K.J. Chapman's Blog, page 56
December 11, 2016
Gifts for a Book Lover
Do you know a book lover who needs a perfect gift? There’s no need to be stumped in the present buying department, just have a look at my top ten book lover gifts:
(All the following items are available via the accompanying Etsy links.)
Spoon bookmark from Milk and Honey Luxuries on Etsy.
Tote book bag from Erikas Bag on Etsy.
Mug from Stallings and Son on Etsy.
Horse shoe bookends from Critters Co on Etsy.
‘Sherlock’s Study’ scented candle from Frostbeard on Etsy.
Hand typed C.S. Lewis Friendship quote from Quotype on Etsy.
Book Pouch from Melvis Makes on Etsy.
Shakespeare Earrings by Bookity on Etsy.
Dewey Decimal for Literature scarf from Cyberoptix on Etsy.
Harry Potter Bauble from Love Liesel Crafts from Etsy.
What do you think of these beautiful gifts? I hope this has given you some inspiration. I know what is on my Christmas list…
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December 10, 2016
Indie Book Advent #11
Day 11 of my Indie Book Advent features Faith Rivens’ novella, Eleonore.
Eléonore Dormant’s life is a precarious balancing act: librarian by day, demon hunter by night and single mother around the clock. Each day brings its challenges and she brings her A-game. It helps that coffee and a bottle of painkillers are always in supply.
For six years, she’s protected the streets of Montreal from all manner of demons and the consequent evil that they would wreak on her city. But even a resumé like hers isn’t enough to prepare her for the unforeseen night when she becomes the hunted.
A sorcerer, an enigmatic Elder, has placed a hefty bounty on her head and the demons are eager to claim the reward for her capture. They bear down on her, disrupting her mode de vie and endangering her son’s life all in one fell swoop. But Eléonore is ready to fight whatever Hell deigns to send her way to save him. The path she pursues will lead her to new places and old faces.
One thing is certain, Eléonore’s about to get into a whole hellhole of trouble.
Where to find Faith and her book:
Review: The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne 4/5
Berlin, 1942 : When Bruno returns home from school one day, he discovers that his belongings are being packed in crates. His father has received a promotion and the family must move to a new house far, far away, where there is no one to play with and nothing to do. A tall fence stretches as far as the eye can see and cuts him off from the strange people in the distance.
But Bruno longs to be an explorer and decides that there must be more to this desolate new place than meets the eye. While exploring his new environment, he meets another boy whose life and circumstances are very different from his own, and their meeting results in a friendship that has devastating consequences.
Review:
Bruno is a nine year old son of a Nazi Commandant of Auschwitz. The story follows Bruno’s story of moving from Berlin for his Father’s job on the special request of Hitler, to starting up a friendship with a Jewish boy within the camp, and eventually, shockingly, having his eyes opened to the horrors of what really goes on behind the fence..
I read this book when I was a teenager, and when I spotted a copy in my library, I decided to re-read it and see if I experienced the read in the same way as I did back then. I can honestly say that this book still packs the same punch it did on my first read. Bruno’s naivety and the way that Boyne uses that innocence to tackle tragic realities in this hard-hitting, heart-wrenching narrative is masterfully constructed.
*No spoilers* The ending stays with you, even after you have closed the book.
Why I couldn’t give it 5*: unrealistic niggles. Bruno never questioned certains things that were said about his Father, most importantly, by his own Grandmother. Bruno was able to meet up with Shmuel more than I’d imagine possible under the circumstances.
If you want a hard-hitting, thought provoking read based on WW2 atrocities, then this is the book for you.
The opinions expressed here are those of K.J.Chapman and no other parties
All books reviewed on this blog have been read by K.J.Chapman
K.J.Chapman has not been paid for this review
December 9, 2016
Indie Book Advent #10
Day 10 of my Indie Book Advent features Leeah Taylor’s Dark Secrets.
[image error]What happens when everything you thought you knew was a lie?
That’s exactly what William must face when he meets Becca one night in a local bar. Their connection curious as William feels a familiar draw to her. Sure that he knows her, William digs deeper for information by returning to the Bottom. His curiosity, though, reveals twenty years of lies, secrets and betrayal; all at the hands of his parents.
William is thrust back into the world of vampires, conjurers and wolves when Becca is taken by an old enemy. And as family is reunited and truths revealed, William is faced with a legacy that will change everything he thought he knew about himself, his father and the world he came from.
All that matters, though, is his growing affection for Becca. A bond forged at birth and reignited as they discover who they are and what they are meant for. And as they do, they will awaken the Heir and Heiress within them. Setting into motion their legacy to once again rule the Bottom World. But first, they must die before they can live.
Where to find Leeah Taylor and her book:
December 8, 2016
Indie Book Advent #9
Day 9 of my Indie Book Advent features Dead by Morning by Kayla Krantz.
Obsession is deadly. No one learns that better than Luna Ketz, a pessimistic high school senior. She wishes more than anything to graduate but things don’t always go as planned. Luna quickly finds herself trapped in a web of lies and murders, spun by the least suspected person in her hometown. It’s not long before she realizes she’s being targeted by the person she despises most in the world. When Luna figures out who is behind the killings, things make a turn for the bizarre when she is contacted by a friend she has not heard from in years. It is then Luna realizes she is very much in danger, but although she can avoid the killer in reality, she cannot avoid him in her dreams.
Where to find Kayla Krantz and her book:
December 7, 2016
Indie Book Advent #8
Day 8 of my Indie Book Advent features L.M. Bryski’s Book of Birds.
In post-war Canada during the late 1940s, Elly McGuinty and her younger sister, Dot, are newly orphaned. The girls are sent to live with their grandparents in a small prairie town. Still grieving the loss of her parents, Elly chafes at the responsibility of helping care for Dot and struggles to find a place for herself in her new life. When a travelling circus comes to town, Elly’s desire for new experiences leads her, Dot, and new friend Stammer – a shy boy mocked for his halting voice – down a path where lives are altered forever.
Where to Find Bryski and her book:
Picture Prompt
Today’s picture prompt was taken at a National trust estate in Cornwall. Just after I took this picture, we had to climb down the slippery, leaf covered embankment. I asked my daughter to hold my hand, and she refused, claiming ever so politely that she would hold her Daddy’s hand because Mummy is the best at slipping over.
I invite you to have a go at writing a sentence or paragraph to accompany it. You can find me on Instagram by following this link.
If you do not have an Instagram account, but would like to join in, you can post your sentence/ paragraph in the comments, and I will feature them in the next Picture Prompt post right here on my blog with links back to you.
Picture Prompt:
I stand back from the swamp, watching the men from a distance. One calls out in elation and plunges his hands into the green, murky water. The rest wait patiently, the tension prickling the air around us. Daring to creep closer, I crawl on all fours to the embankment. He withdraws a small chest from the depths. It looks ancient, just like the key I found on the bank yesterday.
“Don’t open it,” one man warns. “It must only be opened by the heir.”
“We don’t know where to find her,” the man replies, turning the chest in his hands.
“Yes, we do. She’s hiding over there.”
Content belongs to K.J. Chapman
December 6, 2016
Indie Book Advent #7
Day 7 of my Indie Book Advent features Train to the Edge of the Moon by Asper Blurry.
Punk is no ordinary girl who takes the life as it is. She has a nasty habit of getting in troubles, she shows the middle finger to people’s prejudice and stupidity, fights against her broken identity and the corporation where she works. She always goes against the stream with her heavy, tight shoes, but still tries to be a better person. Punk’s adventurous journey to become a poet starts in a Place Without a Name, continues in Italy and London. Her train is full of laughs, reflections, modern tales about our young lives and relationships and occasional heartbreaks. You will probably love and hate Punk at the same time, but it will be difficult to forget about her wild side of the moon.
Where to find Asper Blurry and her book:
December 5, 2016
Indie Book Advent #6
Day 6 of my Indie Book Advent features Stella Wilkinson’s A Christmas Gift.
Holly and Caleb had been best friends as children, growing up on the same street, but as teenagers they couldn’t be further apart. When Caleb unexpectedly asked Holly to help him pick out a Christmas gift for his girlfriend, neither of them anticipated where it would lead.
Where to find Stella Wilkinson and her book:
December 4, 2016
Indie Book Advent #5
Day five of my Indie Book Advent features K.C. Jane’s novellas, With Bells On, and Searching for Sasha.
It’s not like the news of her Mum’s overdose comes as a shock to Sasha, but the secret hidden in her belongings sees her embark on a journey of desperation and discovery. Could one, scrawled letter bring love into Sasha’s life? And will Sasha know what it looks like if it does?
One thing is for sure, if she wants love and family, then she has to work for it. Her quest to belong may just have her searching for the one person she never realised she had lost…herself.
Mona is a perpetual singleton, but not for lack of trying. Is it simply bad luck, or her knack for finding herself in the most awkward, yet hilarious situations, that sees her romance-free at Christmas?
Maybe the right man isn’t out there. Or maybe she has been looking in the wrong place this whole time.
Could a game of bingo and a cantankerous Nanna lead Mona to her Christmas romance?
Where to find K.C. Jane and her books:
