Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

I was recently sent this book to read and review, after picking it up the day before yesterday I found it very hard to put it down again and I finished the entire 405 pages already!

It's 1999 and for the staff of one newspaper office, the internet is still a novelty. By day, two young women, Beth and Jennifer, spend their hours emailing each other, discussing in hilarious detail every aspect of their lives, from love troubles to family dramas. And by night, Lincoln, a shy, lonely IT guy spends his hours reading every exchange. At first their emails offer a welcome diversion, but as Lincoln unwittingly becomes drawn into their lives, the more he reads, the more he finds himself falling for one of them. By the time Lincoln realizes just how head-over-heels he really is, it's way too late to introduce himself. What would he say to her? 'Hi, I'm the guy who reads your e-mail - and also, I think I love you'. After a series of close encounters, Lincoln decides it's time to muster the courage to follow his heart . . . and find out whether there really is such a thing as love before first-sight. Heartwarming, witty and unforgettable, ATTACHMENTS is an irresistible romantic comedy that has it all.

I admit I started this book with a little trepidation, I was concerned that the emails would be long epic ones like in some other similar novels but there I had a very pleasant surprise. The emails concerned were short quippy ones, like those we've all shared with friends at some point when having a conversation through email. They tell the stories of Beth and Jennifer well and we understand them, their lives and motivations far easier through these conversations than we would do through conventionally written chapters which means we get to share in more of their lives, past and present and learn who they are really and their hopes, dreams and fears rather than what they look like and long descriptive passages of where they are.


This is also somewhat true of Lincoln, although the chapters which involve him are conventionally written. Because the girls side is so abridged we get to spend more time with him, his family and friends learning about how his life has been and how it has led to him living with his Mother and working as an I.T. guy and yes, he is one of those who plays D&D as well but don't hold that against him, at least D&D players have friends!lol

It really is hard to try and explain why I loved reading this book without giving away too much of what happens so I'm going to have to leave it here and let you know that this is a fabulous read, perfect for lazing with on the beach this summer (or cosy by the fire if it's a typical British summer!lol) It's released on the 12th of May and is well worth picking up a copy as it's not just a romance story, there are some really funny moments in there as well.

Encore Valentine (AKA Brava, Valentine) By Adriana Trigiani

I was recently sent this book by the authors page over on Facebook and when I received it I just had to dive right in after seeing the cute cover even though having read the synopsis (below) I knew this was the second book to one I haven't read.

It really proved not to be an issue as the characters are written so well you get to know them here as much as you would do in any book so don't be put off if you haven't read 'Very Valentine' either although I am going to now!

As Encore Valentine begins, snow falls like glitter over Tuscany at the wedding of Valentine's grandmother. Meet the Roncalli and Angelini families, artisans of handcrafted shoes in Greenwich Village since 1903. Valentine's dreams are dashed when her grandmother names her brother and nemesis Alfred her partner at Angelini Shoes. A long-distance romance with the sexy Gianluca who lives in remote Tuscany seems impossible so Valentine tries to devote herself to her work. A once-in-a-lifetime business opportunity takes Valentine to Buenos Aires, where she finds a long-buried secret hidden deep within a family scandal. Once unearthed, the truth rocks the Roscallis, but Valentine is determined to hold her family together. More so, she longs to create one of her own, but is torn between a past love that nurtured her, and a new one that promises to sustain her.

When I first started to read this I was a bit discouraged by a couple of longish passages in Italian and a discussion which included a list of (famous?) names I'd mostly never heard of but I decided to ignore those very minor irritations for now and carry on as what I'd read about the book intrigued me.

I'm so glad I did, not long after that decision was made I was hooked, learning about the relationships and traditions between Valentine's family and friends and seeing how they all relate to each other. Cheering Gianluca on with his wooing of our heroine and yes, I did shed a few tears when events called for them, I had got that caught up with everyone and everything going on!

I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover but in this case I think you should. The more I look at the cover on this book, the more details I see and that's just how this storyline works as well, the longer you read it the more details you pick out and the more you can understand the motivations of the characters involved. Yes, this is definately a Chick Lit novel but there really is nothing wong with that and if a few of the people so prejudiced against them would pick up and read some of the better examples (like this one) they would discover that for themselves.

Oh and right at the back there is a lovely bonus, some recipies inspired by the characters of Very Valentine!