Sundays at Tiffany's

Title: Sundays at Tiffany's by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet
Genre: Fiction, Romance
Rating 2/5

As the lonely daughter of a famous Broadway producer, Jane Margaux's only childhood friend is imaginary. But on her ninth birthday, Michael has to leave, as all imaginary friends do, and promises her that she'll soon forget him. Years later, Jane is as lonely as she ever was, and she's never forgotten Michael. Then one day she meets him again, and he's as perfect as ever. But can they overcome the obstacles to be together and why is Jane the first child that Michael's met again as an adult?

I'm sad to say I wasn't overly impressed with Sundays at Tiffany's. Unfortunately, I found the writing style a little choppy and wondered at points whether it signified a change in authors, which distracted from the actual storyline. From the description at the back of the book, I hadn't expected Jane to remember Michael right away and was looking forward to the big 'Ah ha!' moment. However, I thought her disbelief at seeing him again was very well done, and a good way for her to realise how low her self-esteem had dropped. He seemed to be the motivation she needed to start fighting for her own personal happiness with her mother and boyfriend, instead of letting them win all the battles. Overall, its a cute and simple romance but I think that James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet have better books out there.

To Catch a Pirate

Title: To Catch A Pirate by Jade Parker
Genre: Fiction, YA, Romance
Rating: 3/5

In 1720, Annalisa Townsend's life was spared by a young pirate, James Sterling, in exchange for a stolen kiss. One year later, her father has been arrested on suspicion of being in cahoots with the pirates that attacked their ship and Annalisa has forged a letter of marque in order to find James Sterling and prove her father's innocence. And this time she's in danger of him stealing far more than a kiss.

I don't have much to say on Jade Parker's To Catch A Pirate. It's your average cliched romance novel. Boy meets girl, boy kisses girl, unforseen problems arise to keep them apart. Can they overcome the obstacles to be together? It's essentially a book for Harlequin readers-in-training, with only kissing and no sex. I wasn't sold on the character of Annalisa, her opinions were too easily swayed by other characters in the book and her transformation from the prologue to chapter one seemed a bit much to me. I found James to be a more believable character; a pirate because that was the life he landed in, not because of his desire for treasure. And the rest of the characters are basically peripheral ornaments; they play their role and then fade into the background again. There is little to ground the book in a specific place or time while reading, but there is an interesting author's note at the end to set the background information. Overall, its a quick and romantic read, but if you're looking for something that gives a better look at the pirate life, I'd try suggest trying a different book.

The Liar

Title: The Liar by Stephen Fry
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4/5

Adrian Healey is your average public school boy but for one thing, his inability to tell the truth. Over the years his lies land him into trouble, and he finds himself in over his head, tangled in murder and mystery.

The Liar is utterly hilarious and completely brilliant. Anyone who's watched or read Stephen Fry's work can tell you that the man's a genius. Unfortunately, it also means that there were points in the book where I had to go back and reread in order to catch things I'd missed the first time around. Time weaves through The Liar in a very intricate fashion, and something which seems inconsequential at first may later turn out to be rather important.

The protagonist, Adrian, is a fascinating character. It's nearly impossible to pick out the bits of truth from his lies, and everything around him becomes so much more dramatic as a result. At times I started to feel sorry for him, only to have another of his lies revealed. The theme of lies and untruths plays a large part in the book, and not just with Adrian. More and more of the characters seem to be involved in deceptions as the book continues until you're left wondering if anything is true. Shocking, hilarious and absolutely brilliant, The Liar is a must-read for any fan.