Violet Clouds

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Two Books on Hygge

The Book of Hygge - Louisa Thomsen Brits I've been aware of the flurry of interest in this concept but was put off by the accompanying flood of 'buy this' marketing that went along with it. Out of curiosity I added this book to my library queue and found it an enjoyable read. The concept is interesting and I liked how it took the whole book to show just how difficult the concept it is to untangle. It's not prescriptive and it doesn't come with a shopping list but it does encourage the valuing of those little moments of peace, of community or of comfort as little shields hidden in everyday life. Brits also talks about the nature of the country and it's people from whom this concept grew and endures. It's not tips about how to hyggling more but sharing the value that can be found in it. The Little Book of Hygge - Meik Wiking In contrast to the above book on the same topic, this is more of a tips and shopping-list kind of book. That is n

Signal To Noise by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Shifting between 1988 and 2009 'Signal to Noise' follows Meche and her friendships with Sebastian and Daniela. As teenagers living in Mexico City, they are friends bonded in their unpopularity but by 2009 they are estranged. Meche is called home after the death of her father and finds herself dealing with the consequences of the trio's falling out all the years ago. Back when they had music, longing and magic. Meche is an interesting, prickly character, both as a teenager and an adult. She is the one who can't connect with others easily and finds her strength and magic through music. Sebastian is dealing with his own issues within his family, particularly his domineering brother. Daniela seeks diversion through her dreams of romance, much to Meche's disdain. The relationships in the book feel wonderfully messy, rough at the seams and real in an aching way. Meche has issues with her parents, school isn't what she wants to be doing and although certain

Final Girls by Riley Sager

Disclaimer: I read this book as an advance copy from Netgalley. My thanks go to them, Random House UK, Ebury Press and to the author, Riley Sager, for this opportunity. The opinions stated in the review are my own. This is one of the best thrillers I've read! The book has wonderfully complex characters as well as a compulsive reading plot. The author takes the movie trope of a Final Girl, the lone survivor of a terrible event, and makes her the focus of this book. Quincy is already dealing with the aftermath of a massacre that killed her friends some years ago when a new threat is found at her door. The book starts slowly, giving the reader time to allow musing on the different ways of handling trauma and grief. The pressure builds to revelations that pull you down a rabbit hole of theories and red herrings. The protagonist was very interesting to watch as she works to unwind the memories she hasn't been able to access since that terrible day and tries to handle to

Room Empty by Sarah Mussi

This was a hard read but a worthwhile one. It should be noted as a trigger warning that the book contains anorexia, drug abuse, child abuse and suicide. Room Empty is about Dani, a foster kid living at a rehab centre and being treated for anorexia. She meets Fletcher and, at his urging, they become recovery buddies. Dani isn't sure she wants to be rescued but Fletcher is determined to help her. They form a relationship outside of the bonds of 'buddies' and it has an intensity that both helps and hinders them. It'd be wrong to say that I liked this book, it was too brutal for that I think. What it did do was make me care deeply about both of these characters. Dani was rather unlikable but this is largely because she judges everyone, including herself, very harshly. She finds comfort in the manifestation of her illness, her alien, her thinness, who loves her only when she follows the rules. Fletcher challenges her constantly, to open up, to solve her illnes

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

To start this review I have an announcement, Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl is one of my go-to comfort reads. When I feel massively overwhelmed by things I love running to hang out with Cath as she travails her first year of University. Describing 'Carry On' in this context is a bit of a twisty tale: in 'Fangirl' Cather is a fan of a series of books about Simon Snow, particularly championing the shipping of Simon with his nemesis, Baz. The Snow series is set in an English boarding school of magic and there are vampires and a mysterious threat that is leaching the world of magic. The idea of the book obviously has some basis on a certain other magic boarding school series but Watford School of Magicks isn't Hogwarts. The twisty bit is that 'Carry On' isn't a Gemma T. Leslie (Rowell's fiction author of the Snow Series) novel, it isn't Cath's fanfic. It's Rainbow Rowell's fanfic of a world she created which makes it quite the fas

The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

There are some books that you sit down to read with great anticipation, be it for the author or the subject but the very best ones are the ones that come as a recommendation from a reader-friend. The book pressed into your hands with a look that says 'you need to read this'. This is one such book. Although this is the second book in the series I was assured that I could read this one and then scoot back to the first one, which I absolutely will be doing. The plot follows a boy, Will Stanton, on his eleventh birthday. The world opens up and changes and he faces an ancient challenge, a clash of good and evil. The language was lovely, the settings were vivid and the characters interesting. I look forward to returning to the world Susan Cooper created with the other books in the series. This is a book aimed at older children or young adults.