It´s Monday - What are You reading?

Christmas means lazy days and lots of time to read. Right now I´m reading a book that we chose in the reading circle I´m a part of, "The Miniaturist" by Jessie Burton.

There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed ...On an autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman knocks at the door of a grand house in the wealthiest quarter of Amsterdam. She has come from the country to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt, but instead she is met by his sharp-tongued sister, Marin. Only later does Johannes appear and present her with an extraordinary wedding gift: a cabinet-sized replica of their home. It is to be furnished by an elusive miniaturist, whose tiny creations mirror their real-life counterparts in unexpected ways ...Nella is at first mystified by the closed world of the Brandt household, but as she uncovers its secrets she realizes the escalating dangers that await them all. Does the miniaturist hold their fate in her hands? And will she be the key to their salvation or the architect of their downfall? 

I´ve read about 70 pages so far, but unfortunately I think it is a bit difficult to get a grip of it. Hopefully this will change further ahead in the book.

What are you reading this christmas?

It´s Monday-What are you reading

It's Monday - What are you reading?

This summer has been the best anyone can remember, weeks and weeks of sun and warm winds, and it's absolutely wonderful. This is why things have been so quiet here on my blog; I've been outside enjoying the sun :) Here in the northern part of Norway we have daylight 24hrs a day from the end of May to the beginning of August, and this photo was taken at one in the morning when the beautiful pink moon companied our famous mountain, Torghatten.

"Tangled" by Emma Chase is the book I'm reading right now. In Norwegian it's called "New York bekjennelser". I've only read a couple of chapters, but so far I'm not really that impressed... I hope it gets better after reading a bit.

It's Monday-What are you reading?

It's Monday - What Are You Reading?

I've been suffering from a bit of a bookhangover this last week. After finishing a book written by one of my favourite Norwegian authors, Jørn Lier Horst, I haven't been able to find a book to settle down with. I think I've started reading about three books, but everything felt wrong and ended up putting them back in the shelf again...

Now I hope I've found a book I can enjoy this week. "Calling me home" by Julie Kibler seems like a wonderful book, and in Norwegian it's called "Kom hjem".

In "Calling Me Home" by Julie Kibler, eighty-nine-year-old Isabelle McAllister has a favor to ask her hairdresser Dorrie Curtis. It's a big one. Isabelle wants Dorrie, a black single mom in her thirties, to drop everything to drive Isabelle from her home in Arlington, Texas, to a funeral in Cincinnati. With no clear explanation why. Tomorrow. 
Curious whether she can unlock the secrets of Isabelle's guarded past, she agrees, not knowing it will be a journey that changes both their lives. 
Over the years, Dorrie and Isabelle have developed more than just a business relationship. They are friends. But Dorrie, fretting over the new man in her life and her teenage son's irresponsible choices, still wonders why Isabelle chose her. 
Isabelle confesses that, as a willful teen in 1930s Kentucky, she fell deeply in love with Robert Prewitt, a would-be doctor and the black son of her family's housekeeper--in a town where blacks weren't allowed after dark. The tale of their forbidden relationship and its tragic consequences makes it clear Dorrie and Isabelle are headed for a gathering of the utmost importance and that the history of Isabelle's first and greatest love just might help Dorrie find her own way.

It's Monday - What Are You Reading?

I always have an eBook available on my phone and right now I'm reading Jenny Colgan's "Welcome to Rosie Hopkins' Sweetshop of Dreams". I've only read a few chapters, but I love it already :)

Were you a sherbet lemon or chocolate lime fan? Penny chews or hard boiled sweeties (you do get more for your money that way)? The jangle of your pocket money ...the rustle of the pink and green striped paper bag ...Rosie Hopkins thinks leaving her busy London life, and her boyfriend Gerard, to sort out her elderly Aunt Lilian's sweetshop in a small country village is going to be dull. Boy, is she wrong. Lilian Hopkins has spent her life running Lipton's sweetshop, through wartime and family feuds. As she struggles with the idea that it might finally be time to settle up, she also wrestles with the secret history hidden behind the jars of beautifully coloured sweets. Welcome to Rosie Hopkins' Sweetshop of Dreams - a novel - with recipes.

It's Monday - What are you reading?

A little while ago I decided to start reading books from the "1001 books you must read before you die"-list. I want to read books I normally wouldn't think about picking up, and this book is my first from the famous list. 

Kathy, Ruth and Tommy were pupils at Hailsham - an idyllic establishment situated deep in the English countryside. The children there were tenderly sheltered from the outside world, brought up to believe they were special, and that their personal welfare was crucial. But for what reason were they really there? It is only years later that Kathy, now aged 31, finally allows herself to yield to the pull of memory.

I started reading it yesterday, and I think this could be a very interesting and positive reading experience. Have you read it?

It's Monday - What are you reading?

IN MY BAG

Hannah Levi is renowned throughout Venice for her gift at coaxing reluctant babies from their mothers using her secret "birthing spoons." When a count implores her to attend his dying wife and save their unborn son, she is torn. A Papal edict forbids Jews from rendering medical treatment to Christians, but his payment is enough to ransom her husband Isaac, who has been captured at sea. Can she refuse her duty to a woman who is suffering? Hannah's choice entangles her in a treacherous family rivalry that endangers the child and threatens her voyage to Malta, where Isaac, believing her dead in the plague, is preparing to buy his passage to a new life. 

ON MY PHONE

They met in rehab - but some of them had rather more therapy than they bargained for. Supermodel Amber Peters should have the world at her feet. But her secret addiction has led her down a dangerous path. Lap dancer Skye Ellwood is desperate to get out of the life she's living, but has no idea how - until a client makes her an unusual proposition. Following an ultimatum from his fiance, A-list movie star Joe Jeffreys is finally heading to rehab to sort out his sex addiction - and save his squeaky-clean image. Spoiled daughter of a legendary rock god, Petal Gold is convinced she's a huge star in waiting, and she'll trample on anyone she thinks is standing in her way. Passion, jealousy, betrayal, revenge and scandal: during their tumultuous thirty days at Cascabel clinic, the lives of Amber, Skye, Joe and Petal will be transformed forever. But for one of them, the stakes could not be higher - or more dangerous

AT MY BEDSIDE

Hardworking London governess Helen Davenport longs for a family of her own but knows the prospect of finding a suitable husband grows dimmer each year. Then she spots an advertisement seeking wives for the churchgoing bachelors of colonial New Zealand and begins an affectionate correspondence with a gentleman farmer. Meanwhile, not far away in Wales, society life bores Gwyneira Silkham, beautiful, daring daughter of a wealthy sheep breeder. She finds an unexpected escape when her father loses a blackjack hand to a mysterious New Zealand baron, and Gwyn's hand in marriage goes to the baron's son. The women cross paths on the ship to Christchurch. Helen traveling steerage, Gwyn first class, and form an unlikely friendship, one they'll rely on when the husbands awaiting them turn out very different than they'd imagined.

What are you reading right now?

It's Monday - What Are You Reading?

Monday again, and I've just finished reading "Curses! A F***ed up Fairytale" by J.A Kazimer and I loved it. It was a crazy and hillarious story and although it was a bit of a challenge for me to read (being norwegian some of the words and phrases coming from fairytales I had never heard of before), it was one of the funniest books I've read this year :)

When Cinderella is run over by a New Never City bus, her not-so-ugly stepsister, Asia, suspects murder. So she hires RJ, a private eye, to investigate. Little does she know RJ is actually a villain on mental health leave from the Villain's Union. Cursed with an inability to say no to damsels in distress, RJ travels to the Kingdom of Maldetto, meets the rest of Cinderella's family - including her fiance, the flamboyant Prince Charming, Cinderella's crazy stepmother, and a seriously twisted version of Hansel and Gretel - and dodges bullets, explosions, fires, and his own ex-wife to slip his own version of glass handcuffs on the wrists that fit. All while falling for Asia, who has a curse of her own to deal with...

Next book up is by the norwegian writer, Siri Pettersen. It's called "Odinsbarn" - "Child of Odin" and is an original fantasy based on norse grounds. I've actually read a few chapters allready and it's awesome!!

It's Monday - What Are You Reading?

This monday I'm reading two books. Victoria Hislop's "The thread" has been a pleasant surprise so far, and I really enjoy reading it.

Thessaloniki, 1917. As Dimitri Komninos is born, a fire sweeps through the thriving multicultural city, where Christians, Jews and Moslems live side by side. It is the first of many catastrophic events that will change for ever this city, as war, fear and persecution begin to divide its people. Five years later, young Katerina escapes to Greece when her home in Asia Minor is destroyed by the Turkish army. Losing her mother in the chaos, she finds herself on a boat to an unknown destination. From that day the lives of Dimitri and Katerina become entwined, with each other and with the story of the city itself.
Thessaloniki, 2007. A young Anglo-Greek hears the life story of his grandparents for the first time and realises he has a decision to make. For many decades, they have looked after the memories and treasures of people who have been forcibly driven from their beloved city. Should he become their new custodian? Should he stay or should he go?

The other book is on my iPad/iPhone and I found it using the app, Wattpad. "Murfey's Law" is fun and easy to read, exactly what i look for reading chick-lit :)

When Lori James’ father writes to her for the first time in years her life is literally turned upside down. Inheriting a rundown general store 17,000 kilometres away in Australia, her plan of getting in, selling up, and getting back out again seems simple enough. But accusing the local Police Sergeant, maddeningly sexy Zeb Turner, of shop lifting on her first day in Murfey’s Beach, Lori quickly discovers the implications of being on the wrong side of the law. Moving on isn’t going to be as easy a task as she first thought. Ironically, if Lori wants to get rid of the shop, she’s going to have to fight to keep it first. Desperate to win over the colourfully eccentric locals who hold the keys to her freedom, Lori sets about breathing new life into the sleepy old community. Temperatures rise and desire sizzles as the residents of the tiny seaside village experience their hottest summer scandal in decades.

Have your read any of these books?

It's Monday - What Are You Reading?

I have just finished one of the best books I have ever read. It's about time travelling (my favorite), and I read constantly. Tamara Ireland Stone has written a lovestory that now has a special place in my heart - and I know now that a small part of my heart will always stay sixteen. Longing for the first kiss, imagening how it will feel....

Anna is sixteen in 1995, fiercely determined to leave her quiet town and finally travel the world. Bennett's seventeen in 2012, living in San Francisco and trying to control his ability to travel through time - an incredible gift, but also an unpredictable curse, which constantly threatens to separate him from the people he loves.

"Time between us" has everything. A touch of magic and a solid story all at once. I couldn't wait to find out how they met, where they would go and how the loose threads would be tied in the end. And the best part is that there will be a book number two out in october :):)

Have you read it?

I dag prøver jeg meg på en liten bokomtale på engelsk. Av og til er det gøy å titte innom utenlandske bokblogger og hos Bookjourney finner man hver mandag mange av dem på samme plass. Jeg har nettopp lest "Time between us" av Tamara Ireland Stone, en bok om mitt favoritt-tema; tidsreiser, og den var helt fantastisk!!!

It's Monday - What Are You Reading?

Right now I'm reading two books, and I love them both :)

Holly O'Neill knows that every charm bracelet tells a story. Many years ago she was sent one with just a single charm attached. The charms have been appearing ever since, often at challenging times, as if her mysterious benefactor knows exactly when she needs a little magic in her life. As a result, Holly's bracelet is her most prized possession. So when she finds someone else's charm bracelet, she feels she has to try to reunite it with its owner. Even if the only clues she has to follow are the charms themselves. On a search that will take her all over New York City at Christmas, Holly becomes ever more determined to piece together the details of this other charmed life. But what she doesn't know is that her quest may also lead her somewhere she never, ever expected ..

This is a thriller written by the Norwegian author, Jan Erik Fjell, called "Skyggerom" - "Shadow room". Key words for this book are secrets, revenge, friendship and what we know as "human trafficing", and it's a real pageturner!

Hugs from

It's Monday - What Are You Reading?

Right now I'm reading "The Godless Boys" by Naomi Wood. It's very different from what I usually read, but I love it!!

If you were forced to live with faith, or without, which would you choose? England. 1986. The Church controls the country, and all members of the Secular Movement have been expelled to the Island. On the Island, religion is outlawed. A gang of boys patrols the community, searching for signs of faith, and punishing any believers. When an English girl arrives intent on finding her mother who disappeared, mysteriously, ten years ago she is swept up in the dangerous games of the gang. But while one boy falls in love with her, the other wants revenge for the wrongs of the past, and, as the violence escalates, the English girl becomes their pawn. The Godless Boys is a book about faith, and life without faith; about love, and its absence. But above all, it's about power, and how dangerous it can be to stand out from the crowd.

This is the Norwegian cover:

It's Monday - What Are You Reading?

I'm still reading Stephen King's "11.22.63", but with 700 pages I take small breaks and read other books as well. 

We're going to England in october, and to get in the proper travelling mood (ok, it's 3 months until we're going there, but I'm so exited), I've started reading Jason Manford's "Brung up proper". I love it!!!

Jason Manford is firmly established as one of the country's favourite stand-ups and is up there with the best northern comedy legends. His career began one night in a pub in Chorlton when a comedian didn't arrive for his set and Jason, the 17-year-old glass collector stepped in to fill the gap. From that point on he's never looked back, until now that is...This is the story in his own words of everything that lead up to that fateful moment - a colourful tale of growing up with lots of family and not enough money, of getting by and sticking together. It is a story of his shameless extended clan of wayward uncles and singing nans and a gobby little knobhead at the heart of it all called Jason.Featuring rock-hard great granddads, doting grandparents, pub-crooning nanas, football-mad dads, pet-obsessed mums, more dodgy uncles than you can shake a stick at, failed exams, dead-end jobs, paper rounds, prostitutes, shocked priests, manslaughter, winning goals, sudden losses, replica shirts, chip-fat incidents, scary pubs, pet meat, fighting Gandhis, cancelled Christmases, Sir Oswald Mosley, flooded tents, call centres, circumcision, puppy love, friends for life, difficult girlfriends, gigs from hell, heart break and, finally, true love...With his laugh-out-loud tales of coming of age, Jason shows he's a generous storyteller and as natural an observer on the page as he is on stage.

It's Monday - what are you reading?

Right now I'm reading Stephen King's "11.22.63" and I love it! Timetravelling has always fascinated me

and with 700 pages this book is absolutely perfect for me :)

WHAT IF you could go back in time and change the course of history? WHAT IF the watershed moment you could change was the JFK assassination? WHAT HAPPENS WHEN a young teacher from Lisbon Falls, Maine, 2011, gets the chance to stop Lee Harvey Oswald from shooting JFK in November 1963 is the premise of the brilliant new novel by STEPHEN KING: 11/22/63, the date that Kennedy was shot—unless . . .
King takes his protagonist Jake Epping, a high school English teacher, on a fascinating journey back to the world of 1958—from a world in 2011 of mobile phones and iPods to a new world of Elvis and JFK, of Plymouth Fury cars and Lindy Hopping, of a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald and a beautiful high school librarian named Sadie Dunhill, who becomes the love of Jake's life—a life that transgresses all the normal rules of time.

(goodreads)