March Reads

Hello!

I decided to give the blog a little revamp before I posted anymore. So, here we have the results of my afternoon. I think it looks a lot nicer, still simple, but I definitely prefer the script font instead of what I used before.

Anyway, moving on. As I said in my March round up, I read some books that month that I wanted to talk about. I feel like I'm getting stuck in a reading rut at the moment. A lot of the books I choose are of the same formula and I love a good chick lit novel as much as the next person, but I find myself getting a bit bored with them sometimes. I often long for something with a bit more to it and a more complex, intricate story line. Unfortunately, I didn't find that last month.

Tied Up With Love by Amelia Thorne
Izzy is unemployed, she's got no direction and no idea what to do with her life. When she's wrongly 'kidnapped' by a company who specialise in staged kidnappings between couples, she see's this as an opportunity to gain herself a new job and some extra cash for her trip to Australia in a few months time. The only obstacle in her way is the boss, notorious womaniser, Ethan Chase.

I had such high hopes for Tied Up With Love. I bought it on a whim for my Kindle after reading a lot of five star reviews on Amazon. So, I was expecting a lot of greatness. It started off really well, the whole idea of the Kidnap My Wife (or KMW as it's often referred to) company was something new and exciting. It felt fresher than other chick lit I'd been reading. As soon as Izzy and Ethan get involved with one another that's when it really starts to drag. It all becomes a bit too smug, a bit too over dramatic and I often wondered why either of them bloody bothered. It's a decent, frothy read, but it ended up really lacking towards the end. 3/5.

Do You Remember The First Time? by Jenny Colgan
Thirty something Flora is having a life crisis. She should be happy with her long term boyfriend, Ollie, but something isn't totally right. At her best friend's wedding, Flora bumps into an old flame. A wish upon the wedding cake sends her right back to being sixteen. The only problem is, no one else has gotten any younger.

Another book I had high hopes for. I thought Do You Remember The First Time? sounded like it'd be quite funny, very light hearted. It wasn't, not really. I was initially a bit confused with the plot. I liked the thought of Flora going back to being sixteen and changing things so the future had a different outcome, but when I realised it was only Flora and her parents who changed back to how they were, it seemed a little off to me. Her pals Tashy and Clelland recognise her, as does Ollie, but no one else does. It's like a weird parallel universe that doesn't have any real explanation as to how or why it happened.

The story was decent, but I think it lost it's way a little bit halfway through. I wasn't rooting for Flora to get back to being thirty, and I didn't care what happened to anyone. There were some funny bits, and in places I did enjoy it, but it didn't ignite any inspiration in me. 3/5

I really, really, really need something new to read. I want something that will inspire me and make me think. I know I'm probably not choosing a genre that encompasses those things. I find it very difficult to read
a lot when I get stuck in one of these ruts and just end up slowly wading through book after book that I don't enjoy and find other things to do in favour of reading.

If you have any recommendations for me, please leave them in the comments below.