Love, Rosie by Cecelia Ahern

“People who say it’s a long story mean it’s a stupid short one that they’re too embarrassed and couldn’t be bothered to tell.” 

Rosie Dunne and Alex Stewart have been friends since they were 5 years old. Years later Alex and his family move to Boston. Rosie plans to follow him there but something happens which forces Rosie to abandon her plans. As the years go by, the pair keep in regular contact but their friendship is put under tremendous strain through a variety of things. Are the pair destined to ever be together or will they always be just best friends?

There is something about this book; I hated it, but at the same time I loved it so deeply. I was determined to leave it be, but every time I looked at it I had to pick it up again. The story of Alex and Rosie frustrated me to the core, I wanted to yell JUST GET TOGETHER ALREADY! But the love story was somewhat realistic, life will always get in the way. Sometimes It would make my heart well up and sometimes it would make me cry. This book isn't your typical soppy romantic trashy novel, it has substance. The unusual style of writing also made it an interesting reading experience.

The  book was organised and made up completely of letters, emails, instant messages etc. I must admit it took a while to get used to but when you do it works so well and makes the story so much more interesting. You really get to dig deep into the main character's emotions and feelings this way and I really enjoyed it. However, at times it did become annoying because it kind of skipped main events and you didn't get to find out much about them (which I would have really liked). 

Basically, this book was an absolute roller coaster ride filled with extreme frustration and a severe case of toying with my emotions, but I am very much pleased with the ending of this book.

I'd watched the film before reading this and now I can say that despite the differences between the book and the film, I loved them both.

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The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

“The circus arrives without warning.”

Imagine a circus that is only open at night, with everything being colored in black, white and shades of grey. Wondrous experiences await you within numerous striped tents under the starry sky. But what is real and what is illusion?

 This is a story about magic, star-crossed lovers and rivalry, all set in and around a mysterious circus Les Cirque des Reves (The Circus of Dreams). The main plot-line centres around two characters by the names of Marco and Celia who find themselves competing against each other in a 'magicians duel' which they have been entered into by their respective mentors. There are also several sub-plots, all of which meander around a whole host of characters who are all linked to the circus in some way or another.

Much like the circus in the book, The Night Circus seemed to come out of nowhere. It suddenly appeared on the scene and garnered massive hype -hype that I never fully understood or followed. It was not until glowing reviews started appearing on Amazon that I started to believe that the hype was real.

 

From the first page, Night Circus cast a spell on me. Every page -every sentence -is infused with magical, elegant prose that leaps off the page with emotion and life. It's been so long since I have read anything as enthralling, as enchanting and fabulous as The Night Circus

Although I really enjoyed this book I could also see many people hating it. It all depends on what you like as far as writing style. I don't usually love flowery prose, but I'd say I have a high tolerance for it. I usually love a very quick fast paced plot, and this book didn't offer that. With this book the plot moved pretty slowly and it was full of descriptions. Morgernstern created a world that I truly wished I could have visited. She describes her world so well you will feel you have been transported there.

For a debut novel I think this book was very impressive. I will say that it's not for everyone, though. Morgenstern's beautiful writing could have went on for another 100 or so pages and I would have loved reading every bit.

The Night Circus is a cross genre fan’s delight. This will appeal not only to the YA crowd, but the romance reader and the literary fiction lover. It’s a supernatural, fantasy extravaganza that had me wanting more. When I read the final page, I hugged the book close. Erin has truly written a masterful tale that may span generation of readers.

Marvelous & outstanding. A masterpiece that will surely sweep you off your feet and would make you want to join the circus. 

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Read from: June 21 to June  25 2016