Landline - Rainbow Rowell | Review

Author: Rainbow Rowell

Publisher: Orion

Publishing Date: 03/07/2014

Landline was my first book of 2015, and a book I've been wanting to read since it came out. I would absolutely read Rainbow Rowell's grocery lists, I devoured Fangirl and Eleanor and Park, and her story in the Stephanie Perkin's collated My True Love Gave To Me was my favourite. There was no doubt in my mind that I would love Landline.

And did I? Yes. Sorta. In a totally different way to her other works. Fangirl reasonated with me in so much depth - not only as a Kath who loves to write, and I appreciated the cultural references in Eleanor and Park. Landline described a place in life I haven't yet been.

That's a good thing for me, every now and again, to step away from the somewhat safe branches of YA fiction that I love so much. Landline was sharp, funny and emotional, with authentic and entertaining dialogue that has become a characteristic of Rainbow Rowell novels. Rainbow Rowell did an excellent job of intertwining past and present so we get to see all of Georgie and Neal's relationship, which was something I was concerned about.

The 'magical' phone was an interesting concept but unfortunately not one that I could fully get behind. It was a great way for Georgie to evaluate her past and remember why her and Neal got married in the first place, but eh, it just didn't really work for me. This is probably the main reason it dropped a couple of stars.

Landline was ok. It shone in the areas Rainbow is so great at, dialogue and character development and sheer emotion, but it lacked a special something for me. This has not dampened my Rainbow Rowell love at all, and now I just need to find time to read Attachments!

3/5 stars.

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Routine

I love having a routine. It's one of the reasons I felt so displaced while I was out of work, not having to have set things to stick to every day. I was off work for most of December with shingles and then while it was closed over Christmas and New Year and man, I was missing it.

Last week though, was horrible. I had seemingly forgotten how to wake myself up at the cruel time of 5.45am. I had to re-memorise the bus timetable! But I'm getting back into the swing of things, and remembering how to make my free time valuable.

How about you? Have you settled back into your routine yet?

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What I'm Looking Forward to in January 2015

At the start of every month I'm going to be posting a handy round-up of what I'm looking for to in books, cinema, netflix and television that month. Here we go, kicking off with January 2015. Happy New Year, Guys.

C I N E M A

Big Hero 6 released in the UK on 30/01/15. I’ve been so excited for this film since I saw the trailers for it ages ago and I was so disappointed to find out that it was going to be released in the UK twelve weeks after our friends across the Atlantic.  How is that fair in this day and age? I can’t wait to visit San Fransokyo with Hiro, Baymax and the team.

N E T F L I X

Friends is coming to Netflix. This is not a drill, Friends is coming to Netflix from January 1^st! Whenever I am bored, or need background noise, I can usually find an episode of Friends somewhere on my television. But now it’s going to be on demand, for those times when I can’t!  Altogether now… So no one told you life was gonna be this waaaaaaay…

Mean Girls also hits on the service on January 1^st and season 5 of White Collar follows behind on January 3^rd. Netflix, I love you.

T E L E V I S I O N

January sees so many beautiful television shows coming back to me. Pretty Little Liars begins it’s second half of season 5, and hopefully bringing the answer to a few questions. Who is Uber A? Where does Bethany Young fit in? Will the girls graduate High School finally? Are we ever gonna find out why Melissa is so damn shady? Broadchurch comes back for season two and 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown will be making me chuckle on a Friday evening again. I’m also very excited about Marvel’s upcoming miniseries Agent Carter premiering on January 6^th.

B O O K S

Released January 1^st: The Art of Being Normal - Lisa Williamson; There Will Be Lies - Nick Lake; Can’t Look Away - Donna Cooner; The Door That Led to Where - Sally Gardner; Jekyll’s Mirror - William Hussey; The Here and Now - Ann Brashares. 

Released January 8^th: All the bright places - Jennifer Niven. 

Released January 27^th: The Earth is Singing - Vanessa Curtis; The Mime Order - Samantha Shannon. 

Released January 29^th: The Last Leaves Falling - Sarah Benwell; Captive - A.J. Grainger; I Was Here - Gayle Foreman.

Have you got any picks for January that I haven't mentioned?

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2014: Finding Myself

2014 has been a weird year. An excellent year, but most definitely a strange one. I've had five different jobs, two of which I balanced for five months. I moved city once and house twice - one of which was a move to my own little dream flat. I had a lot of changes and not too many constants. I entered 2014 unwell, insecure, unhappy and with no idea who I wanted to be - and without being too mushy, in 2014 I found myself.

Yes, I know how cliché that sounds, but I did. I've become happy in my own skin. I rediscovered a love for reading and writing that  I wasn't sure was ever going to surface again. I learnt that it is okay to like what you like - and I like YA Fiction and Taylor Swift and Unicorns. I learnt that no is a complete sentence. I learnt what it is to speak and read and write (badly) in two languages. I learnt that if I wanted to see thirty without a whole host of problems than I needed to start taking my health seriously. Mostly, I learnt to participate in life rather than just cruise alongside it. 

I learnt that anyone who did not accept me for all that I am and all that I learnt isn't worth having around at all.

2014, thank you for all you gave to me. 2015, here we go.

Hello Blogging World! I am back.

Oh my god it has been so long since I've logged in to this website. 2014 has been an interesting year for me. Interesting and busy and so so complicated, and blogging had to take a back seat. 

But I am back! Or I am trying to be. I can't make any promises, because I'd only set myself up to fail. But I'm really looking forward to 2015 in the blogging world and all it brings me.