Book Review: I Heart Hollywood

I Heart Hollywood (I Heart #2)

Lindsey Kelk

Genre: Chick Lit

Publication: January, 2010

Format: Paperback, 326 pages

Website: I Heart…Hollywood

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository

I heart Hollywood is the second of three books in Lindsey Kelks I Heart series. I was hooked to read on Angela’s adventure after the first book, I Heart New York. Well, I did read the fourth book first. I guess, that lead me to wanting to read the rest of the series.

In the second book, Angela was given an opportunity to go to Hollywood and interview the gorgeous British actor, James Jacobs. Things started to go awry when some photograph of James and Angela spread online. Now Angela had to convince people around her that everything was not as what they saw or she might lose her job and her boyfriend. 

I liked James Jacob and his assistant, Blake from the very first start. The conversation between Angela and James was funny most of the time. Although, I have to say that Angela’s characterization in the second book was a bit out of place as compared to the first one. In the first one, Lindsey Kelk had showed us the strong point of Angela. And in the second book, we’ve get to see the weaker point of Angela. I thought that it was okay though. I mean, everyone had their strong and weakest moment.

I love Angela and Alex relationship in the book. It was sweet when they both were being stubborn about who would say the ‘L’ word first. I’m sure there might be a time where we had the same moment where we were afraid that we might scare the other party with the confession. I know I did! I guess, I kind of knew how Angela felt. 

I love the second book! I think it was better than the first one. It was funny and sweet! It got me smiling (or grinning like an idiot) for a few times while reading. I am now convinced that Lindsey Kelk is one of my favorite authors. Can’t wait to read the third book!

Book Cover's Description

Angela Clark can't believe her luck! she's an English girl living in New York with a dream job at hip magazine The Look and a sexy boyfriend. Her latest assignment takes her to Hollywood to interview hot actor and fellow Brit James Jacobs.Thrown in at the deep end she heads west with best friend Jenny dreaming of Rodeo Drive and Malibu beach. Soon Angela discovers that celebrity life in Hollywood is not all glamour, gloss and sunshine. Despite his lady-killer reputation, the only person who seems genuine is James. Then a paparazzi snaps them in an uncompromising position and suddenly Angela is thrust into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons...

Can she convince all those close to her -- especially her boss and her boyfriend -- not to believe everything they read? And will Hollywood ever win Angela's heart?

Book Review: The Graveyard Book

The Graveyard Book

Neil Gaiman

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery

Publication: October 2008

Format: Paperback, 289 pages

Buy: Amazon

I don’t know what it is with me and Gaiman. I found myself wanting to read more from him when I found his book on the bookshelf.

It started with a murder. Nobody Owens or Bod’s family was murdered by the man Jack. When the Owenses (the ghost couple) found him in the graveyard, they decided to raise him along with Silas, his guardian (who provided him with food etc). He was given a freedom of the graveyard so that he may have access to everywhere in the graveyard. 

The story then followed Bod and his adventure in and outside the graveyard as he grew up. When he was five, he met his human friend, Scarlett, who thought that Bod was her imaginary friend. Later Bod and Scarlett were separated when she moved away to Scotland with her parents. As he grew up, Bod was captured by the ghouls and later saved by his tutor, Miss Lupescu, and he befriend with a witch ghost called Liza. He went to school which end up in disaster when he failed to keep a low profile.

As years past, Bod learned about where he came from and began to do a bit of research in what happened to his actual family while trying to keep safe from the man Jack, who was still looking for him.

Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book was inspired by The Jungle Book where the baby was raised by ghosts instead of animals. It was a fun, short read. I really enjoyed Gaiman’s writing in this one. I might have finished the book in one sitting if I wasn’t so busy with these days. This book is definitely my favorite from Gaiman up to date.

Book Cover's Description:

Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy.

He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead.

There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy-an ancient Indigo Man beneath the hill, a gateway to a desert leading to an abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer.

But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod's family. . . .

Book Review: Look Closely

Look Closely

Laura Caldwell

Genre: Chick Lit, Mystery, Suspense

Publication: June 2005

Format: Paperback, 379 pages

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Acmamall

This book has been on my to-read list for since last year and finally bought this book last month. It was a recommended chicklit mystery and I decided to read it.

Hailey Sutter, an attorney had no idea who sent an unsigned letter with a message: There is no statute of limitations on murder. LOOK CLOSELY. But she did know that the note was hinting towards her mother’s death when she was seven.

In between her case with a difficult client; Sean McKnight, and trying to make partner with the law firm, Hailey made a trip back to Woodland Dunes where she lived before her mother’s death to find out the truth. But she can’t ask her father as he would refuse to discuss about it. Hailey thought that his father was upset about her mother’s death and she decided not to mention her again. So she decided to search for her brother, Dan and her sister, Caroline to learn on her mother’s death but later learned that her siblings went missing on the same day. Coincidence?

Look Closely was a good mystery novel. I’m glad that the author decided to focus on the mystery itself rather than touching a bit on the mystery and focus on romance. Although the mystery was a bit predictable, I find that this book was an absolute page turner. I find myself wanting to know on what and how Hailey is going to find out what happen to her mother. Overall, it is a good chicklit-mystery! I would have given this book a five star if it is not for the flat ending.

Book Cover’s Description:

"Look Closely"
That's all the anonymous letter said, but attorney Hailey Sutter understands the meaning behind the well-chosen words. Someone wants her to investigate what happened to her mother, who died when Hailey was only seven.

The death was ruled accidental, but Hailey begins having flashbacks that tell a different story; a pounding at the door . . . her mother struggling to stand . . . a man with a gold ring that flashed in the night as he held her mother's lifeless body.

Obsessed with uncovering the truth, Hailey can't trust anyone, especially her father, whose secrecy both unnerves and protects her. Desperate to remember that fatal night, she seeks out the brother and sister who left home after their mother's death. But they have disappeared. It's soon clear to Hailey that the answer is right in front of her -- all she has to do is find the courage to look closely . . .

Book Review: When You Open Your Eyes

When You Open Your Eyes

Celeste Conway

Genre: Young Adult, Romance

Publication: March 2012

Format: Paperback, 320 Pages

Buy: Amazon

Tessa’s life changed when her family moved to Argentina. She met her new friends and fell in love with Lucient, the son of a French diplomat. Lucient changed as he went back from a trip from Rome with his mother. Tessa then learned that Lucient had an illness – mental illness. Soon, Lucient started to push Tessa away from his life without any explanation. Then Tessa found out why Lucient did that, and everything wasn’t the same. This book was probably about a young girl who had to face a few changes in her life. She started to hang around with the wrong people and fell in love with someone who is a bad influence to her.

I’m not sure what to say of this book. The writing was alright. Sadly, the plot was not. The beginning of the book was quite confusing. I wasn’t sure of what was happening to Tessa and her friends. The middle was a bit slow. But I can’t stop reading it because I expect something to happen. And it was towards the end when there’s finally something. It was really frustrating when a writer stashed everything important towards the ending. 

Book Cover’s Description:

The more you love, the more you stand to lose….Tessa’s head over heels for Lucien, the son of a French diplomat. Sexy, artistic, and daring, he brings out a completely new side of her. With him, Tessa feels beautiful and exotic. So when Tessa’s strict father forbids her to see Lucien, she’s determined to keep their relationship a secret.But as Tessa gets caught up in Lucien, he becomes increasingly volatile. What she once found alluring about him now feels alarming. Tessa must figure out how far she’ll go for Lucien before she risks losing not just him, but everything she loves.

#8 Teaser Tuesday: When You Open Your Eyes

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read

• Open to a random page

• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My eyes fall shut and I float away. Each kiss goes on forever, and I'm drifting in a deep green sky, spinning, weightless, like a leaf. - Page 62, When You Open Your Eyes, Celeste Conway.

This is sort of weird... I was quite confuse with what happen with the character, but I can't stop reading this book. Does this make sense?

Book Review: Humble Pie

Humble Pie

Gordon Ramsay

Genre: Autobiography, Non-Fiction, Culinary

Publication: 2008

Format: Paperback, Special Edition, 96 pages

Website: Gordon Ramsay

Buy: Amazon

I bought this book after as it was recommended to me. I always wanted to read this book and was glad when I found this quick read version. This book was a really quick read (96 pages!!) and I finished it within an hour and half.

I really enjoyed the book. It was fun to know what he was before he was famous. As a culinary graduate, I really respect on his journey and adventure to learn what he knew now. Not many culinary students would want to sacrifice their working hour with low payment for the sake of a journey…

Book Cover’s Description:

Everyone thinks they know the real Gordon Ramsay: rude, loud, driven, stubborn. But this is his real story…In this fast-paced, bite-sized edition of his bestselling autobiography Ramsay tells the real story of how he became the world’s most famous and infamous chef: his difficult childhood, his brother’s heroin addiction, his failed first career as a footballer, his fanatical pursuit of gastronomic perfection and his TV persona - all the things that have made him the celebrated culinary talent and media powerhouse that he is today.

Book Review: I Heart New York

I Heart New York (I Heart #1)

Lindsey Kelk

Genre: Chick Lit

Publication: 2009

Format: Paperback, 307 pages

Website: I Heart…New York

Buy: Amazon

Angela Clark caught her fiancé, Mark having sex with a girl on the back of their car on her best friend wedding day. What’s worse is that her friend had known that Mark has been in a relationship with the girl for quite sometimes. She went bananas — ruined her best friend’s wedding, broke the groom’s hand etc and flew to New York the next day. This is where her adventure starts. She meets up with new friends (Jenny, Erin, Vanessa) start seeing some new guys (Alex and Tyler) and scored a job to write a blog on her adventure and relationship with the guys for The Look.

I start off the I Heart Series with I Heart Vegas and I love it! So I decided to go back and read the first one, I Heart New York. Linsey Kelk’s writing style was fun and witty. Although I didn’t enjoy it as I did with I Heart Vegas. The beginning was interesting and funny. The middle was somewhat cliché and the ending was a bit sudden. Still, it was a good debut novel. I look forward to read the second book! 

Book cover’s description:

It's official. Angela Clarke is in love – with the most fabulous city in the world.

Fleeing her cheating boyfriend and clutching little more than a crumpled bridesmaid dress, a pair of Louboutins and her passport, Angela jumps on a plane, destination - NYC.

Holed up in a cute hotel room, Angela gets a New York makeover from her NBFJenny and a whirlwind tour of the city that never sleeps. Before she knows it, Angela is dating two sexy guys. And, best of all, she gets to write about it in her new blog (Carrie Bradshaw eat your heart out). But it's one thing telling readers about your romantic dilemmas, it's another figuring them out for yourself …

Angela has fallen head over heels for the big apple, but does she heart New York more than home?