Books, Biscuits, and Tea has moved!

If you are seeing this post, please note that my blog moved from Blogger to Wordpress in April 2012. This blogspot site is no longer active - my blog can now be found at

www.booksbiscuitsandtea.co.uk

If you would still like to follow me, please visit me at my new website and subscribe via RSS, Networked Blogs or email. Thank you!

Review Copy Cleanup [challenge 5] - Love Will Find a Way

Hello everyone and welcome to our fifth and final Review Copy Cleanup Challenge! As all of you know, the sign up for the Review Copy Cleanup are closed. Last week's winners have been chosen by Random.org and are announced here. If you're on the list but we haven't contacted you yet, don't worry, we will!

In the Love Will Find a Way Challenge we're sharing our all-time favourite books. If you were stuck on an island, or in a cave, which books would you bring? We're not limiting you to bring a certain amount of books, so give us your best!

And as usual, we have a bunch of goodies to give away to those of you who complete our final challenge. Here's what's up for grabs:

Prize pack 1:

• A bath/soap basket, courtesy of Shannon Mayer (US only)
• An ebook copy of Fire Baptized by Kenya Wright
• An ebook copy of Covert Dreams by Michael Meyer
• An ebook copy of Jake West: The Keeper of the Stones by M J Webb
• An ebook copy of Jake West: Warriors of the Heynai by M J Webb
• An ebook copy of Lawless Justice by Karina Kantas
• An ebook copy of All's Fair in Vanities War by Karina Kantas + matching bookmarks

Prize pack 2:

• A signed paperback copy of American Girl by Tony Talbot
• An ebook copy of Fire Baptized by Kenya Wright
• An ebook copy of Covert Dreams by Michael Meyer
• An ebook copy of Jake West: The Keeper of the Stones by M J Webb
• An ebook copy of Jake West: Warriors of the Heynai by M J Webb
• An ebook copy of Lawless Justice by Karina Kantas
• An ebook copy of Justice by Jade Varden

Prize pack 3: 

• A signed paperback copy of Over the Mountains by Tony Talbot
• An ebook copy of Fire Baptized by Kenya Wright
• An ebook copy of Covert Dreams by Michael Meyer
• An ebook copy of Jake West: The Keeper of the Stones by M J Webb
• An ebook copy of Jake West: Warriors of the Heynai by M J Webb
• An ebook copy of Lawless Justice by Karina Kantas
• An ebook copy of Crystal Shade: Angeni, Volume 1 & 2 by István Szabó Ifj

Prize pack 4: 

• A signed paperback copy of Taken by Tony Talbot
• An ebook copy of Fire Baptized by Kenya Wright
• An ebook copy of Covert Dreams by Michael Meyer
• An ebook copy of Jake West: The Keeper of the Stones by M J Webb
• An ebook copy of Jake West: Warriors of the Heynai by M J Webb
• An ebook copy of All's Fair in Vanities War by Karina Kantas + matching bookmarks
• An ebook copy of Blind Sight Through the Eyes of Aniela Dawson by Eliabeth Hawthorne + an ebook copy of Blind Sight Through the Eyes of Leocardo Reyes

Blogging Know-How: Mentors, blog buttons, and sharing ARCs

Welcome to the second instalment of Blogging Know How, my brand new weekly feature here on Books, Biscuits, and Tea. The aim of this feature is to answer some of your blogging/ reading/ reviewing/ social networking related questions. If there's anything you've been wondering about, you can't figure out or just want me to help you out with, you can send it to me via email or the little contact form I'll post at the end of these posts.

"I've been watching youtube videos and reading other blogger tips/tricks of the trade and a lot of them say to get a mentor. More experienced bloggers must have a TON of help requests. How would a fairly new blogger go about getting a seasoned mentor when they don't know anyone? And thanks for this feature, I love it! I'll definitely support it. :)" - Mandee

Thanks Mandee! Having someone more experienced helping you out is great and it definitely makes blogging and exploring this whole blogoverse much, much easier but I can see why it's so hard to find someone to help you. It's not the fact that people don't want to help or not even the fact that you don't know anyone. It's rather that blogging takes a hell of a lot of time and most of us go to school or work full time besides blogging and taking on a mentee would mean that they'd have even less time for reading and well.. everything else. So how do you get started? I'll tell you what I did when I started my blog and entered the blogosphere, the great unknown for the first time.

Review: Agatha Raisin: As The Pig Turns - M.C. Beaton

Title: Agatha Raisin: As The Pig Turns 
Author: M.C. Beaton 
Publication date: April 19th, 2012
Publisher: Constable & Robinson
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 978-1-78033-160-7
Length: 294 pages
Genre: Mystery
Age group: Adult
Source: Publisher
Add it: Goodreads
Buy it: Amazon US | Amazon UK | The Book Depository

Winter Parva, a traditional Cotswolds village next door to Carsely, has decided to throw a celebratory hog roast to mark the beginning of the winter holiday festivities. And Agatha Raisin has arrived with friend and rival in the sleuthing business, Toni, to enjoy the merriment. But as the spit pig is carried towards the bed of fiery charcoal, Agatha - and the rest of the village - realise that things aren't as they seem...

Very quickly it transpires that the hog roast is in fact the body of Gary Beech, a policeman not much loved in Winter Parva. And although Agatha has every intention of leaving the affair to the police, she just can't resist in joining the fray to try and solve the case herself!

The Agatha Raisin series was recommended to me by many of my bookish friends, so naturally, I had to find out what the hype was about. When I first read the synopsis, I was expecting something along the lines of a modern day Miss Marple or the female version of Sherlock Holmes, but that's where I was wrong. M.C. Beaton's series, in fact, is quite different from both Doyle's and Christie's novels. Did I still enjoy it? I would say yes.

To be frank, I haven't read any of Beaton's previous books in the series but I had no difficulties with getting into the story whatsoever. As The Pig Turns is the 22nd instalment but don't be put off if you haven't read any Agatha Raisin books before - you'll be able to figure out who's who soon enough. Agatha Raisin is a middle-aged woman with a nicotine addiction and a penchant for swearing, and being disagreeable. Even though I was expecting something entirely different and it took me some time to actually get to know and like her, I managed to warm to her after a while. Even though she has a reputation for her 'stiff upper lip', you cannot help noticing that there's a more vulnerable side to her and despite the fact that she deals with murder on a daily basis, she's still as frightened as we are.

I'm on Formspring!

Hello everyone! Just a quick note to let you know that once again, I'm back on Formsprin. Feel free to stop by and say hello or ask me anything at http://www.formspring.me/vickysreviews :)

For those of you who haven't come across this website before: Formspring is basically a questions-answers website. It allows you to set up a profile page for yourself, where anyone can ask you questions about given topics (or anything, basically). I used to have a page a few years ago but I decided to give it up. Now that I have a book blog, I thought I'd give it a try once again - I think it's another fantastic way to keep in touch and get to know fellow bloggers and their reading habits. It's fab, come and join us! :)

In My Mailbox #23

Hi everyone and welcome to my 23rd In My Mailbox! In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. It's our opportunity to get a sneak peek into what books everyone is received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops and downloaded onto eReaders.

I didn't do an IMM post last week because I didn't have anything to show you but this week was amazing book-wise and I got lots of amazing books. Shall we check them out?

Purchased:

A Kestrel For a Knave by Barry Hines (paperback)
Love on the Dole by Walter Greenwood (paperback)
Billy Elliot by Melvin Burgess (paperback)
Union Street by Pat Barker (paperback)

Review: The Look - Sophia Bennett

Title: The Look
Author: Sophia Bennett
Publication date: March, 2012
Publisher: Chicken House
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 978-1-906427-91-7
Length: 327 pages
Genre: Contemporary fiction
Age group: Young Adult
Source: Publisher
Add it: Goodreads
Buy it: Amazon US | Amazon UK | The Book Depository

Ted is fifteen, and...oh yes...tall. When she's spotted by a model agency, she can't believe it. At the same time, Ted's fashionista sister, Ava, is diagnosed with cancer. With her world turned upside down, Ted has a lot of growing up to do, some of it in five-inch platforms. Should she be the model sister for Ava? Life in front of the camera is harder than it looks. And will they still be smiling when it’s over?

The Look is without a doubt one of those books that will make you roar with laughter one minute, shed a few tears the next but most importantly, it will make you think and re-evaluate your life. I loved everything about it, from the characters and the plot to Bennett's writing style - just brilliant.

Writing from a 15-year old girl's point of view is quite risky and and it can go horribly wrong since many times these teenagers sound a bit too mature, too adult-ish and I can't seem get over the fact that I didn't talk or think like that when I was their age, but Sophia Bennett pulls it off perfectly. Her ironic/sarcastic sense of humour definitely fits Ted's personality and it's one of the things that make this book as good as it is.

What I loved about this story, however, is the message that it's trying to convey to its readers. I liked how different Ava becomes after she learns about her illness. She transforms from this stunning and popular older sister into someone brave and more mature. It's interesting how different people think when they know they might lose the battle against the illness. I loved how she was behind Ted the whole time and encouraged her to go for it and give modelling a shot. It's as if she said we only live once and we shouldn't be afraid of taking chances...because what's the worst that can happen? In the end we only regret the chances that we didn't take and the decisions that we waited too long to take. The Look is an incredibly motivating and optimistic novel which will no doubt give hope to teenagers all around the world.

At the same time, it's not a depressing and heart-wrenching novel which tells the story of a girl who's trying to survive cancer, quite the opposite. Don't be afraid to pick it up if you don't like highly emotional stories because it's not like that. If you like contemporary / chick lit novels then I can guarantee that you'll love this one. The characters will really grow on you along the way and you'll be amazed how much they change by the end of the story and how much the two sisters' relationship itself changes.

The modelling world itself was very well researched and written - I've always had a soft spot for fashion so I was really excited about reading this book and it didn't disappoint me one bit. If I had to make comparisons, I'd say it's like America's Next Top Model and The Devil Wears Prada rolled into one, sprinkled with a pinch of humour and topped off with a great sisterly bond, witty and amiable characters, and gripping storyline. What's not to love?

Rating:

*Thank you to Chicken House for sending me a review copy of this book*

Review Copy Cleanup [challenge 4] - Mysterious Meetup

Hello everyone and welcome to our fourth Review Copy Cleanup Challenge! As all of you know, the sign up for the Review Copy Cleanup are closed. Last week's winners have been chosen by Random.org and are announced here. If you're on the list but we haven't contacted you yet, don't worry, we will!

In the Mysterious Meetup Challenge you can have that conversation with your favourite book character of all times. Who would you want to meet? What questions would you ask him or her? Share your Mysterious Meetup with us!

And once again, we have some books to give away to those of you who complete the challenge. Here's what's up for grabs:

1x ebook copy of Covert Dreams by Michael Meyer

1x ebook copy of  The Keeper of the Stones by M J Webb

1x ebook copy of Warrior of the Heynai by M J Webb
1x ebook copy of Better Off Without Him by Dee Ernst
1x paperback copy of Quicksilver by Joy Spraycar

Five lucky winners will get to choose from the five prizes listed above. It's first come, first serve - which means that the first winner will get to choose first, the second winner chooses next, and so on.