Our Werribee team dazzle with their latest reads as they steal this week’s QBD Spotlight !
The One Who Got Away by Caroline Overington:
Caroline Overington is a local girl but the book is based in a fictional town Bienveneda in America. Bienveneda is divided by a river and the sides are referred to as the High side and the Low side. Loren and her step sister Molly grew up on the Low side. Their relationship had always been strained as Loren was resentful that her Dad left her Mum and her to live with Molly and her Mum.
Loren moves to Brooklyn for work were she meets David who coincidentally is also from Bienveneda but he is High side. Loren falls head over heels for the handsome and successful David so when he ends the relationship and moves back to Bienveneda she starts on a plan to win him back. Her plan works and she and David are married in a lavish ceremony and move into a beautiful house on the High side where they start a family with lovely twin girls. On the surface they have everything, but David’s lies and betrayal threaten to tear everything apart.
To try and save their marriage Loren and David plan a second honeymoon on a luxury cruise line. Loren disappears from the cruise and all fingers point to David.
When I started it I didn’t think I was going to enjoy it but once I got into it I actually did. It is quite fast paced with majority of the story told after the fact. The chapters are all told from a different character, which I enjoy as it gives different perspectives without the need for lots of dialog. There are many twists and turns and even a few “OMG” moments. Keeps you intrigued with what is going to happen next right up the the last page! – Fiona (Store Manager)
The Disclaimer by Renee Knight:
Imagine waking up and finding a book on your bedside table.
Imagine curling up with this book only to realise the main character is based on you.
Imagine if page after page your deepest darkest secrets are being revealed for everyone to see…..this is what happened to Catherine. The disclaimer at the start of the book reads “ Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental” has a neat red line ruled though it!
An addictive read which switches from the view point of Catherine as she battles her demons which are coming to life with every page she reads and Stephen who is a retired widower with has a story to tell. I bought this book as a holiday read and admit I spent a lot of time by the pool because I couldn’t put it down. Very cleverly written, by the time you get to the end everything you thought you knew about the characters changes. – Jodie (Store 2IC)
Fallen by Lauren Kate:
Although I have seen some bad reviews of this book, I still wanted to read it, I’m glad I did because I enjoyed it.
It was a pretty easy read, I finished it in a day, The storyline was completely different to anything I have ever read before.
Fallen is a story about Lucinda who is sent to Sword & Cross reform school after an incident at summer camp. At reform school she meets handsome Daniel who she is instantly drawn to, and can’t explain why but feels she has met him before. This is because Daniel is a fallen angel and in each of his life times he meets and falls in love with Lucinda only for their love to be torn apart time after time. I felt that sometimes she fell in love with him too quickly. I realise it was inevitable but it lost some of the magic of those first moments of new love.
Cam, who is also a fallen angel is another love interest of Lucinda’s, it was funny to have Daniel pop up whenever Luce was with Cam try to rescue her from the situation. As much as Daniel tries to fight off his feeling for Lucinda, he can’t, they are destined to be together.
The ending was pretty cool, leaving me with lots of questions such as why is Cam so interested in Luce even though he knows about her and Daniel and why Molly hates her so much. Hopefully these will be answered in the next book. – Eden
A Series Of Unfortunate Events 01: The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket:
This book is about the 3 Baudelaire children, Violet, Klaus and Sunny. The story starts with the children receiving some very devastating news that their parents have just died in a fire that has also destroyed their house. These children who are now orphans have temporarily been taken under the care of a banker called Mr Poe, who is in charge of their enormous fortune and finding a them a guardian. He places them into the care of Count Olaf who is their only living relative and is the most awful, horrible person anyone could ever meet.
Olaf’s house is filthy and covered in weird eye images and has a tower which the Baudelaires are forbidden from entering. Count Olaf is unpleasant, easily angered and forces the children to perform many chores. Count Olaf has a hidden agenda as to why he wants the children and tries to kill them by locking them in the car on the train tracks but the children being smart manage to rescue themselves and are safe.
Olaf creates a play and gives the children roles to play, in which Violet will marry Olaf. The children realise something is not right so they use Justice Strauss’ library to research law. Klaus learns that the marriage in the play will be legally binding and that Olaf can inherit their fortune from it. He confronts Olaf, who gets one of his colleague to put Sunny in a bird cage, dangling from outside the window of his tower. He threatens to kill her if Klaus and Violet do not follow his plan. Violet constructs a makeshift grappling hook and uses it to climb up the tower. She finds the hook-handed man waiting to capture her. Klaus is brought up to the tower and they are locked together in the room until the play begins.
After Violet signs the marriage document in the play, Olaf interrupts to tell the audience that their wedding was legally binding. Justice Strauss and Mr. Poe both object, but accept that the law requires them to hand over the Baudelaire fortune to Olaf. Violet interrupts to dispute that the marriage was not legally binding, as she signed with her left hand despite being right-handed. Justice Strauss agrees that this invalidates the marriage. Before Olaf can be arrested for locking up Sunny, one of his colleague turns the lights in the theatre off and he is able to escape. Justice Strauss tells the Baudelaire children that she is happy to adopt them; however, Mr. Poe says that this would go against their parents’ will and takes them back to his household until he can find another guardian for them. I really liked this book because it has a great mixture of suspense, mystery and some humour. I especially loved reading this to my 6yr old daughter. – Fab
The Wrong Girl by Zoe Foster:
The wrong girl follows Lily a producer of a successful cooking segment on a morning show program whose work life used to be boring until new chef Jack is hired to work in the segment. Jack and Lily immediately hit it off only problem is Lily and her flatmate Simone had each agreed to take a break from men… However it does not take Simone long to deviate from this pact and begin dating someone she met at her local whole-food shop who turns out to be Jack.. And so a twisted love triangle begins. The Wrong Girl is currently being made into a television series for Channel 10 with an expected mid year release. – Emma
Study 01: Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder:
Poison Study by Maria V Snyder revolves around a young woman, Yelena, who is given a split second choice: be executed for committing murder, or become a poison tester and risk death with every meal. Choosing to live, Yelena is thrown into an uncertain future, while under constant attack from the powerful father of the man she killed. But her life becomes even more complicated when she develops magical abilities that would lead to a definite execution if discovered.
Poison study, the first book in the ‘Study’ series, is an awesome read for anyone interested in the fantasy or paranormal genre. With such a unique concept, this book is fast paced and filled with an amazing world. Not to forget the plot twists that leave you shocked and epic characters. It’s definitely a series worth giving a go. – Brianna
Guild Hunter 01: Angels’ Blood by Nalini Singh:
One word. Perfection.
Elena Deveraux is a Guild Hunter, a bounty hunter who tracks down wayward vampires who skip out on their service to their masters and creators, the Archangels.
Hired by the dangerously beautiful Raphael, the Archangel of New York. Elena’s new job will pit her against an Archangel gone bad and enter into a killing spree like no other. Elena knows that failure is not an option. Especially since Raphael might not let her live win or lose.
If love your paranormal romance intense and sexy, The Guild Hunter Series by the insurmountably talented Nalini Singh should be added to your ‘To Be Read’ pile. – Tiffany
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes:
What started out as a simple want to finish the book before the movie came out I suddenly found myself in a non-stop reading experience. Easily drawn in by the lovable characters and emotive story this one is a must read in my opinion.
Louisa Clark lived in a small town and had a small town life, that is until a 6 month job contract as a carer introduces her to a man who will change her outlook on life and challenge her to live life to its fullest.
Will was in an accident that left him a permanently disabled. His life was dull, stagnant and joyless until his new carer came along and brightened his days with her zealous chatter and colourful clothing.
A deeply beautiful story that will have you laughing and crying for these very relatable characters. – Caitlyn
Ice Station by Matthew Reilly:
A discovery under the ice shelf of Antarctica has a handful of survivors battling unknown elements and enemies in a non-stop action packed adventure.
Shane Schofield also known as Scarecrow, is the leader of a marine force re-con team, he is lightly armoured and trained to make the fast and hard decisions. His skills in action result in the loyalty of all those under his command and he heading off with a small team to try and help.
This book is about the ultimate challenge of good versus evil with a whole lot of action, shock and changeability throughout.
This book has everything. Nasty Frenchman, even nastier British, Hovercraft chases, killer whales….people being fed to killer whales, secret government agencies, a nuclear reactor, monsters and invisibility.
I’ve bought every book Matthew Reilly has ever written and the Scarecrow series has now grown into 4 books plus a novella. If you have not read it I cannot recommend it highly enough. – Sam
