Hood

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Ten Books Set Outside The US

Top Ten Tuesday is a feature run by BrokeAndBookish each week. This week it’s all about different book settings, especially as so many popular books are set in the USA, so it’s good to share books that are set in different places to the norm.

FullSizeRender (1)Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard
This book is set in Brighton in England. It stuck with me as I actually live about 45 minutes away from Brighton so it was fun recognising the place that the story was set.

 

 

tokyo heist elenasquareeyesTokyo Heist by Diana Renn
As the title might suggest, the majority of this book is set in Tokyo. The descriptions of Tokyo are very vivid and then when the story moves to Kyoto it sounds like such a beautiful and peaceful place.

 

lagoon elenasquareeyesLagoon by Nnedi Okorafor
Lagoon is set in Lagos in Nigeria – a place I’ve never been too and I’d never read a book set there either. While I have mixed feelings about the book, I loved how Lagos was described and it felt like a bustling city that may have it’s problems but was still kind of beautiful. (more…)

REVIEW: Hood by Stephen R. Lawhead

FullSizeRender (80)Bran’s father the king has been killed and while he is heir to the throne, the invading Frenic have set up their own ruler of Elfael. Forced to run in order to survive Bran must decide whether he wants to continue running or stop and help his people take back what is rightfully theirs. All the while the legendary King Raven has returned and is haunting the woodlands.

Hood is a retelling of the legend of Robin Hood. Bran is this tales Robin and he is not the most likeable character to begin with. He’s never wanted to be King and all he wanted was to escape and leave the problems of Elfael behind. He doesn’t even really care for his people to start with. It’s Angharad, an old wise woman who knows the way of magic and healing who helps him find his path. Angharad is pretty awesome. She’s wise, mysterious and knows more than she should. (more…)

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Top Ten Unread Books that have been on my Shelves the Longest

Top Ten Tuesday is a feature run by BrokeAndBookish each week – I’m thinking I might not take part every week but just see if a week takes my fancy. This week’s topic is actually called FREEBIE – so you can either pick a previous topic you missed out on or choose a new one. So this week I’ve decided to go through my shelves to find out which books have been sitting there the longest and I haven’t picked them up yet. I’ve worked this out by looking at the publication date (with the hardback books this worked especially well) and if I can remember if I was in school/college/university when buying the book.

The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan CooperFullSizeRender (55)
Publication date: 2007 Been on my shelves for over seven years
I bought this (or more precisely I think I got my mum to buy it for me) when I heard that a film of the same name was being released. I always liked reading the book before seeing the film and when I realised the film was based on one book in the series I got the complete collection. I have yet to watch the film or read the book.

Life and Laughing by Michael McIntyre
Publication date: 2010 Been on my shelves for four years
I went through a stage of buying and reading a lot of autobiographies but then I just stopped so I’ve got a few on my shelve that I haven’t actually read. Michael McIntyre is a British comedian and it’s thanks to him I now have a word for that drawer you have in your house that is full of random stuff – it’s called the Man Drawer. This was definitely a Christmas present from my mum but it as a kind of joint-present since she’s read half of it (but not finished it) and I’ve never started it.
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