Book: Blackpeak Station

Summary: Four generations of the Black family have farmed Blackpeak Station. Next in line, or so she believes, is Charlotte Black, stubborn as rock and unbiddable as the weather. But standing in her way are 150 years of tradition, an older brother, and a father who believes that daughters run families, not farms.

To make her childhood dream of owning the family property come true, she'll have to be as tough as the mountains themselves. There can be no room for romance in Charlotte's life. Or so she thinks, until it arrives at her door. Can she have both love and land, or must she choose? Can Charlotte learn to trust her heart?


What I thought: A new rural romance author to add to my collection but this time from New Zealand. Loved it. Hooked from page 1 :)

Book: Stone Castles

Summary: After ten years pursuing a prestigious career in New York, Pip Martin has returned to the Yorke Peninsula to farewell her dying grandmother. She doesn't intend to linger - there are too many memories in the small country town and not all of them will stay in the past.

Like Luke Trenorden, her childhood sweetheart. A man Pip had promised her heart to, until tragedy stole Pip's family away, and a terrible lie tore both their lives apart. Pip cannot deny there is still a spark between them, even amidst the heartache of losing her Gran and the demands of her new life. But it may not be enough to rekindle a love that has been neglected for so long.
When a long-kept secret is revealed, Pip is free to go back to the life she thought she wanted... unless Luke can break down the stone castle Pip has built around her heart.



What I thought: Another great rural lit read. I was hooked early on and loved it.

Bookgroup: Philomena

Summary: When she fell pregnant as a teenager in Ireland in 1952, Philomena Lee was sent to the convent at Roscrea in Co. Tipperary to be looked after as a fallen woman. She cared for her baby for three years until the Church took him from her and sold him, like countless others, to America for adoption. Coerced into signing a document promising never to attempt to see her child again, she nonetheless spent the next fifty years secretly searching for him, unaware that he was searching for her from across the Atlantic. Philomena's son, renamed Michael Hess, grew up to be a top Washington lawyer and a leading Republican official in the Reagan and Bush administrations. But he was a gay man in a homophobic party where he had to conceal not only his sexuality but, eventually, the fact that he had AIDs. With little time left, he returned to Ireland and the convent where he was born: his desperate quest to find his mother before he died left a legacy that was to unfold with unexpected consequences for all involved. Philomena is the tale of a mother and a son whose lives were scarred by the forces of hypocrisy on both sides of the Atlantic and of the secrets they were forced to keep.

What I thought: I very much enjoyed this. I got angry and sad and happy throughout. Well worth a read - just don't watch the movie as it is very different!

Book: Meant to Be

Summary: Emily Oliphant’s life finally seems to be settling down. Her new boyfriend Jake has joined her on the farm, they are looking forward to starting their life together, and her financial security seems safe and sound.
They both love the peace and tranquillity of the setting of Emily’s beloved old cottage which had been reduced to rubble by her deceased husband. Jake suggests they rebuild it — it will be a big job, but a good project for them: a potential business for Emily, and a good advertisement for his building company.
Their plans and the building progress well. But where Emily is involved, life doesn’t tend to run smoothly for long. This time it is her two best friends who face a personal crisis and Emily finally gets the chance to repay them for the kindness and support they gave her when she needed it. But now she has a new dilemma. How will she and Jake announce their news to Barbara and David? And what will happen to their friendship when they do?


What I thought: This book took a while to get into as the main character had reverted back to a needy whingy thing. But maybe 50 pages in it all clicked and then I was hooked again. A nice end to the series but I'm ready for that to be closed and to read some new books with new charcters. Not really into series.

Book : The Fault in our Stars

Summary: Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

What I thought: OMG - brilliant. Go out and read this!!!

Book: Destinations

Summary: From the moment the Dart system became part of Dublin I dreamed about writing a collection of short stories centred around it. I think this is because I am basically a nosy person and love looking at the backs of people’s houses and wondering what kind of lives they’re living. And whenever passengers get on the train I’m always intrigued as to where they’re going to or coming from and what’s going on in their lives. Not being able to actually ask, I’ve made it all up and the result is Destinations. I’m hoping it’s an idea commuting book because the stories are short enough to be read between a couple of stations but clearly I also hope it will be enjoyed no matter where you are!

What I thought: A good collection of short stories. Enjoyed these over lunch. 

Book: Secrets of Whitewater Creek

Summary: Born and bred on the land, Jordan Windcroft is brave and independent. She's had to be. Her life revolves around running her property almost single-handedly on next to no money, and waiting out her four years of probation — a rap that she took for one of her closest friends for a crime she didn’t commit.

Thankfully there's an end to her problems in sight. Jordan’s probation period is almost up, and if she can just make the cattle sale, there’s a chance she can pull herself out of more than ten years of serious debt and keep her precious farm. The last thing she needs is for Reid Easton to start monitoring her.
Detective Senior Sergeant Reid Easton drives into Whitewater Creek on a mission to wrap up a three-year drug investigation; his only lead, Jordan Windcroft. The attraction between the two is immediate, but Reid is undercover and Jordan has a secret she can’t risk him discovering. Will either jeopardise their cause, for something as transitory as love – or will they keep their secrets to themselves?


What I Thought:  I really loved this book. Had me in sucked in from the start. Another new author to add to the list! Way too many of them now!

Book: The Fine Colour of Rust

Summary: Single mother Loretta Boskovic may have fantasies about dumping her two kids in the orphanage and riding off on a Harley with her dream lover, but her reality is life in a dusty country town called Gunapan. A self-dubbed 'old scrag', Loretta's got a big heart and a strong sense of injustice. So, when Gunapan's primary school is threatened with closure, and there's a whiff of corruption wafting through the corridors of the local council, she stirs into action. She's short of money, influence and a fully functioning car, but she does have loyal friends who'll do whatever it takes to hold on to the scrap of world that is home.

What I thought: Absolutely LOVED this book. Great snapshot into ordinary country life. Brilliant - definitely recommend!

Bookgroup: The Sense of an Ending

Summary: Tony Webster and his clique first met Adrian Finn at school. Sex-hungry and book-hungry, they would navigate the girl-less sixth form together, trading in affectations, in-jokes, rumour and wit. Maybe Adrian was a little more serious than the others, certainly more intelligent, but they all swore to stay friends for life.

Now Tony is in middle age. He’s had a career and a single marriage, a calm divorce. He’s certainly never tried to hurt anybody. Memory, though, is imperfect. It can always throw up surprises, as a lawyer’s letter is about to prove.

What I thought: Interesting read. Different ending to what I thought. Amazing what can happen years later.  Still pondering...

Card Swap 4 2014

Our final swap for the year 

2014 Books in review

I had a pretty good reading year but went through reading slumps and occasions where other interests took over. All in all though I finished 54 books so am rather please with that. Here's the breakdown:

Fiction: 43
Non-Fiction: 11





I also found my love for teenage fiction this year and 13 books were devoured (so really 54 is higher than it ought to be). I read 19 books which were related to my ever so tragically addictive Australian rural romance books. Le sigh - I love them.

I managed to read 11/11 of my bookgroup books - after 7 years I finally hit 100%!

Best reads were hard to choose this year. I did love many of my Aussie Rural Romances but I'm going to pick The Rosie Project and The Book Thief as my favs.

Once again the aim for 2015 is 52 books - have a great holiday and may it be filled with many books :)

Book: Butterfly

Summary: Plum Coyle is on the edge of adolescence. Her fourteenth birthday is approaching, when her old life and her old body will fall away, and she will become graceful, powerful, and at ease. The strength of the objects she stores in a briefcase under her bed —a crystal lamb, a yoyo, an antique watch, a coin —will make sure of it. Over the next couple of weeks, Plum’s life will change. Her beautiful neighbor Maureen will begin to show Plum how she might fly. The older brothers she adores will court catastrophe in worlds that she barely knows exist. And her friends, her worst enemies, will tease and test, smelling weakness. They will try to lead her on and take her down.

What I thought: I enjoyed it as a coming of age story as much of it was so true. Not sure about ending though. Still thinking on that one!

Book: Mercy

Summary: Police chief of a small Massachusetts town, Cameron McDonald makes the toughest arrest of his life when his own cousin Jamie comes to him and confesses outright that he has killed his terminally ill wife out of mercy.

Now, a heated murder trial plunges the town into upheaval, and drives a wedge into a contented marriage: Cameron, aiding the prosecution in their case against Jamie, is suddenly at odds with his devoted wife, Allie -- seduced by the idea of a man so in love with his wife that he'd grant all her wishes, even her wish to end her life. And when an inexplicable attraction leads to a shocking betrayal, Allie faces the hardest questions of the heart: when does love cross the line of moral obligation? And what does it mean to truly love another?

What I thought: Hmmm.A great moral dilemma but this one just didn't do it for me. Hated the affair. Loved that she became strong and independent but then she took him back! Sort of ruined the whole mercy story which should have been the focus.

HLI Event Grey Literature - what do we need to know?

This event was in July at RMH by the amazing Jess Tyndall and it was fab! I might be bias in saying that as I was the main organiser for it but still I learnt so much.

I took pages and pages of notes but her powerpoint pretty much sums it up:
 

http://hdl.handle.net/2328/34991 

 

It really is like a whole other world of searching...

Book: Sunnyvale Girls

Summary: Three generations of Stewart women share a deep connection to their family farm, but a secret from the past threatens to tear them apart.

Widowed matriarch Maggie remembers a time when the Italian prisoners of war came to work on their land, changing her heart and her home forever. Single mum Toni has been tied to the place for as long as she can recall, although farming was never her dream. And Flick is as passionate about the farm as a girl could be, despite the limited opportunities for love.

When a letter from 1946 is unearthed in an old cottage on the property, the Sunnyvale girls find themselves on a journey into their own hearts and across the world to Italy. Their quest to solve a mystery leads to incredible discoveries about each other, and about themselves.


What I thought: Another great rural romance. Love this author!

Book : The Power of Bones

Summary: It looked bleak and predictable for little Keelen Mailman: an alcoholic mother, absent father, the horrors of regular sexual and physical assault and the casual racism of a small outback town in the sixties. But somehow, despite the pain and deprivation, the lost education, she managed to absorb her mother's lessons: her Bidjara language and culture, her obligations to Country, and her loyalty to her family.

So it was no surprise to some that a girl who could hide for a year in her own home to keep her family together, run as fast as Raylene Boyle and catch porcupine and goanna, would one day make history. At just 30, and a single mother, Keelen became the first Aboriginal woman to run a commercial cattle station when she took over Mt Tabor, two hours from Augathella on the black soil plains of western Queensland. This is the heartland of Bidjara country, after all, the place her mother and grandparents and great-grandparents had camped on and cared for, and where their ancestors left their marks on caves and rock walls more than 10,000 years ago.

In this unflinching memoir, the warmth of Keelen's personality, her determination and her irresistible humour shine through as she recalls her extraordinary life.

What I thought: I enjoyed this. It wasn't a lot about cattle stations and properties as such but it gave me a great Indigenous perspective of things which I am learning more about all the time.

Book: Thirteen Pearls

Summary: Edie Sparks has grand plans. She' s building a boat to sail solo around the world, but she needs cash, and fast. So when her uncle offers her good money to work on his island pearl farm for six weeks she jumps at the chance. All she has to do is babysit her little cousi - how hard could it be?

But soon Edie is wrangling a monster-brat, arguing with her uncle and being wooed by two handsome boys. The work is hard and thankless and an isolated island off the coast of Far North Queensland turns out to be not as idyllic as it sounds.

What I thought: A good teen romance is a beautiful setting. really enjoy this author.

Book: The Girl with No Name

Summary: In 1954, in a remote mountain village in South America, a little girl was abducted. She was four years old. Marina Chapman was stolen from her housing estate and then abandoned deep in the Colombian jungle. That she survived is a miracle. Two days later, half-drugged, terrified, and starving, she came upon a troop of capuchin monkeys. Acting entirely on instinct, she tried to do what they did: she ate what they ate and copied their actions, and little by little, learned to fend for herself.

So begins the story of her five years among the monkeys, during which time she gradually became feral; she lost the ability to speak, lost all inhibition, lost any real sense of being human, replacing the structure of human society with the social mores of her new simian family. But society was eventually to reclaim her. At age ten she was discovered by a pair of hunters who took her to the lawless Colombian city of Cucuta where, in exchange for a parrot, they sold her to a brothel. When she learned that she was to be groomed for prostitution, she made her plans to escape. But her adventure wasn’t over yet...


What I thought: Wow - what an amazing life. So sad and scary at times. Enjoyed this book.

Bookgroup Book: QF32

Summary: On 4 November 2010, a flight from Singapore to Sydney came within a knife edge of being one of the world's worst air disasters. Shortly after leaving Changi Airport, an explosion shattered Engine 2 of Qantas flight QF32 – an Airbus A380, the largest and most advanced passenger plane ever built. Hundreds of pieces of shrapnel ripped through the wing and fuselage, creating chaos as vital flight systems and back-ups were destroyed or degraded.

In other hands, the plane might have been lost with all 469 people on board, but a supremely experienced flight crew, led by Captain Richard Champion de Crespigny, managed to land the crippled aircraft and safely disembark the passengers after hours of nerve-racking effort.

Tracing Richard's life and career up until that fateful flight, QF32 shows exactly what goes into the making of a top-level airline pilot, and the extraordinary skills and training needed to keep us safe in the air. Fascinating in its detail and vividly compelling in its narrative, QF32 is the riveting, blow-by-blow story of just what happens when things go badly wrong in the air, told by the captain himself.

What I thought: I enjoyed this book but at times it was too technical for me. Still an interesting story. reading this also means I've read ALL bookgroup books for 2014. First time in 7 years!

Book: Diamond Spirit

Summary: At the start of the summer holidays, the unthinkable happens when Jess's beloved pony Diamond has a terrible accident. Why won't Shara, Jess's closest friend, tell her what happened down on the river flats that day? Jess suspects the worst, and feels as though she's lost not just one best friend, but two. But new friends and new horses come into Jess's life, along with the chance to compete in the Longwood campdraft. And there's one little filly who needs her help...Can Walkabout heal Jess's broken heart in return?

What I thought: Loved it - looking forward to the rest in the series. Horsey but not too horsey!