Review: This is How it Happened by Jo Barrett

While trawling through my local libe, the cover of this book caught my eye and I decided to borrow it. It helps when it's stashed in the QUICK PICK section too. Surprise, surprise...is what I got when reading it.

Madeline Piatro has suffered serious heartbreak. Her ex, Carlton, has not only broken her heart but her spirit too. She now lives life as one 'hott mess'. Her friends and brother are around whenever she needs them but they all want her to simply get over and move on. Maddy simply can't. This man took all she dreamed and worked hard for. He made sure she suffered.


Alone in her home, one she shared with her Carlton, she's left to ponder the failings of their relationship and decides aptly on revenge. She has plans to hit him where it hurts...no not there- his EGO. After all 'hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.' However hiring a real- life hit man probably was the best idea...things are about to get interesting.


It did get interesting...very interesting. This is one of my favourite books now. Absolutely brilliant. It is a complete page turner. Barrett's writing style coupled with her great sense of humour and comedic timing makes for a Chick Lit stunner!


She had me right where she wanted me. I loved being there. I felt Maddie's pain and joy. I even hated Carlton just as much as she did and had my hand up to help her exact her revenge. That's how real the author made her characters. I felt like I was reading someone's journal or listening to the horrid times and revenge seeking plans of a close friend.


This book also teaches us women to have our heads on as it's easy to get caught up in covertly poisonous relationships where it seems all roses because we're blinded by the good looks, hot bod and all the attention. Bad eggs have a habit of looking the prettiest in the basket. I know it's not a biography but what I know from friends of mine and life in general, some things in this book does in fact happen.


Right Public service moment over! Back to my actual review. Negatives? To be frank, there weren't any; not from where I was sat reading. I went on Maddie's crazy ride, enjoyed her highs, lows, need for a make over, mind blowing animalistic sex, confusion, sadness, hurt, disappointment, gut wrenching pain, joy...you name it. I was there!


This book is one for the ladies, not that it's strictly females only. Though, I can't see many men wanting to read about an absolute prick and the woman who is picking up the pieces of what's left of her life (that he almost destroyed) and her journey to kicking his butt.


I did though :D This review is short because there's not much more to say. I read. It was AMAZING. Now it's your turn.

Verdict: I lurved this book and I lurve Jo Barrett. Her writing style is vivaciously vivid and each character leaps off the page. I will be getting her other book! The fact that was absolutely gutted when I came to the final full stop says it all. This is one for film adaptation too- yep I think it can easily find it's place in Movieland. I'd recommend to any chick lit lover, and especially to any girl/woman who's been burnt recently or otherwise by a dog of a man.


Just so you know this book is one for the more mature reader.


This is How it Happened (not a love story)
Jo Barrett
Release Date: Feb 2008
Publisher:
312 pages, Paperback
Goodreads
I borrowed this...currently buying a copy, I enjoyed it that much!

Fudoki by Kij Johnson: Review

The title of this book caught my eye and I instantly wanted to know what's a Fudoki and the cover stumped me. It's a woman in a warrior's armour and half of her face is that of a cat's. Interesting!
So I decided to borrow it from one of my local libes.

From Goodreads:    Fudoki is the tale of a being who starts her journey on the kami, or spirit road, as a humble - if ever a being such as a cat can be humble - small tortoiseshell feline. She has seen her family destroyed by a fire that decimated most of the imperial city. This loss renders her taleless, the only one left alive to pass on such stories as the Cat Born the Year the Star Fell, the Cat with a Litter of Ten, the Fire-Tailed Cat.   Without her fudoki - self and soul and home and shrine - she cannot keep the power of her clan together. And she cannot join another fudoki because, although she might be able to win a place within another clan, to do so would mean that she would cease to be herself.    So a small cat begins an extraordinary journey. Along the way she will attract the attention of old and ancient powers, including gods who are curious about this creature newly come to Japan's shores, and who choose to give the tortoiseshell a human shape. And who set her on a new kamiroad, where Kagaya-hime will have to choose a way to find what happiness she can.

When I first started reading it I was instantly drawn in and then a couple chapters later I was unsure. It's prose is soft, subtle yet strong and this made it difficult to read during the day when I'm at my most active. I had to read it at night, snuggled up on my way to sleep. Such is the tranquillity the book generates. 

I loved the idea of a story within a story which added another dimension and new characters. Talk about a bargain- two books in one! It's set in 'medieval' Japan. Johnson's writing style is crisp, clear and vivid; allowing the reader to see, feel and experience both worlds in her book.

Her subtle style allows for both stories in the book to intertwine and mingle seamlessly. The stories are that of Princess Harueme is is old and dying. She decides to fill up the empty notebooks left in her room before making her way to the convent and Kagaya-hime a cat who has lost everything and is turned into a human.

It's sounds complexed but Johnson's writing style never lets the reader find themselves confused. For me it's a brilliant read and I'll be reading it again; because I think it'll be even better the second time 'round.

Each character is solid and well developed which leaves you wanting to know/experience more, never minding the switch from one to the other. To be honest the only negative is that it can get a bit slow at times but that's natural with most books...an ebb and flow. Plus there was more flow than ebb anyway.

Verdict: Love, love, lurve! This book is not meant to be read but experienced. So it gets the full lippy service from me. This is a book I borrowed from the library but I will be buying it as well as The Fox Woman and I'll surely read it again and again. I'd recommend this book to anyone who lurves fantasy, magic and worlds within worlds.

Fudoki

Kij Johnson

Release Date: Oct 2004

Publisher: Thor Books

320 pages, Paperback

Goodreads

I borrowed this book from the library and plan on buying it.

Bloggiesta conmigo!

Meet Pedro: Plan. Edit. Develop. Review. Organise!
Join the Bloggiesta: It's a challene from 11th-13th and anyone can join at anytime before the end. Here's where you go>>>Maw's Book Blog.
My aims are simple and are things I've been meaning to do but Procrastination always gets the BEST of me.

1. Sorting out my RSS feed and making it easily discoverable.
2. Finding out more about stats and setting that up.
3. Adding links to where I can be found and making them easily discoverable.
4. Blog copy writing.
5. How to blog better, faster and stronger...especially now that I've got a job WAHOO!!!
6. Sorting my blog out on Blog Directories.

I hope I can complete all these challenges in time so here I go!

My Wishlist

This is a weekly post on the books I'm craving but a) I haven't gotten around to getting them yet and b) they've not been released yet. It's hosted by Book Chick City.

It's all about YA for me this week!

13 to Life by Shannon Delaney

I am a sucker for a good werewolf story and this seems to be just that! Hoping it's a fantastic read.

Release Date: June, 2010

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

YA/Fantasy

Paperback: 320 pages

Goodreads

You by Charles Benoit

I lurve the cover and the synopsis has really got me keen. Cheers Melissa for bringing this to my attention.

From Goodreads: 

A note from the author: 

It's easy to forget that we spend our early teens afraid. We're afraid of fitting in, standing out, or being ignored. We worry that we'll never get a date, never get into college, and never amount to anything. Just like everyone predicts.

It's also easy to discount these fears. Looking back, it seems impossible that we would have stayed awake all night worrying about what someone else thought of our clothes or that we ever doubted our abilities, our potential. But that's only because we know how the story ends.

I wanted to write a book that started with these fears as givens, bottling them in tight and capping them off with that artificial indifference genetically required of all teens. Kyle Chase is not a bad kid. He's not a good kid, either. He's a typical kid. He's any kid. And, at one point in your life, he was you.

Release Date: Sept, 2010

Publisher: HarperTeen

YA

208 pages, Hardback

Goodreads

That's it for my YA wishing this week...off to Book Chick City's linky! Hope you're having a fab weekend so far.