One of my summer reads... it is awesome! If you haven't read it yet PLEASE GO OUT AND GET IT!!

And so the 26 volume saga begins... #amreading One Rainy Day in May.... on a rainy day in May. Life imitates art.

East meets West - I embark on a journey that so far is excelling itself in telling the complicated story of the birth of modern day Istanbul. Istanbul is an impossible cocktail of Muslim, Jewish and Christian cultures - and we all know how to get along. Therefore it is only apt that I sit in my English garden, drinking Greek coffee while reading about the birth pains of a secular Turkish republic. So far, Charles King has mesmerised me. 🇹🇷

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Came across this on NetGalley and just HAD to read it. Can't remember the last time I was so engrossed with a non-fiction book. An absolute gem. Erin Brokovich meants Marie Curie...

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ An absolute gem! Can't recommend it enough. #fantasyandmagic

Palahniuk is a drug. Every now and then, you need a quick hit of his surreal world... I'm so glad Tyler Durden is back. This is one imaginary friend you DO NOT want in your life. Or maybe you do... Depends.

⭐️️⭐️️⭐️️⭐️️⭐️️

Atwood is given license to play around with Shakespeare's The Tempest, and turns it into a 'play within a play'... seriously, this woman can never do wrong. Reading this at a time when the RSC are releasing the most immersive, CGI version of the play was the best thing I ever did. Plus, Atwood has made me think about the characters in ways I never thought I could.

⭐️️⭐️️⭐️️⭐️️

This was a Christmas gift from a dear librarian friend/colleague of mine that I read in one sitting... what a wonderfully peculiar and refreshing collection of short stories! Riggs has cleverly grafted the mythos of the peculiars to the real world. The stories (like real myths and legends) have variable endings due to the vernacular nature of folklore and its penchant to morph according to the needs of its audience.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Every year I set myself a reading target (50 books) and this year I've successfully met it. 2016 has been a productive reading year. I may have fallen short of last year's target, but with a few days left to go I reckon I can get a couple more in. I hope it has been a great year for all my bookworm friends here on @Litsy too!

Do you set yourself any reading targets? I'd love to know how people manage/ set out their expectations for the new year!

Soo much fun! Deadpool's oneliners cracked me up... Gotta love a bit of Deadpool! Gotta take a much needed power nap now. My total number of books are up to 8. Wow... I actually did it!

Not quite what I was expecting, but a good read nonetheless.

For the next 2 hours of #readathon... comic books! This will bring my total to 4 books.

King at his best. A well-written story that carries you through to the end. Perfect for the #24hourreadathon #88pages #score

“She‘s lived in Plato‘s cave, staring at the shadows on the wall. Now she‘s been turned around to face the fire.” #24hourreadathon #book1

“I love you, Miss Justineau. I‘ll be a god or a Titan for you, and save you.” - Melanie

I probably have this convo every other week with a student... I make the exact same expression. #feelingchuckspain

It's 'Write Club'... can you guess who's running the show? Lol

'The dog, Mr Palahniuk?' - the world needs more Tyler Durden. #tylerdurdenlives

As always, engrossing. King's prose is easy on the eyes (and brain).

Now that's what an English undergraduate wants to see! All books Q9... Happy days were had rummaging through the Halcyon Bookstore shelves. I saved a mint on all the texts I needed. Call me crazy, but there is nothing more relaxing than walking into a shop that has mini Everest's of books teetering precariously on every available surface. Some really nice rare editions to be found here too #getindie #greenwich #royalgreenwich #boroughoflondon

My local haunt... Situated in Rochester (Dickens' country) in Kent, England is literally England's largest rare and secondhand bookstore. If I wander down Rochester High St, my feet always end up taking me here! Picked up a rare copy of A Christmas Carol. I love to look through the leather-bound editions of Byron, Keats and Dickens! There's a gorgeous set of Shakespeare folios for anyone who's interested! #getindie #rarebooks #victorian #dickens

A promising start.

😂😂😂

Loving this biography of Coco Chanel! I've fallen for Boy... Balsan is such a terrible bore :(

Doesn't look like much, but August will be the month I truly get my 'read' on! Lol

Doth my eyes deceive me? Or is this the voice of Beatrice mine ears heareth? #muchadoaboutnothing

The summer 2016 TBR pile. Basically the next 5 weeks of my life...

One step closer to 'I' instead of 'we'. Really enjoying the serial reader at the moment :)

A cheeky little Casablanca reference keeps yer reader on their toes 😋

Dollar, dollar bill y'all! #thuglife #shakespearestyle

... This novel will ruin my summer vacation... I know it.
I want the noose, I want the scorch burn!
I'm ready for the ride. Let's go! ☠☠

Truth. Always write what is truthful... Therein lies beauty and grace. Art always finds a way to validate our lives, no matter how fleeting, small or graceless it may seem to us. Art is a mother's bosom with room enough for all and eye enough to see and bring out those hidden angles of beauty.

Amazing! I never thought I'd feel sympathy for a serial killer... But Cormier is so skilled, he actually made me feel sad for Eric. Definitely a good one!

No character development. No nice imagery. Very boring.

Almost choked on my morning coffee! 😂😂😂 #evilbuttsmoke #icouldsmellthevilinit
Bonus points for those that can also spot something else about the passage ;)

The total absence of a conscience has always fascinated me.

I've always said that crazy is better than normal.

I dub thee, 'On the Merits of being a Servant' by John Steinbeck #interesting

Started off really well, with beautiful description of how magic might really 'feel' like... but the narrative went a bit stale towards the end. If there had been more Baba Yaga in this rather than silly trees that capture people's souls, it would have been a superior novel. More Baba Yaga!

Back on this again.
Every 'narrative junky's' nightmare... #thefearisreal

Trialling Serial Reader with Ayn Rand... And loving it! They really know where to cut it off so you want more❤️

Can't put it down... I'm in big trouble. I have marking to do! 😱😱😱😱

The second instalment is just as engrossing a the first - Can't wait to read volume 3. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Sound advice from grandma!

Signed copy from Waterstones, Greenwich - WHOOP! Thank you @joe_hill - your story so far has brought back memories of a 10 yr old me, sitting cross-legged leafing thru her father's copies of The Unexplained. The photos of Spontaneous Human Combustion always scared the life out of me!

Iran was once a prosperous, forward-thinking country. Marjane Satrapi's autobiographical account coincides with the deathroes of the Pahlavi reign (last Shah of Iran) and the onset of islamic fundamentalism in her country. Through her eyes, we witness Iran metastasising to what it is today. 🌟 ☮☯☪

Reality is weirder than fiction...

The brainwashing of the young... how often I see/ hear this from the mouth of babes in my line of work. Today's political climate of hate against certain religions and beliefs means children have no hope of knowing the right thing if their parents have nasty, crooked ideas.

Picked up this quick read in the library with the kids today. Excellent!

Zafon knows his craft: great to see him channeling Mary Shelley here. Quality description, so vivid!