Crystal by Katie Price

Title: Crystal

Author: Katie Price

Released: November 2007

A glittering and sexy story of passion and betrayal and one woman's search for true love.

Crystal is beautiful, talented and ambitious. All her life she has dreamed of making it as a singer. After years of trying to break into the music industry her chance finally comes when her girl band enters a TV reality show contest.

But Crystal has a secret. She's fallen for the wrong man and this one mistake could cost her everything - her friendships, her fame and her chance of ever finding love again....

Rating: 3 Stars

Positives: So Crystal is in many ways very similar to Angel, but at the same time it has several key differences. In both stories we see a young ambitious woman propelled into the world of celebrity, but Crystal has several much more gripping issues. Whilst Angel addresses the issue of drug addiction, we see Crystal fight a completely different battle. Instead she is the victim of rape amongst many other things and as this is an issue which needs more awareness raised about it, it was definitely interesting to read. 

So lets actually look at the rape scene without going into too much detail. Thankfully we are spared being put through Crystal's rape experience. It would be not only an extremely contentious decision to write a full rape scene, but it would also be extremely traumatic for the writer and hard to pull off convincingly if the writer hasn't had experiences around rape. Instead Katie Price has given us the run up to the rape including Crystal's fear, and then we cut to the aftermath once her attacker has left. This is a very good way of doing things. 

Another positive was that even when Crystal's big secret came out about who she was in love with, she didn't get to have everything fall into her lap. Instead we see Crystal pay dearly for her mistake, and we see how it destroys various relationships within her life.

As usual all the characters were well thought out, I particularly loved Tahlia's character as she always seemed to be the voice of reason for everyone. And of course Jez made another appearance. I absolutely love Jez and his witticisms. He is the perfect gay hairdresser and I adore him. 

Negatives: In all honesty it felt like there was too much going on in this book for it to be coherent. So firstly we get the big storyline which is hinted at from the start with Crystal's secret love affair and her trying to break into the music industry with her band Lost Angels. Okay fair enough its a good storyline. Let's add the next elements of rape and blackmail. Still a good storyline. Mainly these elements work because of the identity of Crystal's attacker. However we then start to get new ideas which just don't flow so well. 

We're introduced to Jake who becomes another love interest for Crystal and their relationship is so on again off again that it really bored me. But even this isn't enough. No we need to add in some psycho bunny boiler who's completely obsessed with Jake (something he is completely oblivious too) and a pregnancy storyline as well. There's just too many strings here. 

Another huge issue I had with Crystal is the continuity. In Angel we meet Danni a fabulous make up artist who leaves part way through the story as she is going back to Australia. However Danni is Crystal's make up artist all the way through this book which is based in London. Sure I hear you say Danni could have gone to Australia and come back again, but this book runs alongside the events at the end of Angel and into its own timeline with Crystal and Angel eventually meeting. The continuity of it just really really bugged me. 

Would I recommend this book? I would, but if you asked which was the better book to read out of Angel or Crystal then I would say Angel. However this is still a good book for a lazy Sunday read. 

Angel by Katie Price

Title: Angel

Author: Katie Price

Released: July 2006

A sparkling and sexy tale of glamour modelling, romance and the treacherous promises of fame

When Angel is discovered by a model agent, her life changes for ever. Young, beautiful and sexy, she seems destined for a successful career and, very quickly, the glitzy world of celebrity fame and riches becomes her new home.

But then she meets Mickey, the lead singer of a boy band, who is as irresistible as he is dangerous, and Angel realises that a rising star can just as quickly fall...

Rating: 4 Stars

Positives: I really enjoyed this book which I wasn't sure I would. But straight away I was hooked. This is definitely one of those light hearted sexy summer reads. Angel is a very likeable character, someone who most girls can relate too. She may be beautiful but she's not one of those girls who flaunts her beauty, instead she's just your average girl. Even when she's thrown into the spotlight and the world of glamour modelling Angel is still very firm and sticks to her morals. But her tale shows just how easily even the best of us can fall. 

As for the other characters I think we gather pretty quickly that Mickey will be the one who ruins Angel, and Simone .... Well there's no word for her other than bitch. I honestly don't joke what Cal's character sees in her at all. So yes we've got a good mix of different characters floating around, and each one of them brings something different to the table. 

Now for the storyline: maybe it was a little romanticised. In reality how many of our childhood crushes are signed to Chelsea just weeks before we're signed up to become successful glamour models in London? That said though I really did enjoy the storyline and I got shivers every time that Cal would help Angel out. Even if it was just something small like lending her his jacket, its a cute thing to do. 

And of course there's the added bonus of a few little sex scenes. Just what is needed to make a summer read all that more sexy. The scenes themselves focus more on the foreplay side of things, but it works for me and was definitely keeping me interested. 

Negatives: Okay so I read Angel when it first came out, and looking back in retrospect as a thirteen year old girl at the time this maybe hadn't been the most suitable of books. I was so swayed by how Katie Price has portrayed the world of glamour modelling that I distinctly remember turning around and telling my mother that I wanted to become a glamour model. Somehow I don't think thats the life she would have chosen for me. Anyway I digress. My point is that Angel shows all of the good but none of the bad of the glamour world, several key features are missing such as the pressure to stay thin and beautiful, less than savoury photographers who will push and push to get the photos they want even if its at a level higher than the model is comfortable working too, and the fact that most models aren't agency represented until they've already hit the big time. For aspiring models a lot of hard work, and working for free, has to happen before you'll get a spread on page three. 

Secondly sometimes the language would bug me. I don't constantly want to be reading about how someones tits are perfect, I guess I'm just more old fashioned when it comes to language. 

Would I recommend this book? If you're looking for something that is fun and sexy and isn't going to challenge you then Angel is the book for you. 

The Time Of My Life by Cecelia Ahern

Title: The Time Of My Life

Author: Cecelia Ahern

Released: October 2011

Are you taking your life for granted?

Lucy Silchester is. And she’s lost sight of everything important.

Because Lucy’s lying to herself – and to everyone else – about what’s going on. Her friends are cut short, her family cold-shouldered and her work colleagues tricked. Only Lucy herself knows the truth.

Time for a wake-up call – an invitation to an appointment with life. Her life. Who in this case turns out to be a kindly, run-down man in a bad suit, who is determined to change things, and won’t let Lucy off the hook.

She’s going to have to make time for him.

Rating: 4 Stars

Positives: So this book really wasn't what I was expecting. I had no idea that Life would be an actual person. And not a person that only Lucy can see. Everyone can see him. So yeah having a life agency tell you that you need to meet with your life and then having Life just spend all this time with you is a new and different idea. But it worked really well.

I love how Lucy starts off by lying to the reader, but as she spends more time with Life and learns to become more honest we get much more of an insight into her. However we can maybe understand why she is the way she is; after all Lucy's family are all perfectionists and have high flying careers, and Lucy's ex Blake has done really well for himself as well. To them Lucy, who went slightly off the rails and got caught in a huge web of lies from when she and Blake split, is a bit of a disappointment. 

There's also a beautiful little love triangle in this story. Even though it's been three years since they split Lucy is still head over for heels for Blake, but could that all change with the arrival of Don? For once Lucy finds that she has to break the habit of a lifetime and start being honest, not only with her friends but with herself as well. 

Negatives: Every book has at least one negative, and this is no exception. My only criticism is that it took me several chapters to get into the story, mainly because as the story was being told by Lucy she would keep going off an a tangent. This made the first few chapters quite hard to follow, but after that the story picked up. 

Would I recommend this book? Yes this is a lovely piece of work by Cecelia Ahern and I really enjoyed it. There's some beautiful comedy moments if you have my sense of humour as well. All I'm saying is Life googled moobs after being told he had them by Lucy. 

Death Comes To Pemberley by P. D. James

Title: Death Comes To Pemberley

Author: P. D. James

Released: December 2011

The year is 1803, and Darcy and Elizabeth have been married for six years. There are now two handsome and healthy sons in the nursery, Elizabeth's beloved sister Jane and her husband Bingley live nearby and the orderly world of Pemberley seems unassailable. But all this is threatened when, on the eve of the annual autumn ball, as the guests are preparing to retire for the night a chaise appears, rocking down the path from Pemberley's wild woodland. As it pulls up, Lydia Wickham - Elizabeth's younger, unreliable sister - stumbles out screaming that her husband has been murdered.

Rating: 3 Stars

Positives: Its been a while since I've seen Pride and Prejudice and I always wondered how a sequel would be carried off. To combine the idea of a sequel with a murder mystery is an excellent idea in itself. Of course that would mean either killing off Elizabeth, Darcy or involving the theatrics of Elizabeth's younger sister Lydia who was always able to create a drama out of anything. P. D. James chose to make the same decision that I would have made in her shoes by involving Lydia. 

A second positive that I found was that P. D. James has stuck to Jane Austen's style of writing here, something which makes this much more believable as a sequel. 

Finally a third positive would have to be that there were plot twists. Anyone who read the blurb would be expecting Wickham to have died, but in fact the victim was someone else entirely. And as for the identity of the murderer .... Well if somebody manages to guess it before their name is revealed then that would be pretty impressive. There's enough twists and turns to make this a decent read. 

Negatives: You have to already be a fan of Jane Austen in order to understand the thought processes of both Elizabeth and Darcy, which may make this story harder to follow for some readers. Going by the blurb this would have had great standalone value as a book in its own right, but once you start reading you understand that if you haven't read or seen an adaptation of Pride and Prejudice before then you're going to be a little bit stuck. 

Secondly I just really struggled to get into this book. The new supporting characters seemed very two dimensional to me and I found myself wishing the book would be over sooner rather later. I think that whilst the concept was a good one, there just wasn't enough happening to keep the reader hooked. 

Would I recommend this book? Now thats a question and a half. Personally if you aren't a fan of Ride and Prejudice then don't bother reading this. If you are a fan then by all means read it, but you'd probably be best trying to borrow a copy from your local library before going out and spending money on a copy of your own. 

A Dance With Dragons: After The Feast by George R. R. Martin

Title: A Dance With Dragons: After The Feast

Author: George R. R. Martin

Released: September 2011

The future of the Seven Kingdoms hangs in the balance.

In King’s Landing the Queen Regent, Cersei Lannister, awaits trial, abandoned by all those she trusted; while in the eastern city of Yunkai her brother Tyrion has been sold as a slave. From the Wall, having left his wife and the Red Priestess Melisandre under the protection of Jon Snow, Stannis Baratheon marches south to confront the Boltons at Winterfell. But beyond the Wall the wildling armies are massing for an assault…

On all sides bitter conflicts are reigniting, played out by a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves. The tides of destiny will inevitably lead to the greatest dance of all.

Rating: 5 Stars

Positives: Firstly oh my god the epilogue. I know not exactly the best place to start a raving review but Varys, my dear Varys has returned. Just as Kings Landing was growing a little dull our favourite spider sees fit to return to us. So we don't know exactly where he's been hiding yet, but I'm so so glad hes back. And we finally know who his champion for the Iron Throne is. 

Now that I've got Varys out of my system lets focus on the rest of the book. We've seen some very bold decisions made by Jon Snow in this book and its starting to become clear that he doesn't relish his duty but he definitely has some Stark blood in him. Hes so like Eddard in so many ways, yet we know now from Barristan Selmy's chapters that Jon cannot be the bastard child of Ned and Ashara Dayne as we once suspected. My money's still on him being the bastard child of Rhaegar and Lyanna, but I guess we'll have to wait and see. 

And Dany was doing so well, until she invited Daario into her bed. That really won't help the situation in Meereen but I suppose a queen needs her paramour.  

Negatives: Okay so I know this was the second half of a book that had already been split once before, but I hated how few chapters we have for each character. I think on average there was three chapters per character with only Tyrion and Daenerys exceeding this. And my poor Jaime only gets the one chapter. One chapter which at the very end of we learn Brienne has somehow survived her hanging, and that Jaime is now going off with her. Why leave us on such a cliffhanger? Okay I know its not the biggest cliffhanger ever but there's so much left to be explained. What was this word Brienne shouted? How did she survive? Did Podrick survive too?

Then speaking of cliffhangers how dare you finish Jon's story like that? Yes he was making bold unpopular decisions, but they were for the greater good. Jon is a strong Lord Commander. How how can things be left like that? Its just not fair!!!

Would I recommend this book? Yes I would. Unfortunately though I doubt I'll be returning to this series for some time as we're still awaiting the next installment to be published. Please hurry up. I want to know who wins the game of thrones. 

A Dance With Dragons: Dreams And Dust by George R. R. Martin

Title: A Dance With Dragons: Dreams And Dust

Author: George R. R. Martin

Released: September 2011

In the aftermath of a colossal battle, new threats are emerging from every direction.

Tyrion Lannister, having killed his father, and wrongfully accused of killing his nephew, King Joffrey, has escaped from King’s Landing with a price on his head.

To the north lies the great Wall of ice and stone – a structure only as strong as those guarding it. Eddard Stark's bastard son Jon Snow has been elected 998th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. But Jon has enemies both inside and beyond the Wall.

And in the east Daenerys Targaryen struggles to hold a city built on dreams and dust.

Rating: 5 Stars

Positives: Wow there's an absolute curveball in this installment. And when I say it's a curveball that's a major understatement. Without ruining everything for you, my god is Young Griff's true identity a shocker. I mean there's been absolutely no hint of any of this in the previous books and then suddenly .... Well ladies and gentleman we now have a major new contender for the Iron Throne. I mean honestly I'm speechless. But this was definitely needed to spice things up. With the number of deaths we'd had lately it looked like the battle was all bit win for the Lannisters, only this might stick a bit of a spanner in the works. Anyway I should probably quit raving about this development otherwise I'm liable to ruin it for you. 

Secondly it was really nice to get a viewpoint chapter from Melisandre. She's a very mysterious character, and I've really enjoyed watching her develop without revealing her secrets over the series. To finally be able to grasp the tiniest understanding of her background was a real treat. 

However sweet as these things have been we can sense that things are escalating once more. Meereen is on the brink of war, and with Daenerys' impending marriage and her love affair with Daario could this situation only be inflamed further? Could we have a war for sweet Dany's hand? Or will it be for her head? And dear Jon Snow; he's an excellent Lord Commander who makes bold decisions and sticks to his guns, but could this be his downfall? We already see men complaining openly about nearly every decision he makes, and it's only so long before someone decides to stop our young man in his tracks. 

Negatives: Okay this isn't really a criticism of the book, more of the author. Much as I love George R. R. Martin and I appreciate that a masterpiece takes time to write, don't leave a note in the previous installment released in 2005 saying you expect this book to be ready for release next year and then make us wait six years for it! Six years! When this book only follows a few characters whom we haven't seen since A Storm of Swords, it makes me wonder how long it will be before we meet characters like Samwell Tarly again. 

Right rant over. Actual negatives of the book now. What the hell is going on in King's Landing? We haven't seen our dear capital city, the centre of our power plays for an entire book. Now I think thats a big opportunity thats been missed out on there but it might just be me. Plus I miss Jaime Lannister, there I said it okay? I miss the Lannister boy and fully throw in my lot with him now. I want to know if he'll play the gallant knight and go rushing to his sweet sister's aid, or if by burning her note he wasn't just protecting her but ignoring her plea for help as well. 

There was another criticism that I had but I can't think what it was now. I got distracted by the thought of Jaime. Oh yes that was it. Maybe I'm just a faint hearted woman, but I really don't need to know exactly how Ramsay Snow treats his people. I don't care if he's been legitimised he'll always be a Snow to me. Seriously I don't need to know how he flays people, or how his first wife was left to starve so badly she ate her fingers. Sorry but no that just doesn't work for me. 

Would I recommend this book? Of course. This still remains an excellent series and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. 

A Feast For Crows by George R. R. Martin

Title: A Feast For Crows

Author: George R. R. Martin

Released: October 2005

'Crows will fight over a dead man's flesh, and kill each other for his eyes.'

Bloodthirsty, treacherous and cunning, the Lannisters are in power on the Iron Throne in the name of the boy-king Tommen. But fear and deceit are in the air: their enemies are poised to strike.

The Martells of Dorne seek vengeance for their dead, and the heir of King Balon of the Iron Isles, Euron Crow's Eye, is as black a pirate as ever raised a sail.

Across the war-torn landscape of the Seven Kingdoms, Brienne the Beauty (thus named in mockery of her great size and strength) seeks for Sansa Stark, having vowed to protect Sansa from the wrath of Queen Cersei, Tommen's power-hungry mother.

Meanwhile apprentice Maester Samwell Tarly brings a mysterious babe in arms south to the Citadel from the cruel frozen north where the sinister Others threaten the Wall…

A Feast for Crows brings to life dark magic, complex political intrigue and horrific bloodshed. Against a backdrop of incest and fratricide, alchemy and murder, victory may go to the men and women possessed of the coldest steel … and the coldest hearts.

Rating: 5 Stars

Positives: So we get to meet a lot of new characters in A Feast for Crows, and  we also learn a lot more about the politics of the Iron Isles as a successor for Balon Greyjoy is chosen via a kingsmoot. And also was it just me or does the alchemist in the prologue remind you of a certain someone? Is it me or is that the person that Jaqen H'ghar became? And does this alchemist become Pate the pig boy? Because we certainly see Pate die at the alchemist's hands yet Pate is there in Oldtown to befriend Sam. This certainly looks like a mystery worth unravelling.

Secondly we see the potential downfall of the Lannisters approaching. Now that Cersei reigns in all but name we see her starting to lose her grasp on the game of thrones. Sure enough Tommen may be king, but if anything were to happen to Cersei who would step up as Regent to protect his best interests? We also get to see more of Cersei's backstory now that she becomes a point of view character, and I get the feeling that she is becoming a tragic protagonist. There has always been the issue of people self fulfilling prophecies by trying to stop them, and I fear that this is what is happening with Cersei. Just become some of the foretelling she had as a child has come true she is desperate to stop the rest of it doing so, in turn causing it to come true. 

On the other hand we see Jaime grow into himself much more and he actually manages to secure Riverrun for the Lannisters without shedding a drop of blood and keeping his vows to the late Catelyn Stark. I'm really growing to respect Jaime as a character and I think the loss of his sword hand has humbled him somewhat, as well as opening his eyes to the true nature of those around him.

This really was another good book in the series with lots happening even if the pace is somewhat slower than what we're used too. 

Negatives: Firstly what has happened to half of our beloved characters? We barely see Jon Snow, and we don't see Bran or Daenerys or Tyrion. All we know of Tyrion's current escapades is that he is currently eluding capture by Cersei's spies but where is he? Okay yes there was admittedly a little note from the author after the book has ended explaining that the book was becoming too long and that we'll definitely get to visit these much loved characters in the next installment but to go an entire book without them puts things a bit out of kilter. 

Secondly following the vein of the previous point where were the Others? After they played such a big role in A Storm of Swords with Sam the Slayer are we just supposed to believe that they've left the Wall alone for now? Some continuity here would be nice given that they are supposed to be a huge threat to the Realm. 

And really what was that with the babies? I know that to protect Dalla's boy he had to be sent away, but poor Gilly. Jon has definitely changed for the worse since becoming Lord Commander. 

Would I recommend this book? As always with this series yes I would. However expect this one to be much slower in pace than the previous installments.