Fat by Rob Grant

Rob Grant (of the Rob Grant and Doug Naylor (or their collaborative name, Grant Naylor) of the Red Dwarf series) - I saw his name on the cover, and I just had to read the book. It was called "Fat", and I honestly didn't know what to expect: a book on computers? a diet manual? SF? humour?

I've read it, loved it.

Still don't qote know how to describe it.

It's a novel.
Skillfully written.
Full of wise observations.
The hyperboles will make you smile.
Some characters will make you cry.
It's both contemporary and speculative fiction.
The theme is our society's obsession with body image.

Enough to make you pick it up?
I hope so.

Sherlock, the TV series

Unlike most people I know, I've not been blown away by the recent Sherlock Holmes movie - movies? I think there's been a sequel? I mean, I liked the first one well enough, just, well, one was enough.

Not so with the TV series. I thought I'd hate the fact that it's modernised, and that it's not true to the plot of the original stories. Instead, I find myself addicted. Just as well I'm late onto the train and several seasons behind: I have several episodes to look forward to.

10/10 for the acting, 10/10 for the dialogues, 10/10 for casting.

Dear Daughter

Dear Daughter by Elizabeth Little is... well, it's definitely different. Partly murder mystery, partly a celebrity magazine, partly a juvenile version of Bridget Jones's diary (not that Bridget Jones is not already juvenile), this is nevertheless a gripping read.

What I enjoyed:

• the unusual premise (daughter unsure whether she did or did not murder her mother)
• the writing voice
• the short chapters
• the fast pace
• the unpredictability
• the unobtrusive sprinkling of Native Americans
• the unusual setting

What I wasn't crazy about:

• the excessive swearing
• the unsympathetic heroine
• the ending

I think it's a book everybody should read.

Only 99c!

Buy the book here.

Buy the book here.

The Stranger by Harlan Coben

I really like Harlan Coben writes. He makes you care about the characters, both the major and the minor ones. He keeps the pace pitch-perfect. And his observations about society and families are spot-on. No wonder this book was difficult to put down.

In the minus column, I do think this novel is ever so slightly guilty of self-plagiarism, the way it smacks of Just One Look with a pinch of Hold Tight. Still, if you have to repeat story lines, those two novels are so good, they're definitely worthy of the honour.

How far would you go to protect your family?

Would you agree to endanger people you don't know? Would you burn files that could expose evil? Would you confess to a crime you did not commit?

Buy the Kindle version of Operation Genocide and save 84%.

Terry Pratchett on Writing

·         There's no such thing as writer's block. That was invented by people in California who couldn't write. ~ Terry Pratchett

·         For an author, the nice characters aren't much fun. What you want are the screwed up characters. You know, the characters that are constantly wondering if what they are doing is the right thing, characters that are not only screwed up but are self-tapping screws. They're doing it for themselves. ~ Terry Pratchett

·         Too many people want to have written. ~ Terry Pratchett

Ode to Multiple Universes

I do have worlds enough and time
to spare an hour to find a rhyme
to take a week to pen an article
a day to find a rhyme for 'particle'.
In many worlds my time is free
to spend ten minutes over tea
And steal the time from some far moon
so words can take all afternoon,
Away beyond the speed of light
I'll write a novel in one night.
Aeons beckon, if I want 'em...
...but I can't have em', 'cos of Quantum.

-- Terry Pratchett