back in those days I had heaps of books and I guess it was good for my parents to see them sitting on a shelf instead of all over the bedroom floor.

So when I was able to read 'The Magic Window' by author John M. H. Pratt it took me back to those days of when I delighted in those types of books.

The Magic Window is a  picture book story of a family of robins who build a nest in a colourful picturesque setting. The author has photographed the pictures himself and brings alive the  natural habitat of the family as the babies hatch, grow and learn to fly.

It's a wonderful bed time story for the littelies and I'm sure many praents and grandparents will love reading it to them.

Michelle
xx

TOE THE LINE by Dick Hannah

What can I say about this book except that it was awesome. There is a fine line between murder mystery and romance when they are combined but Hannah wrote it so well, in fact, I fell in love with his characters. And the literary descriptions he gives us of Seattle (the city in which the story takes place) are beyond what I'd expect from a relatively new author. He made me think I was there too!

Small business owner and triathlete Wynn Johnston, finds his life in turmoil when his training and business partner, Wheeler, is murdered at Seattle airport. As Wynn delves into the Wheeler's past he unravels a past that his friend was involved in. And the murderer is stalking him across Seattle.

Of course, what's a murder mystery without a little bit of romance huh? So of course and maybe for us ladies, Hannah has delightfully added a touch of this there for us.

I hope Mr Hannah that you truly enjoy writing books as I believe you do, for I will certainly be waiting for your next one.

Michelle
xx

DRAMA COMES TO PRIOR'S FORD - By Eve Houston

In the first edition of  the 'Prior's Ford' series by Eve Houston, we left the residents with their situation of the quarry settled , yet not all was resolved in the lives of the villagers.

This time around, we pick up from there and are welcoming a popular television soap actress to the village.
An aloof step-daughter arrives and seeks refuge and consolation.
Unexpected news from up at 'Linn Manor' causes alarm.
And another long, lost step-daughter moves in, that sweet little toddler has become a difficult teenager with a grudge to settle.

Oh how I'd LOVE to live in a village just like this one! I wonder sometimes if village life is like that in the real world?

The settings are still so impossibly close to how I'd imagine them to be, because Eve Houston has taken the trouble to explain in detail about the area where 'Prior's Ford' is situated, though I'm pretty sure it's fictional.
Here's a run down of what you might expect if you are ever lucky to visit.

http://www.visitdumfriesandgalloway.co.uk/

Enjoy my fellow booklovers!
Michelle
xx

SECRETS IN PRIOR'S FORD - by Eve Houston

Hello once again my fellow booklovers! How are you all doing? It's been so nice to catch up with you all. I've been really quite busy with my new series of books about Prior's Ford. Written by Eve Houston she has sequels and I'm very much enjoying them.

As you know, I'm into all those books that relate to fictional village life and these fit the reading bill nicely. It's like Rebecca Shaw all over again but with different kinds of twists and turns. So far I've bought three of them from Amazon and was lucky to down load one free via Kindle so it's all good.

The first book is called 'Secrets In Prior's Ford'. There is consternation among the villagers of pretty Scottish Borders town Prior's Ford' when a firm expresses interest in reopening an old granite quarry. Publican Glen organises a protest group then starts to feel nervous with the outcome. Jenny Forsyth is shocked that someone comes forward from her past. Newly widowed Clarissa Ramsay discovers her deceased husband Keith had a secret life while up at Linn Hall the owners realise they have much more at stake  with the changes threatened by the quarry reopening.

Such fun books to read. Eve Houston has done well to explain the outline of the village and the residents lives - it's like your actually there! I love being in the moment with a book and this delivers.
So, if your into these lovely books and enjoy light easy reading then I say, look them over.

CROCHET PATTERN BOOKS

Love to crochet. I've had this hobby since I was a teenager. Though I can't knit and have been shown numerous times, I'm a mean crochet blanket maker. Now, I'm going into the tricky side of it (well for me anyway), I'm going to attempt to crochet ladies tops. It's the treble and funny names they have that I'm going to have to learn but at least I can pick up a stitch quite easily if I drop it, not like knitting where I can never find the damn thing when I drop/lose it.

So I've finished heaps of baby blankets now and have given them away as little gifts to anyone I know who's expecting the stork some time soon, so why not give my hand to little matinee tops for bubs and some pretty tops for the ladies?

Hmmm, see how I go.

I did find some great books for crochet learners that I've linked to the side bar. One I purchased has easy, peasy instructions, the book for 'dummies' like moi.

Do any of you crochet?
Do you have any easy, peasy patterns?

Michelle
xx

CALLING ALL MAEVE BINCHY FANS!!!!!!

I've enjoyed all of Maeve Binchy's books so far and I've still yet to read some more. Began with 'Tara Road' and liked it so much I bought the DVD, though as I've said in my very first blog post here, movies never really come close to the reading. But enough of the movie stuff, the book 'Tara Road' had me imagining all types of scenes, what with the much talked about house and it's renovations, Rita and Marilyn - the main two characters -  who decide to get away from it all after tragedies are hurled at them out of the blue, and with those life changes comes huge adjustments. There is the loveable 'Quentins' restaurant where a lot of soul searching takes place.

With Maeve Binchy at her best, she takes 'Quentins' through a few more novels and we are allowed to be swept into the lives of new characters but with the twist of them all knowing one another whether it be friend or foe.

Not all of Maeve Binchy's novels are about this particular field, other books she's written are just good ole' Irish reading novels - yet you get the feeling of the most cosiest kind with each and every one of her stories.

Since 1982 Meave Binchy has notched up a dozen or so novels and short stories. I loved her quick read books, and all of these have become best sellers.

Have a little read of one of her novels on the bookloverscouch and I'm sure you'll be wanting more.

Check her out at the  link on the right hand side and let me know what you think.

Michelle
xx

THE SHIFTING FOG. author - Kate Morton

With over one million copies sold worldwide, it's no wonder this murder mystery was a real page turner.
Published as 'The House At Riverton', the title 'The Shifting Fog' is actually the name the fictional character Ursula calls it. Ursula decides to make a movie about the murder that took place at 'The House At Riverton', but she wants and does name the movie 'The Shifting Fog'. Hope I haven't confused you there but that's why this book can be found under both titles.

Loveable old Grace is the character who holds the key to the mystery. She knew exactly what took place that night back in 1924 and yet it was a secret that she never intended to be told. Now that Grace is residing in an old aged nursing home in the year 1999, she's introduced to the young Ursula who is intent on telling the story.

The book is written from past to present tense and yet we don't lose track due to the writing habit of author Kate Morton - she makes it very easy for us to follow.

Still, a riveting book that it is, I was often reminded of the movie 'Titanic' where Rose is taken back from her old age to her younger days upon the oceanliner with Jack. The 'Shifting Fog' does the same, ever so gracefully.

Please take the time to read this book, it really was a can't-put-down type of book and a pleasure to read.
Michelle
xx

KINDLE V'S BOOK

So you've all read about me buying a Kindle yes? Ok, well I love it! Have downloaded many books, finding it quite easy to use and have become very fond of it. In fact I'd recommend them to anyone (thanks everyone who commented on my blog about it).

And you've all read about the amount of books I'd accrued over the years and how I my home was turning into a library yes? Ok, well lately I've just been giving the books away as I still haven't got to the market stall to sell them, nor do I see myself actually having the time to do that so giving them away was probably for the best and I have to say I felt like I was saying goodbye to old friends as I packed them lovingly into boxes and then watched sadly as they were taken away to new homes. I wonder what they're doing now? I wonder if their pages are being tenderly turned as their new owner gets to know them?

I wandered back into my hubby's office the other night (wow, you can really move around in there now that the books have gone) and was elated to find half a dozen paperbacks still sitting on the shelf. After glancing over them I remembered I'd kept those particular unread ones for later reading. So now I've been taking in some early reading nights as it's winter and there's nothing like a good snuggle up with a paperback, leccy blanket and a hot milo. But then I found myself glancing over to my Kindle and wondering should I read one of the novels I've downloaded? Not that I'm not enjoying paperbacks - it's just that I KNOW  there is some really good reading material on that Kindle too! Maybe I'm just greedy and want to read them all at once. Maybe I think the next one on the Kindle is better than the paperback I'm currently reading. Wouldn't it be great if we could read them all at once? I know some people can read more than one at a time but I'm not that very advanced ha,hahahahasnort.

So I've come to the decision that I'll read one paperback and then one off the Kindle and so on.
Sigh..........I love all books and wonder which you prefer?

Michelle
xx

THE NEW RECTOR - Rebecca Shaw

Of course I would have to pick up the one book that was in the middle of the sequence novels from author Rebecca Shaw wouldn't I?
'Whispers In The Village' caught my eye one day as I was visiting my local library and so I bought it, read it, loved it and THEN realised I'd just read a book within a series! Don't you just hate that? I've really got to start reading the intro's so I know if  I should be reading the first one first - get my meaning?
But it was a good thing 'cause it opened my love of  reading about  'Turnham Malpas' which is a small english village somewhere in fiction land. The books don't evolve around just one or two of the villagers but intertwines with the other loveable characters who also reside in 'Turnham Malpas' .

Rebecca Shaw introduces us to each and every one of them and if your not sure whether you'll like them or not, as the sequences unravel one after the other, you'll find yourself either in sympathy with them or finding they are really loveable characters. Often you are left feeling you are right there with them. Rebecca began writing the  'Tales From Turnham Malpas' series back in 1994 with the 'New Rector' and has continued through with sixteen follow ups to the present.

I just love these types of books with tales of village life. If anyone can tell of more that are similar, I'd love to hear from you.

Michelle
xx

TROUBLE IN MUDBUG - A Ghost-In-Law Mystery

Straight to the point here, some reviews of this book said it had too much sex and not enough mystery. Personally, I thought it was heavy on the sex and,  in agreement with the reviews, not enough mystery as the title suggests. So beware booklovers, it's not one for the youngsters.

When I found myself skimming a few pages in search of the ghost plot, I found I was still able to keep on track of the parts I hadn't read. Meaning, I hadn't missed much at all.

The characters are loveable but the scenes misled me. I was under the impression that the town 'Mudbug' was of a small population, but every now and then I found it was getting larger - and so I was confused.

There are a few scientific views in this book which mind boggled me and I found it wasn't as intriguing as it was meant to be - or it may be just that  I  expected something different. Look, I wouldn't say not to buy it, afterall, you have to make that decision, but for what it's worth you have to read the second series to find out who the murderer is; and if anyone can find that out for me, I'd appreciate it.

Michelle
xx

MIDSOMER MURDERS ON LOCATION.

I'm a glutton for anything about English villages and so it's no surprise that I'm a book lover of all things of the english nature,
Midsomer Murders, I've been watching since it began and I still enjoy watching the repeats. If anything, not only are the murders all things gory, but the countryside settings and villages are what keep me tuned in (oh and the fact that the detectives, John and Tom Barnaby are cute).

I love seeing the settings for market places, fetes, churches and the county our detectives are seen driving through, it's simply stunning.
Midsomer Murders On Location has listed all the relevant motels, inns, restaurants, bridges, roads, lanes and counties where it's all filmed. If your like me ( a foreigner) to all these areas, then maps have been marked within the book to help guide us through with the help of markings for any specifics.
In fact, one of the privately owned manors where a gruesome murder took place looks deceptively like 'Downton Abbey'. Over one hundred locations used for filming 'Midsomer Murders' are listed - some with beautiful pictures too!

Actually, this is a book I won in a competition and have decided it's definately NOT one for a swap or sale. You see, when hubby and I visit England we shall be able to use this book as a reference guide because it tells you where the murders happened - how exciting!

I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have.

Michelle
xx

INSIDE BUCKINGHAM PALACE - THE PRIVATE WORLD OF THE ROYAL FAMILY.

Love, love, love this book!
Everything I ever wanted to know (because I'm a sticky beak at the best of times) about the intricities of the palace and the family that resides within, is bought to life in this wonderful book.
Without giving too much away I'm going to give you a run-down of what's inside - it's a bit like itching to know what that particular house down the road is like on the inside.

THE HOUSE - Oh gosh! It gives us a floor plan of the main floor and the bedroom floor with an adjacent picture of the exterior of the palace so you can visually work your way around the outside and see where rooms are situated. It even shows you where the junk room is! Well, I s'pose every home has one.

AT HOME - Yes, the royal family have their moments, just like the rest of us in that the kids play up just when you don't need them to. Who would've thought! The family enjoy shows like Coronation Street, Eastenders and like us they entertain guests and have dinner parties, only some of those are a tad larger with the head count than what we'd ever engage in.

UPSTAIRS DOWNSTAIRS - Ah, it's troublesome at times to employ the right house help isn't it?  But the 'help' do enjoy their gossip  - among their own of course. Like Prince Charles trying to negotiate the hot versus cold taps in the bathroom.
Every day, staff organise on-going delivery vans which are full of groceries, flowers, it's just a never-ending stream, but a very well oiled machine. There's no time for mishaps and there's even a ghost in the palace, so the staff say.

BY ROYAL COMMAND - If one is ever lucky enough to receive an invitation to the palace for dinner then one would be taken to the Ballroom. Did you know, it takes three days to set the table? From the laying of the tablecloth right down to the exit of the plates, it's mapped out how the footman, cooks and washer upperers get their jobs done in no time.They have signal lights which aide the staff for timing purposes. Nifty idea hey? I thought about that for my own home but my family,  full of males,  aren't very good with commands.

There's so much more in this book which makes it very, very interesting. It's only 96 pages but there are some excellent insights, pictures and maps, you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Enjoy
Michelle
xx

REPORTING ROYALTY BY JENNIE BOND

Jennie Bond is/was the BBC's royal correspondent. She takes us behind the scenes with meetings and greetings of the royal family. The book, illustrated throughout with pictures takes us around the world with the royals as she corresponds.

The news feeds are as it happens and the close encounters she has are a real royal eye opener.

I was amazed at what actually happens within the walls of the palaces, the press conferences, photo footage and the attempts she (Jennie) makes to get them.

A good book if your a fan of the royal family.

My Kindle For Mother's Day! Yayyyyyy!!!!!!!!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY MUMS!!!!!!!!!

Very special edition here today. As it's Mother's Day today I'd like to wish all mum's a very special Mother's Day and hope you all get spoilt rotten.

So, I've got my kindle, it was all wrapped up pretty and nice with a ribbon. At the moment I'm looking at it in awe as I really don't know where to start as the excitement of buying my own Mother's Day present last week has left me shell-shocked in the nicest way. But I have roamed Amazon and know what I'm going to purchase (that's a secret for you all - you'll find out soon enough) and I have the Kindle sitting right next to me charging, next to the flowers, chocolates and slippers that I also got heh, heh.

But I've a question.
Can any of you tell me what does one do with the book once you've downloaded it on Kindle and read it?
How do I then get rid of it?
Can I sell it or pass it over to some other Kindle owner, or even swap it?

I'd very much appreciate any know how on this.

Anyhoo, must get ready for my luncheon date with the two very special and handsome men in my life - hubby and son. Although, they may have to take a back seat now that I've got a Kindle in my life!

Michelle
xx

AS I AM - ABBA BEFORE AND BEYOND - AGNETHA FALTSKOG

Whenever I hear 'Dancing Queen' on the radio, on telly  or at Karaoke venues, I get the need to sing along. As young girls, my friend Sharon and I used to pretend we were the girls from Abba and with hairbrushes as microphones, the record on full throttle, we'd belt out their songs in front of the mirror. Sharon of course had to be the blonde one because she really has got blonde hair and so naturally I had to be the dark haired one - much to my dismay - but I really pretended I was the blonde one.

And so I have every record and every book that Abba ever  recorded or printed.

I'd heard about,  'As I Am - Abba Before And Beyond'  but was unable to buy it as it was not  printed any longer. Yet years later, I did a search on Ebay and won it by auction at a cost to me which I care not to disclose (in case my husband reads this). Certainly I paid more than the original owner would have,  but I was determined and it was down to just two of us eager buyers, battling it out until I finally won! It's quite a large book and so I also had a heavy postage cost. But was it worth it?
YES!

Beautifully illustrated, Agnetha has chosen some iconic pictures - some black and white, some coloured - which present us with memories of that era. But she doesn't just stop there, for as the title says, the book is also in favour of  'Beyond Abba'. Rather a telling insight as to how she has coped with life after Abba, her divorce, her children, new love life and of course her professional career.

Agnetha really does lift the lid on those rumours of her being a recluse. She has let her guard down with this auto-biography and must be applauded for telling the story straight.

I highly recommend this book for all you Abba fans. It's one not to miss.

Enjoy!

Michelle
xx

                                                               

I GOT ME A KINDLE!!!!!!!!!!

Yes I did!
A friend kindly loaned me hers when she found out I was looking into getting one.
You see, I had a girly night last Friday and we sat around drinking lots of wine and eating goodies and you know, you get talking about stuff and of course Mother's Day came up and I mentioned that I was getting myself one - or rather, son and hubby are! Leanne, my friend said she had one and she loves it and she'd bring it around for me to check out. I showed her the picture of the one I was interested in from Dick Smith's and she said hers was the same or similar.

So the following morning I had it in my hot little hands. I made quite a few mistakes with it - couldn't get the grasp of it and wanted to be rid of it. Leanne had said there was no keyboard at the bottom of it and she preferred it that way so she didn't keep knocking the keys with the palm of her hand.

Instead, with hers you have to touch the screen to turn pages etc and I found that extremely hard to do. It's not a screen that you can just tap, more a whack, and I was worried I'd hurt it and have to buy her a new one. She also said the instructions were inside the kindle screen as well, but after many attempts at whacking it, I still haven't found them. I also noticed that Leanne has left sticky markings in the top left hand corner (probably from whacking) and that of course has ruined the look of it and makes it tricky to read.

But I didn't let that deter me, I was on a mission to see if the Dick Smith one was of any difference - doesn't hurt to try before you buy.

Yesterday I took myself to Dick's store and there it was. Exactly the same as I'd imagined. Oooohhhhhhh how exciting! And a nice young salesman helped me out with it all just as I thought.

Ok, the one I purchased (which is the one I've been talking about) doesn't have a keyboard, but does have three buttons. One for turning the page, one for instructions and one for anything else that you need to do. So much more handier than having a keyboard OR having to whack the screen. And it's very comfortable to handle along with a slightly bigger screen than Leanne's. The nice young salesman showed me the hmmmmm, what's it called, (trying to remember now), oh it's the folder which you can put the kindle in so it's like your holding a book. So with that,  I also topped up the purchase with a screen protector, which Leanne didn't mention she had AND I can read it without having to have the big light on, nor the little torch thingy that can be used if you choose to do so. My bedside lamp will be plenty of lighting.

Only problem now is I can't open it until Mother's Day!

KINDLE

Hmmmmmm, to get one or not.
As I've said before, I've got that many books it's really not funny anymore. I think hubby is secretly becoming a bit overwhelmed with it all as they are stuffed into three rooms now,  though he's not really saying much, I can read between the lines.

Recently we had to buy a new laptop, later we found out we could've had the old one fixed for a minimal charge and would have saved ourselves heaps of money. But the nice gentleman who fixed it for us (so we can have it on standby) mentioned to my hubby that he  purchased a Kindle for his wife. For him to have mentioned this to my said hubby, I firmly believe they were talking about their said wives! Ok, not a bad thing as long as they were nice things I guess?
So hubby comes home last night to find me searching through his office for my books. Yes ok, I've got a few in there - well I had to find more room didn't I?
Anyway, he had to venture into his own office when I was in there didn't he and so that's how I got caught and gave him the opportunity to tell me something  that had been playing on his mind since he'd spoken to the computer doctor. The Kindle!

Oh I didn't like the idea, I denied that I have a few too many books, I said he would get his office back once I had sold all the books at the market (which I completely forgot about and now it's put off until next month), I 'd feel like I was the computer reading by a Kindle instead of having a real book in my hands to curl up with and how was I to learn about another new gadget at my age?

But the  'what else can I do and I need my office back'  look on his face said it all - I really need to do something about it and he was right of course.
So I patiently listened, yes let him have his five minutes, and as I did I was thinking I should probably open my mind to a Kindle.
He said  the computer doctor's wife was  a book worm too and she also kicked and screamed at the idea when he suggested it to her.
Fancy, married couples fighting over books!
But he bought one for her anyway and  she loves it!

Now, I realize books can be downloaded onto a Kindle and you can have thousands at the ready, but I didn't realize how much cheaper it would be to purchase the amount of books you want nor the fact that they would be there ready to read within minutes.
So to pacify hubby, I  Googled  information about Kindles.

Oh my, there are a few out there aren't there?

But the one that has caught my eye is 'Kindle Wi-Fi 6" e-reader.
It looks ok, the price looks reasonable and I'm going to go and have a little look at it. I bet when I do there will be countless others that I'm supposed to try and get my head around,  but I'm sure a nice young salesperson will take  pity on me and help/try to explain the technology of it.
The one thing I did read about Kindles is that you need good lighting or at least a little torch thingy that is attached to the kindle. Hmmmmm, my mind wonders, would this deter me from trying to balance and read the kindle at the same time as having my hot milo in my hands? Would it mean that if I don't have the torch thingy attached that I need to read with the big light on at night when I really prefer to have the bedside lamp on?
I don't know, I'm not sure, but the benefits of having so many books at the one time loaded into a Kindle,  kinda makes me a little excited!

I also Googled the books I could download, lots of different sites for them, too many to mention so I'd appreciate some help here guys.
Amazon seemed to have a few books from some of my favourite authors that I hadn't known about so that was fun and to think, I could have them within minutes!
And then there are other book sites that I've yet to get to.

Mother's Day is in two weeks and so hubby and son  are going to surprise me with one after I've chosen it. Yes, I'm going to have a go at a Kindle.

So who of you have a Kindle, e-Reader and what's the difference please?


Michelle
xx

LITTLE VAMPIRE WOMEN - Louisa May Alcott and Lynn Messina

This delightful book caught my attention because of the obvious title 'Little Vampire Women'
I remember being presented with 'Little Women'  one Christmas and if my memory is correct it would've been given to me by my Grandma, as my mother wasn't a reader - and  I kept that book amongst my favourites in my bookshelf. I'd read it several times more in my lifetime just for the joy of it!

So imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon 'Little Vampire Women' when I was Christmas shopping last year. Actually, I was looking for a particular book for my twenty year old son. He's not a reader either - well not much - but if there's one he's interested in I'll buy it for him. Anyway, that's how I found 'Little Vampire Women'. Of course I had to buy it and then put it in my own little bundle of presents under the Christmas tree with the tag reading 'To My Darling Wife, Love Phil xxx', cute huh?

So, the March sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy have been rewritten, though in the same era, not in the same existence. They've become vampires in this book. They must still learn to get along, Marmee is still their rock and they are still falling in love, but it's the way their men end up that kept me interested. So really, the base of the story hasn't changed, it's the March family that have.

The two authors, Louisa May Alcott and Lynn Messina combine their writing talents to keep the reader not only interested in the story but also include adaptions as to where they found the information regarding vampires and their traits.
Admittedly, those sources led me to look further afield into the lives of REAL vampires - very interesting material. So thankyou Louisa May Alcott and Lynn Messina for making good reading turn into good hunting.

Now there may be some of you that might want to leave the original 'Little Women' in your mind as you remember them, but please be reassured that 'Little Vampire Women' is only a comical look at them and there are many hilarious lines to make you keep wanting to turn the page.

Michelle
xx

                                                            

I DREAM OF JEANNIE

C'mon ladies, hands up to those who ever wanted to be just like Jeannie?

Who ever wanted to have a handsome master, a bottle of a home and magic powers with a blink of an eye?

I DID!!!!!!!!

It's great to still see re-runs of the show on television, years after it's making and why not? Such a relief to see some light hearted comedy on the tube these says isn't it?

So you can imagine how chuffed I was to find this book written by Barbara Eden with Wendy Leigh, talk about a win! This book is delightful to read as Barbara takes us through the highs and lows of her life. From the intro beginning on the first day of filming 'I Dream Of Jeannie' pilot, to the present, it is definately a captive read. She masterfully (pardon the pun) takes us back in time to the heyday of the series and of course, lets us into a few little secrets along the way.

Then of course there are the tragedies that happened in her personal life - a very brave woman to tell the story. I like her open honesty and the fact that she hasn't hidden the truth which is probably why the title of the book is called 'Jeannie Out Of The Bottle'.

But there are glorious pictures Barbara has decided to share with us and it shows a woman who has courage, love and much adoration for her family.

I liked this book so much I wanted to share it with you and hope that you too find it as enjoyable as I have.

Michelle

xx

DEATH AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE

Rather a quirky kind of book but very cute. I had a lot of fun reading this one as I'm keen to know what goes on inside Buck House, how it runs, the maids, butlers, cooks etc and of course the great lady herself  -  yes the Queen, has even been written into this hard to put down book.
Of course, it's only a fictional book so readers, don't take it as truth. If you want to read a little fun whilst solving the murder then you'll enjoy this one.

Robin Tukes, aspiring actor and also footman at the palace has been murdered and his close friend and housemaid Jane Bee, sets herself the task of finding out 'whodunnit'.

I love the way author C.C. Benison allows her sleuth to take us on a tour of the grand palace whilst giving us  juicy scandal PLUS murder, combined with the fact that her busy days also include how to get gum out of the carpets in the State Rooms!
Credit to C.C. Benison also for detailing a map of the corridors and rooms for the book, so us readers can follow the footsteps of the murderer and the staff.

Ah, yes sit back and enjoy this one booklovers - just as I did.

Oh, by the way and before I forget, for those of you that really enjoy reading this book,  C.C. Benison has followed up with another of the same titled 'DEATH AT SANDRINGHAM HOUSE'.



Michelle
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Oh boy, the books I've got! I've mentioned that before right? The lovely lady across the road is an avid reader and like myself she has hoardes of books. What does she do with them I hear you asking? Well she gives them to moi. Yup, I've got more now than I've ever had and they're beginning to pile up, and up, and up. Remember I told you how I cleaned my office/come now library out,  well now it looks as though it's NEVER been touched. I've books in every corner and have now had to revert to packing them in upstairs in a spare bedroom. And remember how I told you I'd sell them at a market stall? Yes, yes, you do remember! Well that market stall was today and I forgot. Thought I had a week or so to organise myself BUT ohhhhhhh noooooooo I was too busy organising the books into boxes to take to the market stall. So now they sit and wait until next month UNLESS I look in the local newspaper and browse the 'Community NoticeBoard' for another stall that may come up in the meantime and before the lovely lady across the road gives me anymore. But she is sweet and I've given her some of mine and yet she's asked me to stop for a while as she has too many. I bet if she and I merged our downstairs offices together, we 'd have a bookshop!
It'd be interesting to know how many I actually have. Maybe do a book count. Nah, don't have the time.

I'm off to my bookloverscouch now with my latest novel 'Murder On The Orient Express' but somehow I'm not getting 'into it'. Usually if I'm 'into' a book by the third page I know it's going to be a good one. However, Agatha Christie may surprise me and the next page I turn maybe the 'I'm into it now' page.
Hmmmm................................hope so, the Dame has never failed me before.

Michelle
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SITES I LOVE!

Browsing around today and found an awesome site called 'The Official Information and Community Website'  - AgathaChristie.com
This site allows you to become a member for free and sample some juicy gossip about the great Dame Agatha Christie. Members can keep track of what books they have read and which books they'd like to read. There is also a 'Christie and her Stories' section containing info on all her sleuths we have to love including:
Poirot
Miss Marple
Tommy and Tuppence
Ariadne Oliver
Harley Quin
Parker Pyne
Hastings and
Chief Inspector Japp.
These are kind of small bios of the sleuths and are worth a look.

The section  I'm particularly fond of is the 'Christie Maps'. Now, this is great as it allows you to see the areas where the novels have taken place but you really need to check it out for yourselves.

Twitter and Facebook fans will be delighted with the sites 'News and Insight' section, it tells you where and when you can get the latest versions of hardback copies.

'Buy Books, DVD'S, etc is the section where I've been spending a LOT of time today - just looking, just sighing,- makes one want to start buying and reading Christies whole collection all over again.

Now, the FUN section! 'Community and Events'. There are murder games to play, you can even have your own  say so hence a forum if you like, a book club and wait for it.....................(drum roll) a 'Swap and Sell' section!

Oh geez guys, I've just fallen in love with this site - I can't seem to get enough of it! I click on one link, then I'm off to another.
Yup, get on your bookloverscouch and enjoy!

MURDER IS EASY!

Well it may be easy for Agatha Christie to write 'Murder I Easy', but trying to find the murderer is a whole different ball game.
I think I only ever solved ONE mystery of hers, unfortunately I was never able to succeed again. She was just too good with all those twists and plots, likewise with this novel of a mass murderer on the loose.
'Murder Is Easy' is a novel where you want to curl up on the couch (preferably 'Bookloverscouch') and track each murder as the story unfolds with murder after murder after murder.
Not an easy murderer to catch, in fact this one is quite illusive and if you want to solve the mystery then keep abreast of things in this novel.
That's my sound advice for today.

Michelle
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SITES I LOVE!

Wow! Just found this great site Blogadvertisingstore.com by searching different ways of blogging.
Of course first impressions count don't they? Well their site for us bloggers is great! All very easy to understand, even for computer illiterates like myself. The layout was pleasing to the eye and too, it's a very informative site where I found my questions already answered. I've registered with them already, it takes only a minute to sign up and there you are, on your way to blogging.
So there you go bloggers everywhere, check this site out - it's awesome!

Michelle

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MORE AGATHA CHRISTIE!

Today, I cleaned out my office. I have found book after book crammed into the cupboard and can't see myself clear of what I'm going to do with them. Maybe sell them at the market stalls? Geez I don't know. You should see the floor of my office, just stepping over them I am ha,ha.

But you know what I did find?
Of course Agatha Christie novels yayyyyyyy!!!!!!!!
Quite forgot that I had them and what fun it was to leaf through them again.
'Murder Is Easy'  was at the top of the pile so I picked it up and do you know, I can't remember 'whodunnit'?
So, looks like I'm going to have to read it allllllll over again - shame (not).

And guess what?
'Murder On The Orient Express' arrived today too! What a great Agatha Christie world I've been living in today.

The Life And Times Of Miss Jane Marple.

Anne Hart takes us through twelve novels  and twenty short stories   in which gave us thought as to what exactly Miss Marple does when not sleuthing. A very apt book with a probable truth to how the little lady spends her days. Well, we know she loves her garden and visiting the local church, speaks highly of her nephew Raymond and is able to travel to quite a few destinations, considering she has never married and so has no husband to help with the lifestyle she has become accustomed to.
Anne Hart does her very best to sort through the 'behind the scenes' if you like of Miss Marples life and I must say, she has made superb writing material, thankyou Anne for a wonderful read.

I made the purchase of 'The Life And Times Of Miss Marple' through Harper Collins, but I'm sure it could be found if you want a really good book to read at most bookstores.

I believe there has also been a similar book written for Agatha Christies other sleuth, Hercule Poirot.
I'm badly in need of this book if anyone could be of assistance or lead me to the end of the mystery as to where I can find it?


Still waiting for my 'Murder On The Orient Express' novel to arrive but it can't be long now! ;)

Michelle
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WELCOME TO THE BOOKLOVERSCOUCH!

Well..........I've been reading books for as long as I can remember and that's a long time! Many thanks to my Grandma who lead me along this path to an all-time favourite past time. She always had a book in her hand. Her house was library to me so young.She'd lay snug in her bed with a book and a hot chocolate whilst I was always curious to know what she was reading, so she'd let me cuddle into her and read along with her. Most of them were Mills and Boone romance novels but every now and then she'd throw in a mystery thriller which were my favourite.
And that's where it all began.
Reading books became my passion, always keen to get home from school to pay a frequent visits to the library where I spent most of my time - as my friends lived a car drive away and as both my parents worked, I had no driver, so the library was it. Not that I minded, the library was better than doing homework and at least Mum and Dad knew where'd I'd be.
The local library was a short stroll up the hill from home and there I was happy. Even the librarians got used to me and I felt I knew those library walls inside out.
And oh, how I wished I could get into the adult section and sneak a peek at the mystery novels. Thanks to Grandma who borrowed them for me on her card - as long as I'd let her read them too, and that my friends is how I come to adore Agatha Christie. From her gripping novels I'd then persue the movie as a follow up but always came away from the movie a little let down, it wasn't the same as the book, parts were missed and in my imagination I'd conjured up pretty villages and their folk - looking like nothing how they did in the movie.
So I went on living through books. Ok, some people are movie buffs but I'm a booklover and they are two different things.
Back to Agatha Christie.
There is only one book of hers that I'm yet to read - 'Murder On The Orient Express'. I know, shameful of me isn't it? I have no excuse  but have just ordered it from Ebay and so am looking forward to getting stuck into it.
If any of you have read it, please let me know what your thoughts are or what I've missed.
Stay tuned to reading what I thought about it.

Michelle

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