Festive Book Review: A Proper Family Christmas by Chrissie Manby

MY SYNOPSIS

Imagine This: You are part of London’s Yummy-Mummy nation. Which means you’d definitely be part of London’s affluent. Your house is Downton Abbey standards, your vacations are glamorous and your Christmases are well… very grande.

If only your teenage daughter would realize what class entails and would stop dressing like a ho. If only your teenage daughter’s mind isn’t preoccupied with going to the hottest parties, staying online all the time slagging you off to her followers, and dating boys already in college. Boys with bad reputations.

But that’s fine, you’d do all you can to protect your daughter and keep advising her to stay off drugs and alcohol. Until during once concert, your daughter goes against your advice in the hopes of becoming highly ecstatic.

Now she needs a kidney. And sadly, you and your husband are no match to donate. You have no option but to trace your biological mother who gave you away when you were young.

Turns out, your biological family are huge, loud, and very not… proper not-the-kind-of-people you’d want yourself or your daughter to be associated with. But it’s alright, all you need to do is to convince them you really want to be part of the big, happy, working class picture, so you could nick a kidney.

Meanwhile Christmas is approaching. And although there’s nothing to look up to this year, you are praying for a Christmas miracle. A proper family kidney not a poorer family’s Christmas.

Annabel Buchanan’s sometimes tragic, sometimes hilarious and always sensational Christmas summarised for your delight.

MY REVIEW

I loved, loved this book! There’s certainly no way you should miss reading it this Christmas like I did last year (L)

Chrissie Manby is fab! One thing about family books. You cannot help but put your 

family into situations in the story and see how you would react if it were happening to you. You cannot help but make a running commentary as you read noting who’s being too much of a bitch and who’s just plain crazy. That is to say, the storyline is so relatable! I mean, who wouldn’t want to find themselves hunting for a kidney when they could be making (hectic) Christmas preparations!── ★

You would love the two main women placed side by side. Annabel Buchanan who is uptight, considers herself not-a-snob but within is such a snob, who chairs committees and loves to keep appearances but is so sweet at heart—even if sometimes she’s faking it. Ronnie Benson, who’s proud of her family and wouldn’t want to have them any other way though sometimes she wishes she could have a more upscale kitchen and pay the bills with less working hours, who’s harsh on the outside and is quick to voice her opinions despite them being not sweet at all. A star to these main characters. You’d find yourself judging the two, wishing you had the perfect personality trait that is a merge of both extremes, and just simply siding with one over the other. But mind you, Ronnie isn’t afraid to show you the finger if you do not choose her side.── ★★★

Other characters are just brilliant. There’s Richard, Annabel’s husband who loves to hang out in his own cellar and look forward to weekends alone with his wife when his daughter away. There’s Mark, Ronnie’s husband whose cellar is down at a pub’s and considers the perfect weekend as one away from the family drinking with his wife’s dad and her granddad. There’s Sophie, Ronnie’s Goth daughter who’s at the age where texting boyfriends and finding her family embarrassing are her highlights. There’s Izzy, Annabel’s privileged daughter who’s about to die and has suddenly become a machine for popping out Hallmark stuff and fortune-cookie shit about carpe-diem-ing. There’s Jack the little boy of Ronnie who’s at the age where Doctor Who and Minecraft seem like the best conversation starters during family dinners. There’s Granddad Bill, who burps popular rhymes and songs (and makes you wonder how [crazy] you'd be if senility sets in). Trust me, lots of fun characters I could go on and on about.── ★★★★

You would love the voice in which this novel is told. I loved it. Very Mary-Alice-Desperate-Housewives-y; funny and nice to listen to—in this case, read.── ★★★★★

I see no reason why this book shouldn’t be given a five-star, because it’s amazing (5/5 stars).

You should go purchase Chrissie Manby’s A Proper Family Christmas now because chances are by Christmas she might have released a fab book everyone would be raving about and you’d feel left out.

I recommend this book to anyone who wants something that would remind them of their very happy Desperate Housewives days. Anyone who wants a family read to cosy up to. Anyone who wants something funny. Or anyone looking for something warm and appropriate for the holidays.

My work not done here. Off to post my review on Goodreads.

Fall Book Review: Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult

Purchase|Goodreads 

My Synopsis.

Imagine This: You were abandoned by your mum when you were but a toddler. This has marred your life heavily: you are not like all the other kids at school, you are more science-ly for someone at your age because your mum was, your dad has been institutionalized since her departure and your grandmother doesn't want to talk about it (or anything at all).

You have never given up on your search for her. Even though it's mostly in old drawers finding her endless research notes on elephants in the process. You are sure she would never willingly abandon you. Something must have happened. But no one wants to talk about it. So your only solution:

Find her to tell you exactly what happened.

Your search begins intensely when you are thirteen. You are sneaking out of home with the lie of babysitting a teacher's son, getting a con psychic to give you answers, finding a shady cop who worked on your mom's case.

Soon, you are in too deep to quit. Chances are your mum was a lot of things you never hoped to find out that would taint your (little) memories of her. You find answers that lead to heavy unsettelment and if you are not lucky enough, your own demise.

Jenna Metcalfe's puzzling life summed up for your delight.

My Review. 

I loved, loved this book so in my review you know I'd be throttling you and yelling in your face to go get it!

Amazing storyline! A young teen sets out to find her missing mother and discover answers to why she just disappeared yet she has no idea the ghosts of her past still pertain in the present. Beautiful! A star.── ★

Jenna, the main character is very, very hard to dislike. No, she's not your normal teen! She's very practical about her search for her mum due to her science-liness. And she's adorable all the same because nothing beats a well-developed character who's not just a stereotype of another lead finding a missing character.── ★★

This book is told in point of views of the vanishing cop, Virgil; the fake psychic, Serenity; and Jenna's mysterious mum, Alice. These characters were all peculiar and fabulously developed. You'd love Virgil for his shifty yet great investigation techniques and his love for too many Jack Daniels. You'd love Serenity the no-nonsense, (no-good), bulshitting psychic who's praying she gets back her ability of communicating with the spirit world. Alice is a brilliant animal research scientist, her stories about elephants in the wild are so insightful you cannot wait to flip into her chapter next.── ★★★

Other characters you'd love are: Thomas, Jenna's Dad, who is off his mind. Tallulah, the lab scientist who wants Virgil to go out on a date with her (and then some). One waitress who thinks Serenity is off her hinges (no kidding there). All characters necessary and not redundant in any way!── ★★★★

This is one of those few pieces you could go on and on about the excellent writing (even if you clearly have no idea what excellent writing is, but are sure this is!). From every scene or chapter Jodi Picoult ends with a cliffhanger or some hallmark heartful quote that makes you want to note that down for a little Facebook update! Plus, you'd love her technique of foreshadowing by—wait for it!—using a past character's (Alice) research notes about elephant grief and parenting to give readers an idea of what might take place in the upcoming chapter. So you are sure to have your heart skip a beat if something negative is happening to an elephant in Alice's narrative! A not-done-before technique! Brilliant!── ★★★★★

I loved this book because it offered more than its blurb let on. The blurb makes you feel like reading this book so much. But it leaves out other amazing things I had no idea I'd encounter in this title. And I'm not even talking about the suspense and humor! It's like getting a DVD with lots of fun extras!
I hail the OMG-moment in this book! A star!── ★★★★★★

Oh, heavens! Plus, it supports a cause! Who doesn't want to read a book that makes them want to get on a superhero costume and save the world in their own special way (if not to end poaching of elephants in African countries for Ivory)

My rating: Six out of five stars!

Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult is available on Amazon. Just go get it now!

I recommend this book to anyone who loves a well-written title (—lots of people use this term loosely, I don't!). Anyone who wants to read a book that would fill out all their boring times. Anyone who wants a book that is so different from most of the women's fiction titles out there! Plus, you could do worse for your choice of Fall reads (this is doing best!).


Woo! Loved this title. Would Look out more for Jodi Picoult's works! Spreading the word on Goodreads, Amazon and Twitter!