https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv A compilation of some of the best books I've read. scroll down for reviews. en-us 2021-04-23 13:54:01 UTC 2021-04-23 15:39:04 UTC hello@padlet.com 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451814032 2021-04-23 14:01:52 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451814032 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451858295 2021-04-23 14:10:24 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451858295 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451863945 Narrated by Death as we are told all about Liesle, an orphan who goes to stay with a new family during WW2, this has to be one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read. Though I found it a little hard to get in to to start with, it is definitely worth sticking with. Not only is it engaging, but it tells the story of WW2 from a point of view that is so often glossed over - the every day German citizen. To this day it remains the only book that has ever made me cry.
10/10]]> 2021-04-23 14:11:30 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451863945 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451868758 Retelling the trials and tribulations of the Ancient Greeks, starting from the very beginning and finishing just before the Trojan war, if you love history then this book is brilliant. The myths of Ancient Greece have always interested me greatly, though they are very confusing with so many similar sounding names. Fry does a brilliant job of untangling this very knotted web of stories in a way that is easy to follow, even if you do forget what everyone is called.
10/10]]> 2021-04-23 14:12:28 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451868758 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451896921 2021-04-23 14:17:59 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451896921 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451898723 The Help follows three women - Aibileene, Minny and Skeeter as they live with the horrors of racism in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960s. Aibileene and Minny are both part of 'the help', the name given to the black women who are payed to look after the houses and families of rich white folk, and practically end up raising their children. Skeeter is a young white woman looking to publish a book telling the stories of the help, both haunting and heartwarming, in an effort to raise awareness for the racism that dictates their society. The book was a real eye opener to me about just how bad things were, and how bad things still are in our modern day society. It is a very informative read that tells its story with a brilliant mix of humour and sympathy.
9/10]]> 2021-04-23 14:18:19 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451898723 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451967847 2021-04-23 14:31:52 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451967847 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451968854 Getting inside the head of a serial killer is always interesting, and this book does just that. Written from the point of view of both a killer and a defence attorney, the twists in 'Thirteen' just keep coming. I found the beginning a little bit boring, but by half way through I couldn't put it down. This is one of the few books that has a pretty unguessable plot, which is rare in today's media.
8/10]]> 2021-04-23 14:32:04 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451968854 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451993618 2021-04-23 14:36:55 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1451993618 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452002052 Odd Thomas works as a fry cook in the small desert town of Pico Mundo. He has a girlfriend called Stormy, a slightly crazy mother, oh - and he sees dead people.
 I will forever be in love with Dean Koontz's style of writing, and this story (the first in a series) is one of my favourites. It follows Odd as he uses his supernatural abilities to try and save his town from a horrible evil that will strike on August 15th.
It is a very well written book from start to finish and definitely worth a read.
And the best part of it all is that he's friends with Elvis' ghost.
9/10]]> 2021-04-23 14:38:33 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452002052 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452045402 2021-04-23 14:47:20 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452045402 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452050121 This is a perfect example of a book I read in a single sitting. 'Shadow and Bone' follows Alina, a lowly soldier as she takes her first trip across The Shadow Fold, a ghastly strip of smoky darkness full of monsters that has cut the land of Ravka in two. Little does she know that she is the sun summoner - the one person who can banish this chasm of blackness. I really liked this story (1 of 3 in the series.) It was well written without being particularly challenging and I will definitely be reading the next book in the triloogy.
9/10]]> 2021-04-23 14:48:18 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452050121 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452079304 2021-04-23 14:54:14 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452079304 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452083456 Set in the endless night of winter in the Arctic circle, this is one of the most effective ghost stories I've ever read. We follow Jack, a man living in the squalor of 1937 London, as he signs up for an expedition to Norway with two other men. But he doesn't expect to be abandoned there alone for the long dark arctic winter, with no one but the increasingly ominous presence he can feel outside his cabin for company.
A tip of advice - don't read this book at 1am when you're home alone like I did. 
The supernatural element to 'dark matter' is very effective, especially as it manages to be creepy without the need for unnecessary violence or gore.
9/10]]> 2021-04-23 14:55:08 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452083456 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452156068 2021-04-23 15:09:56 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452156068 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452160899 One body - six victims.
Admittedly this book is quite graphic and has a pretty grisly premise, but if you can stomach all of that then you will definitely enjoy 'ragdoll'. The story follows William Fawkes, a recently reinstated Met detective as he races against time to stop the construction of the next ragdoll body after another list of six victims is published. And guess what? His is the last name on the list.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was engaging and interesting the whole way through, and showed real life struggles from the characters. I can't wait to read the next one.
9.5/10]]> 2021-04-23 15:10:58 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452160899 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452208063 2021-04-23 15:20:42 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452208063 40002452 https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452209264 What would you do if you could only utter 100 words per day?
In this dystopian novel, the American government has decreed that all women (and only women) be fitted with electric shock administering wrist bands that constrict their daily word count to a measly 100. 
I went into this book expecting not to like it as I thought it would be more feminazi than feminist, but thankfully I was mistaken. It's a very interesting and sometimes frustrating read about the reality of sexism that has been prevalent throughout history and is still very much there in society today. 
Perhaps the most worrying things about this book is the possibility that with people like Donald Trump as world leaders, something similar to this could happen in the future.
My only gripe with VOX is the ending - in my opinion it was a little bit too neat and unrealistic.
8/10 ]]> 2021-04-23 15:20:57 UTC https://padlet.com/40002452/cpi0hl84hj7kozdv/wish/1452209264