The Book Catch-Up May

When it came to reading May was a hard month for me. I started to lose my motivation to read. But I got through it. and managed to finish 6. books, which isn't bad. It won't beat last months reading amount but I"m ok with that. Here's a look at the books I read this month and my thoughts on them.

Sweetfreak - Sophie McKenzie

Carey and Amelia have been best friends forever. Then Amelia starts being trolled by SweetFreak, a mysterious and hateful online account, and Carey is accused of being behind the vicious comments and threats. Shut out by her other friends and shunned by Amelia, Carey is determined to clear her name and find out who’s really sending the messages. But as the online attacks spill over into real life, events start spiralling out of control… Can Carey expose the real SweetFreak before it’s too late?

I didn't expect to like this book as much as I did. Had a couple of days where I didn't want to keep reading it but in the end I managed to finish it. I definitely do feel like as someone of an adult age I didn't get in to this book as much as I would have liked. It sort of centres around the use of social media and the bad things that can happen, like hate and death threats. I also found it to be a bit cliche at times. If that's something you like then maybe this book will be the one for you.

I Am Out With Lanterns - Emily Gale

One of us is in the dark. One of us is a bully. One of us wants to be understood. One of us loves a girl who loves another. One of us remembers the past as if it just happened. One of us believes they’ve drawn the future. But we’re all on the same map, looking for the same thing.

Year Ten begins with a jolt for best friends and neighbours Wren and Milo. Along with Hari, Juliet, Ben and Adie, they tell a story of friendship, family, wild crushes, bitter feuds, and the power of a portrait. As their lives intertwine, images could bring them together, and tear them apart.

As I've said many a time before, I love it when a book is set in Australia and even more when it's set in Melbourne. I find I'm able to really get in to these books as I know a lot about what's going on, like the places the characters visit and all that. One thing I really did love about this book is the character Milo who talked about his ASD which is something I know all to well. (re-write)

Keeper Of The Lost Things - Ruth Hogan

Once a celebrated author of short stories now in his twilight years, Anthony Peardew has spent half his life collecting lost objects, trying to atone for a promise broken many years before. Realising he is running out of time, he leaves his house and all its lost treasures to his assistant Laura, the one person he can trust to fulfill his legacy and reunite the thousands of objects with their rightful owners. But the final wishes of the 'Keeper of Lost Things' have unforeseen repercussions which trigger a most serendipitous series of encounters.

I struggled with this book. For one I felt like I was losing my motivation to read whilst reading this which didn't help. I got about half of the way through and decided I was just not liking it as much as I'd hoped. I feel like it was taking to long to get to the good part of the book. Or at least a part where something interesting would happen. Not too sure if I'd recommend this book to anyone.

Only Love Can Break Your Heart - Katherine Webber

Reiko loves the endless sky and electric colors of the Californian desert. It is a refuge from an increasingly claustrophobic life of family pressures and her own secrets. Then she meets Seth, a boy who shares a love of the desert and her yearning for a different kind of life. But Reiko and Seth both want something the other can't give them. As summer ends, things begin to fall apart. But the end of love can sometimes be the beginning of you..

After deciding I didn't like my last read I picked this book out of my bookshelf and thought I'd give it a read. See if it could help me want to keep reading. And I ended up sitting in front of the bookshelf for about two and a half hours just reading this book and finished it in that one sitting. I should have known by the tittle that this wouldn't be a happy romance story but I was surprised with that. (cont...)

The Colour Of Shadows - Phyllida Shrimpton

Seventeen year old Saffron discovers a secret in the attic - a secret that changes both her past and her future... Having believed ten years ago that her mother had become ill and subsequently died, Saffron learns that her mother is in fact alive and well. Angry at the years of deceit from her father and step mother, she goes in search of the truth about her mother - and leaves home. Homeless and alone, Saffron has to deal with the mental turmoil and anger at her father as she processes the lies she has been told. And then Saffron comes face to face with the dangers of being a homeless teenage girl . . .

I have a list of books I've been wanting to buy, and even though this specific book wasn't on the list this author was. When I first started reading The Colour Of Shadows I didn't know how I was going to feel about it. But in the end I found myself really enjoying this story and everything that happened. I do believe that Saffron as a character was acting a bit like a spoilt brat at times, but that's to be expected by someone of her nature. I was also expecting it to shine a light on the homeless but I didn't find out anything that was new to me. All in all I did enjoy the story but I do believe it could have been written better.

The Flywheel - Erin Gough

Seventeen-year-old Delilah’s crazy life is about to get crazier. Ever since her father took off overseas, she’s been struggling to run the family’s cafe without him and survive high school. But after a misjudged crush on one of the cool girls, she's become the school punchline as well. With all that’s on her plate she barely has time for her favourite distraction – spying on the beautiful Rosa, who dances flamenco at the tapas bar across the road. Only her best friend Charlie knows how she feels about Rosa, but he has romantic problems of his own. When his plan to win an older woman’s heart goes horribly wrong, Del is the only one who can help Charlie stay out of jail. All this leaves Del grappling with some seriously curly questions. Is it okay to break the law to help a friend? How can a girl tell another girl she likes her without it ending in humiliation and heartbreak? And – the big one – is it ever truly possible to dance in public without falling over?

Again I started off this book not too sure on how I was going to like it. I thought it would become another one of those books that I don't finish. Surprisingly I did finish it and enjoyed it at the same time. It's your standard feel good read. Filled with friendship and love. It's also got such a narrative that just wants to keep you reading and wanting to find ouit what happens next. And much like many of the books I've read recently it's another one written by an Australian author which has made it even more enjoyable to read as I know a lot about the things they talk about in the book.

So there you have a look in to the books I've read this past month. I'd love to know what you've read.

Until next time...

Brooke