SOCIAL MEDIA

Split by a Kiss by Luisa Plaja

Friday 29 October 2010
Josephine Reilly, otherwise known as Jo or Josie has never been one of the popular kids in school until she moves to the USA. Suddenly the popular group start to talk to her and before she knows it she's Josie the Cool. Everything seems to be going perfectly until Jake - the most popular boy in the whole school! - kisses her during a game of Seven Minutes in Heaven and then she splits! She is now Jo the Nerd and Josie the Cool! Jo or Josie, which one? Will her two different sides come back together?

"I'm two different people. Literally. I'm split."

Number of Pages: 309
Genre: Teen Chicklit/Teen Romance
Recommended age: 12 +
Rating out of 5: 5/5

I absolutely loved this book! It shared the thoughts and feeling of teenagers. I liked how it was sectioned into parts and not chapters. Luisa Plaja has managed to capture young teen dilemas and put them down on paper which I admire.
Another quality that I love about this book is the cover. I love it! The cover design is just lovely. Nice, bright, eye catching and different.

Thank you so much for sending this to me, Luisa! :D

Rachel :)

PS: You should check out Luisa Plaja's great book reviewing website, Chicklish :D


Just so you know...

Saturday 23 October 2010
I won't be posting for a little while - and by that I mean I will try hard to start posting again really soon! - because I am doing a review for another website :) Reviews coming up (hopefully soon) ...
Split by a Kiss by Luisa Plaja
A Company of Swans by Eva Ibbotson
'Luuurve is a many trousered thing...' by Louise Rennison

Rachel :)


Interview with Amber from the Mile Long Bookshelf

Sunday 17 October 2010
What gave you the idea of starting a book blog?
I saw lots of other successful book blogs so I thought....well, why not? I also wanted to get to know lots of authors so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity. :) So far it's going great and I'm really enjoying it!

Do you focus on one type of genre or do you try to vary?
Hard question. I do try my best to vary, but seeing as I don't like every single genre it's hard. I mostly review chick lit, teen drama, romance books rather than paranormal vampire novels, sci-fi etc.

What do you hope bloggers will learn from your book blog?
I first started my blog basically for my own enjoyment. But then people started reading it, and I started getting a few comments as well so I decided to start doing it for other people too. I really hope my reviews will encourage people to read! I don't know, maybe I already have. That would be cool!

Does The Mile Long Bookshelf have any special quliaties other book blogs don't?
I'm not sure, really. Obviously, my blog is very special to me - I love it - but then there are a lot of book blogs out there that are a lot better than mine. My blog is run by someone who genuinally loves books. I never started the blog just for free books; I know a lot of people do it for that reason and it really makes me angry. But I don't - I do it because I love books and I enjoy reviewing them....does that count as a special quality?

Have you interviewed any famous authors/poets etc?
Yes, so far I've interviewed eight well-known authors and one fellow book blogger. I've actually interviewed ten but two people haven't replied yet. I tend not to review poems so I don't interview the poets either - maybe I will in the future, though!

Do the books you review have a certain age group?
Not really. I read what's suitable for me, so that kind of encouraged the age group of my blog. I'm quite a mature reader - I read a lot of books that are probably a bit too old for kids my age. I usually read books with an age group of 8-15 year olds.

Lastly, what message would you give bloggers to encourage them to read loads?
Tough one. Well, one thing's for sure - you definitely can not force a kid to read. If you do, they won't want to read. You have to enourage them gently. If they get to about eight years old and they still don't want to read, you still can't force them. What you can do is start reading to them from an early age. If you haven't and they're already old enough that they don't want to be read to anymore, find out what the child's hobby is and find a book with that hobby as the main storyline. That's the best way. :)

Quick Fire Questions!

Your favourite book?
OMG. Ummm....ummm! Ooh! I know! Cherry Crush by Cathy Cassidy.

Your favourite author/s?
I have several! Cathy Cassidy, Luisa Plaja, Keris Stainton, Tamsyn Murray, Narinder Dhami and Jo Cotterill.

Your favourite fiction character?
Uhh. Ummm. Girl and a boy. Scarlett from Scarlett by Cathy Cassidy and Tom from Star Crossed by Jo Cotterill.

Your favourite film that has been based on a book?
I don't know. I have no idea. No clue whatsoever. Ummm...sorry! Don't know!

Would you like to be an author/poet someday?
Author. Although everybody says I'm a natural when it comes to writing poems (and to be honest, I don't disagree!) I'd rather be an author than a poet.


Thank you interviewing me!



Rachel :)



The Secret Countess by Eva Ibbotson

Countess Anna Petrovna Grazinsky has indulged in luxuries all her life but when revolution strikes Russia becomes unsafe and so Anna and her family must escape...
Now in England, with no money and no palace, Anna decides to work as a servent to the aristocratic Westerholmes. Shortly after Anna's arrival the Earl announces that he will be married to a Miss Muriel Hardwicke. But then Anna finds herself falling for the young earl, how will she keep her identity a secret..?

Number of Pages: 344
Genre: Romance
Recommend age: 12+
Rating out of 5: 5/5
Previously Published as... A Countess Below Stairs

I absolutely loved this book! Eva Ibbotson has managed to express everything in clear and intricate detail and the descriptions of characters are fabulous! I had never read a romance genre before but I thoroughly enjoyed it and don't regret the change.
My favourite character is Anna because of her thoughfulness toward her poor family. She is also very caring towards young children and animals. Unlike most Countess's - in the novel - she is not stubborn or big headed. She treats everybody equally.
I hope that you try this book because it is great! Please comment if you have, I would love to hear other reader's opinions.

Rachel :)

Remember my Debating Fridays. Scroll down to see more...

INTERVIEW WITH AMBER FROM THE MILE LONG BOOKSHELF TOMORROW!!!


Debating Fridays #1

Friday 15 October 2010
While you're waiting for me to post my first review I thought I'd throw in a little weekly fun activity. Basically each Friday - I shall inform you if I can't one Friday - I will put two topics out and you can debate which one you think is best. The first debate is...

GENRES: ADVENTURE or ROMANCE?

Now all you need to do is comment with your own opinion! :D

Rachel :)

PS: I will put the two genres into my sidebar (Adventure and Romance) and when you comment with your chosen genre I shall put your name underneath your favourite genre. Make sense? lol - I will reveal which genre won next Friday (before I tell you the second debate). Can't wait to hear your opinion! :D


Hello Enthusiastic Readers!

Wednesday 13 October 2010
Hi Readers, welcome to Booktastic Reviews. As you can probably tell by the title of this blog, it is about books! Reviews on books! :D I hope everyone who is reading this right now will be an enthusiastic reader like me.
If you would like me to review a certain book then please feel free to comment. You can also leave comments for other things too! :) I hope you all follow and visit Booktastic Reviews regularly.
The first review should be up soon!

Rachel :)