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Delighted to be on another Christmassy blog tour for The Silver Bells Christmas Pantomime by Lynsey James with a little teaser from this gorgeous looking book. There is also a fab giveaway at the bottom of the post.



Being an out-of-work actress is never easy.
You don’t know where the next role is coming from, if you’ll ever get your “big break” that’ll catapult you to stardom or even if your agent will ever call you again. It’s even harder though, when you have to take the job from hell to make ends meet. For me, that came in the form of dressing in a gaudy green and red outfit, wearing huge pointed ears and saying ‘welcome to Santa’s grotto’ fifty times a day. As someone who hates Christmas and has committed to never celebrating it again, pretending to live and breathe the festive spirit was my idea of hell.
But an out-of-work actress had to do what an out-of-work actress had to do. I leaned against the wobbly cardboard structure that passed for Santa’s grotto, wondering how it had all come to this. I’d gone from the bright lights of Broadway to wearing massive shoes with bells on in the town I grew up in.
Then I remembered exactly what had happened for me to come home again. The salty tang of tears stung the backs of my eyes and I took a deep breath, pushing the burgeoning memories to the back of my mind. Now wasn’t the time for a trip into the past. As long as I didn’t think, everything would be OK.
A hand on my shoulder startled me. I turned round to see Frank, the scruffy, pot-bellied store Santa Claus standing next to me. His fluffy white beard had slipped slightly and the acrid odour of stale sweat and beer wafted my way.
‘Do me a favour and stick the costume on for a bit, will you? I’m not feeling too clever.’ My eyes widened in alarm. ‘Me?! No, no, no, I’m an elf! I-I can’t play Santa, for God’s sake!’ Frank lurched forward, bringing his questionable odour further into my personal space. I noticed his skin had turned an odd shade of grey and his eyes were bloodshot. This, I guessed, wasn’t a man to be messed with.
‘Listen, unless you want me to turn this place into a disaster area, stick the beard and red coat on and listen to what the little brats want for Christmas. It’s not rocket science.’
‘But I—’
Frank didn’t give me the chance to argue further. He slipped off his costume, thrust it into my hands and stalked off in the direction of the staff area.
Oh shit. I looked down at the grubby red velvet coat and greying beard I was holding and realised I didn’t have any choice: I was going to have to play the man himself. I craned my neck to see Frank’s retreating figure sloping away from the shop floor and his responsibilities. There was nothing else for it, I decided. I sneaked into the grotto, pulled the beard over my head and slipped the coat on. It smelled like roadkill, but if the store manager came and found the grotto unmanned, there’d be trouble.
I took a seat on the large comfy armchair and took a sharp breath inwards, instantly regretting my decision as eau de Frank stung my nostrils. All I had to do was listen to some kids telling me what they wanted for Christmas.
Easy right?
Wrong.
I had very specific reasons for hating the festive season; spending my days dressed up as an elf was bad enough, but playing the big man himself and pretending to grant dozens of children’s Christmas wishes was quite another.
It’s OK, I said to myself, the store’s pretty quiet; you can do this. You can let the world in, even for the briefest moment.



A careers adviser at school once told Lynsey writing wasn’t a “good option” and for a few years, she believed her. She tried a little bit of everything, including make-up artistry, teaching and doing admin for a chocolate fountain company. The free chocolate was brilliant. When Lynsey left my job a couple of years ago, she started writing full-time while she looked for another one. As soon as she started working on her story, Lynsey fell in love and decided to finally pursue her dream. She haven’t looked back since.
When Lynsey's not writing, eating cake or drinking tea, she's daydreaming about the day Dylan O’Brien FINALLY realises they're meant to be together. It’ll happen one day…

This giveaway is for a £25 theatre voucher with the ATG theatre group. Please ensure you use all the information below in your post about this giveaway! It is UK ONLY.

Half Magic. Edward Eager. 1954/2016. HMH. 224 pages. [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: It began one day in summer about thirty years ago, and it happened to four children.

Premise/plot: Edward Eager loved, loved, loved reading E. Nesbit, and was inspired to write magical tales of his own. This is the first book he wrote, I believe. It stars Jane, Mark, Katharine, and Martha. One day Jane accidentally discovers a 'nickel' with magical properties. It grants half-wishes. So if you want a whole wish, you have to word it cleverly or else you'll be mightily disappointed! Of course, the children learn this the hard way! And it's not the only thing they learn either.

My thoughts: I love, love, love, love this one. It is so fun and charming and just like Nesbit--in a good way! It had me from hello.

"The library was two miles away, and walking there with a lot of heavy, already-read books was dull, but coming home was splendid--walking slowly, stopping from time to time on different strange steps, dipping into the different books." (4)

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

So Kailana (The Written Word) and I really LOVED participating in Jenni Elyse's 30 Days of Books.  We thought it would be fun to do a movie-theme list of questions! 

Today's question: Favorite opening sequence or opening credits....

I'm going to have to make a list. Maybe even a long list!!!

5) Never Been Kissed
4) Enchanted
3) Inside Out
2) 13 Going On 30
1) Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I'd love to know how you'd answer this question!



I really love this song!!!!

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Today brings my stop on the epic blog tour for My Sister's Bones by Nuala Elwood. I am thrilled to be able to share my review for this brilliant thriller. If you need more convincing as to why you should read this, check out the other stops on the tour.

So Kailana (The Written Word) and I really LOVED participating in Jenni Elyse's 30 Days of Books.  We thought it would be fun to do a movie-theme list of questions! 

Today's question: If you could live in any movie-world it would be...

Tough question! I'm going to go with the first two Anne of Green Gables movies. (Not the third one which doesn't exist or the fourth one wich really, really, really doesn't exist.) I also wouldn't mind living in a pre-war (perhaps pre-Hobbit) Shire. I don't want the DANGER and RISK of being in LOTR!!!! But there is something oh-so-wonderful about the Shire!

I'd love to know how you'd answer today's question!

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

March: Book One. John Lewis, Andrew Aydin. Illustrated by Nate Powell. 2013. 128 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Can you swim? No. Well, neither can I--but we might have to.

Premise/plot: March is the graphic novel autobiography of John Lewis. So far, there are three volumes in this autobiography. Today, I am reviewing book one. Lewis gives us an incredible behind-the-scenes glimpse of the civil rights movement. This one also has a built-in framework: it is set in 2009, and he's reflecting on his life before attending the Inauguration.

My thoughts: Dare I say this one is a must read? I'm tempted, really tempted. (And if you follow me on the blog and know my tastes inside and out, then you know that I don't usually read graphic novels.)

What I like best about this one is that it is engaging, compelling, emotional, personal, and above all else cohesive. It gives you a truer sense of the 'big picture' of the civil rights movement than any other book I've read--that I can remember at least. (When you read 400+ books a year, I'll be the first to admit that you don't necessarily recall most of them with much detail.)

I also love the amount of detail. (For example, that he used to preach to his chickens!)

I've read the first two books now and I'm excited to begin the third.


© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

As usual I am late in posting my monthly wrap up, such is it that real life gets in the way of me wanting to do bloggy things. The things or should I say humans that I really don't mind taking my time away from this though are my gorgeous and ridiculously cute 1 and 3 year nieces. They are so so adorable I could just squish them with cuddles- not painfully obviously. I can't believe its been four months now since I moved out of my parents house. I'm not going to lie, it was really tough for me. My Mum and I get on really well, we are more like friends really, so I missed her like crazy. I still see her obviously, but it was hard for us both. I am more settled now though and I do occasionally stay over. Anyway that's my mini life update, book wise, quite a good month and I know I am massively late to the party but I read my first Cecelia Ahern book and I am seriously in to the Danish art of Hygge. 



1. The Little Book of Hygge by Meik Wiking
I'm sure a lot of you have been hearing the term hygge (pronounced HUE-ga) used quite a lot recently and if you are still unsure what it is, then I shall attempt to explain. Hygge is the Danish word for enjoying life's simple pleasures. This could be spending time with friends and family, getting all cosy at home with candles and a good book or enjoying good food. Basically it cannot be translated into one word, but this wonderful little book helps to illustrate exactly how you can make your life more hygge. Just know that The Little Book of Hygge is a must-have on your bookshelf and it also makes for the perfect gift. Now I'm off to live in Denmark.

2. Stealing Snow by Danielle Paige

Having already been a fan of Danielle Paige's previous books, The Dorothy Must Die series, I was thrilled to see that she had a new series coming out and that it eluded to the story of the Snow Queen and Frozen. I really liked the way this started off as it was so far from what I was expecting and instantly peaked my interest. How did snow end up in a high security psychiatric ward and where was this story going to take us. Although this was good and I did like the story idea, sometimes Danielle's descriptions had me struggling to picture the world of Algid. They were a little hazy and I tried to put myself in Snow's place. However this didn't happen all the time and when done well I was sucked back into the story. I really did like the story concept and how Danielle managed to make it so different to the original tellings, but still alluding to them. I am looking forward to book two!

3. Killing Kate by Alex Lake

It is so rare nowadays that I find the time to read a book in a day and usually for a book to make me want to read it that quickly, it has got to be pretty good. Killing Kate ticked all those boxes! A serial killer is on the loose and that in itself is dangerous and worrying, but then you start to notice that all his victims look like you and things start to take an even more sinister turn. Starting off with a super intriguing chapter, you can't help but get instantly sucked in to this fast-paced and gut twisting story. I may have figured out one of the twists, but there were many more twists to come in this exciting and heart-pounding thriller.

4. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children was one of those books that I kept seeing the cover of and knew that I must pick it up and find out what all the fuss was about. Now with the film's release, I had no excuse but to start reading this series. Initially I thought this story was a bit slow to get off the ground. Yes a significant event happened at the beginning, but then it felt like quite a long process to get to the main part of the story. But when we did eventually get there, the story massively picked up and I did start to enjoy it. However I don't think I enjoyed it quite enough to want to read the second one, but I could change my mind.

5. The Hidden People by Alison Littlewood

Lizzie Higgs has been burnt by her husband who believed her to be a changeling, a fairy who was not part of this world. But is she actually a changeling as her husband thought she was? When her cousin Albert hears of her death, despite having only met her once, he takes it upon himself to go to Yorkshire to sort out her affairs, feeling guilty he did not make more of an effort to see her when she was alive. However once there the mystery surrounding her death is not something Albert can't ignore, but in a place where superstition and reality are blurred, he begins to wonder if the hidden people are more real than he thinks. You never know what to believe whilst reading this and the ending came as quite the surprise and everything suddenly fitted into place. Although the pace was a little bit too slow for my liking, the book creates a fantastic atmosphere and a was pleasantly surprised with the ending.

6. Lyrebird by Cecelia Ahern

My first Cecelia Ahern book and what a unique story it was! Lyrebird was unlike anything I was expecting, it was so different and actually kind of beautiful. You are two people whilst reading this book, who you were before you met Lyrebird and who you were after. Lyrebird will change your view and feelings of the world.

This was one of those stories that made me think how did the author come up with such a unique story. Whilst filming a documentary in Ireland, the crew discover a mysterious woman who has been living alone for ten years in the mountains of West Cork, Ireland. She is unlike anyone they have met before, incredibly beautiful, she has the ability of mimicry, she can mimic sounds perfectly just like the Lyrebird and what she so becomes named. Now that she has been discovered, she finds that she has no where to go, so the crew take her with them to the city. Leaving everything that she has ever known behind, she is about to be confronted by a world desperate to understand to her, but will she truly be able to be free. There is so much that I want to talk about with what happens, but I went in knowing very little and I think readers will get so much more out of it this way. An enchanting and surprising story.

Check back next month for another monthly update of what I read.
Curl up with a cup of Twinings Tea!

Six Days in Leningrad - A Memoir by Paullina Simons

Synopsis:

The never-before-told story of the journey behind THE BRONZE HORSEMAN, now in print for the first time.

From the author of the celebrated, internationally bestselling BRONZE HORSEMAN saga comes a glimpse into the private life of its much loved creator, and the real story behind the epic novels. Paullina Simons gives us a work of non-fiction as captivating and heart-wrenching as the lives of Tatiana and Alexander.

Only a few chapters into writing her first story set in Russia, her mother country, Paullina Simons travelled to Leningrad (now St Petersburg) with her beloved Papa. What began as a research trip turned into six days that forever changed her life, the course of her family, and the novel that became THE BRONZE HORSEMAN. After a quarter-century away from her native land, Paullina and her father found a world trapped in yesteryear, with crumbling stucco buildings, entire families living in seven-square-metre communal apartments, and barren fields bombed so badly that nothing would grow there even fifty years later. And yet there were the spectacular white nights, the warm hospitality of family friends and, of course, the pelmeni and caviar.

At times poignant, at times inspiring and funny, this is both a fascinating glimpse into the inspiration behind the epic saga, and a touching story of a family's history, a father and a daughter, and the fate of a nation.

I read The Bronze Horseman back in 2011. I had heard of Simons, but she writes mostly romance novels from what I had noticed, so I didn't get around to trying her. But, then I heard that The Bronze Horseman was a very in-depth look at WWII Leningrad and I was curious. I remember flying through the pages and loving the book. Then I had to get Tatiana & Alexander to see how everything played out. While it is a trilogy, the first two books were really the best because they actually took place during the war and showed the life of two people in a war-torn landscape. I didn't even mind the romance.

Like me and many authors out there, I have not really read much from Simons since that trilogy. But, when I heard that there was a memoir about her experiences revisiting Leningrad in order to research The Bronze Horseman, I knew I had to check it out. When you read a novel and do not know the author, it is easy to miss how their lives can inspire them. Paullina was born in Leningrad in 1963, but her family immigrated to the United States when she was 10. This book captures her return to Leningrad with her father. It was a very interesting read. She found that it put a totally new perspective on things when she looked at Leningrad from the view of an adult when last she had looked on it as a child. As someone that had a very different childhood, it was really quite fascinating to see a place I read about all the time from a different perspective.

I a very glad I got a chance to read this as part of a TLC Book Tour. It is something you definitely should check out if you were a fan of The Bronze Horseman, or if you are just curious about this type of perspective in general. Recommended!

Raymie Nightingale. Kate DiCamillo. 2016. Candlewick. 272 pages. [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: There were three of them, three girls. They were standing side by side. They were standing at attention.

Premise/plot: Set in 1975, in Florida, Raymie Nightingale is middle grade novel about everything and nothing all at the same time.

Three girls--Raymie Clarke, Beverly Tapinski, Louisiana Elefante--become the Three Rancheros one summer. Technically, these three are brought together by a couple of 'obvious' things: they are all in a baton-twirling class, they all will be competing in a Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition. One of the questions on the application asks each girl to LIST their good deeds on a separate piece of paper. But the obvious reasons these three belong together aren't the 'real' reasons. Each girl knows something of loss, of longing, of regret, of 'the real world.'

Raymie's quest to do a good deed so she can write it down leads to the start of a not-so-wonderful, wonderful summer. Her good deed--to read to the elderly about FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE--goes horribly wrong. One patient REFUSES to listen, and her spur-of-the-moment good deed to answer the lonely cries of another patient causes her to DROP HER BOOK--HER LIBRARY BOOK--IN A PANICKED DASH.

Raymie seeks help from Louisiana and Beverly....and in return, she pledges to help them.

My thoughts: LOVED THIS ONE. I'm not sure it's BECAUSE OF WINN DIXIE all kinds of magical. But that is because I loved, loved, loved, LOVED that one so very much. It's a GREAT book though. And I really enjoyed all three girls. I really found myself loving Louisiana and her grandmother most of all. I'm not sure why. I just do. Maybe it was Louisiana's duck barrettes? Maybe it was her hope? I don't know. But I love her fiercely. I think I love all three girls actually.

I was confused for the first few chapters, but, eventually everything clicked into place and it was LOVE.

I wouldn't mind a movie adaptation.


© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

So Kailana (The Written Word) and I really LOVED participating in Jenni Elyse's 30 Days of Books.

Today's question: A movie you'd like to be able to see again as if for 'the very first time'...

There is just something wonderfully magical about The Princess Bride.

Beauty and the Beast would be a good choice as well. 


I'd love to know your answer to this question!

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews