Between The Lines

The Botticelli Secret

 
Hey followers! Sorry that I haven't updated in..well..a year but I'm back for now! I had so much school work this year and was too busy reading numerous books since last year.

However, to start things back off I'm going to comment on one of my favorite books that I've read in a while. The Botticelli Secret had so many different components and I loved every single one of them. There was romance, adventure, mystery, and everything else you could want from a novel. The book takes place in all different cities across Italy during the late 1400's. It follows a young woman, Luciana, who steals a famous painting that has many underlying meanings. She joins up with a monk and they travel together throughout Italy trying to delve into the true secrets of the painting. Along the way, she finds the true meaning of love and finding out who you truly are. Now, it's hard to say much about the rest of the book without giving away the exciting information so, I guess you will just have to read it yourself and make your own decisions about it as I did. As amazing as this book is, it does have a lot of crude language and also some themes that are not suitible for young readers so I would say definitely over 16 to be able to read and appreciate this book. This book is amazing if you love mystery and like to figure out things before the characters in the books do. It's also great if you love the typical adventure and romance novels because it definitely has exciting scenes throughout the entire novel. Basically, no matter what your palette for novels is accustomed to, you can find something to enjoy in this novel.

Again, sorry fans for keeping you waiting so long for the next review but hopefully this will keep you tied over until the next one (which hopefully will be sooner)!

The Wedding Girl - Madeleine Wickham

Defenitely my least favorite books from Wickham (a.k.a. Sophie Kinsella). This took me about 2 days to read and honestly I can't remember half of what the book was about. Don't get me wrong - this book didn't suck that much overall. There was just really nothing more to it than a summer read that really doesn't keep your attention for more than an hour. So basically..I wouldn't read it if you aren't planning on counting down the pages til the end of the book.
 

Sophie's Choice - William Styron

 
This is probably one of the saddest (and longest) books I have ever read. It took me around 3 weeks to finish it and trust me I didn't enjoy every minute of it. The book, as a whole, didn't seem to really go anywhere in the story which are some of my least favorite types of books. There were some sections that were about to bore me to tears so I ahem..skimmed them. The ending, however, grabbed my attention like a hook. The story's about a young man living in New York City who meets a Polish girl, Sophie, and her bipolar boyfriend. The book goes into a lot of detail (at times too much) into all of their lives. It flashes back to Sophie's past during the holocaust which, although it is in the description on the back, is not a huge part of the story which I was hoping it would be. The majority of the book revolves around the threesome going through trials and tribulations in New York. Although not my favorite book in the world, it still has very good qualities about it and was a decent read.

The Pact - Jodi Picoult

 

Easily one of my favorite books of all time. It is a dramatic story told from various perspectives about a young man who is accused of murdering his girlfriend. He gets sent to jail to wait for his trial. The investigators find many pieces of evidence that could easily convict him. Each of the characters in The Pact has a different approach on the subject and they each have their own stories withen the story. There are many twists and turns throughout the book and it leaves you feeling totally different then you did when you started reading. Jodi Picoult is an expert at taking issues that are opiniated and making you change your thinking about them and this book is no exception. This is a book that you will not want to put down even after reading it 5 times like I have.

The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold

 
I was reading this as I made the long journey from my home in to Atlanta, Georgia for an apperal market. This book, for all the hype it's gotten as a movie, actually wasn't that great. It's about a young girl who was killed by her crazy neighbor. Her family spends the whole book trying to figure out who it is and convict him. The book is told from the girl, Susie's, perspective. I was expecting it to blow me away and to make me feel something. But what did I feel? - zip. nada. nothing. It was really good in the beginning - and by that I mean the first 3 or 4 chapters. It was thrilling and interesting. However it killed all suspense that could have been made by this book. The climax, usually the most gripping part of a book and most likely in the middle, happened within the first 10 pages. By the middle of it I had to force myself to keep on reading. So this is why it got the score of 2 stars from me. I have yet to see the movie but all I can hope is that it's better then the way to overrated book.

 

Push - Sapphire

Let me start off by saying that the story behind this book is one that will change your perspective on life. I read it over Christmas Break and I truly felt moved by it. I felt as though I was right there with Precious as she went through the months. Her father raped her many times and Precious had 2 children as a result of it. Her mother abused her repeatedly and the details given to both of these events is stunning. The book is written from Precious's point of view. As she is illiterate the writing in the book is, at times, hard to read. Some of the words are spelled wrong and the grammar is not what you typically find in a book. However, this puts you even more in the shoes of Precious. It took me a while to really get into the book though. Once I got into it about a quarter of the way it was like I couldn't put it down. I found myself wanting to stay up late and find out what happens to Precious. When I got to the end I found myself cheering for Precious and the progress she had made. This book made me laugh, cry and smile until my cheeks hurt. It was a very pleasant experience to read. However I would definitely not give it to anyone who doesn't take reading seriously and isn't above the age of 13.

 

 

The Prologue

Welcome to Between The Lines. Let me just go ahead and say that if you don't like books and aren't willing to accept and spread your imagination then this is definitely not the blog for you to read. I read books constantly and often have opinions that I just have to share with other people - hence the blog. On my blog I will post my reviews and more about each and every book I read. I don't really have a preference for what I like to read so there will be comments on everything from teen trash novels to "deep" nonfiction books. Please feel free to write your own work and send it to me because I love love love to hear new things all the time! I even may write some of my own and post them. So let me start this story at this prologue and I hope it makes you want to turn the next page and begin...