Book review: The Exorcism of Little Billy Wagner by Francis J Flynn

The Exorcism of Little Billy Wagner by Francis J Flynn is an odd book. I picked it up thinking it was going to be a horror type, as is so often with books/films of similar titles. That's not what this is though. The best way to describe this is as a documentary to the way the Catholic Church deals with Exorcism. I learnt a lot about the hierarchy of the church and the way it's run.

This is a book told from the point of view of the clergy, and how they would treat and react if a parishioner went to them with concerns of demonic possession. It came across as a very believeable account, although I'm not familiar enough with the subject matter to fully know what would happen.

Overall however, I struggeled with this one. I found that the author gave me too much information in one go and it would have helped if the chapters would have been shorter. I found that I wanted to skip bits, to get to the main event quicker, especially as by 60% in they were still trying to decide if he really was possessed or not.

I'm not sure I'd read this again, but I'm glad I picked it up.

Top Secret

Just a short post because I'm so so excited, I am in the possession of an unreleased first first copy of a new book that is fantastic. And I can't wait to share it with you but you are going to have to wait! But it's fantastic! And I'm loving it!

Book Review: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - JK Rowling, John Tiffany & Jack Thorne

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Wow! This really was excellent!
I'm currently sitting in a que on line, waiting for the opportunity to buy tickets to see the stage show. I have a wait of over an hour in front of me. So, why not write up my review while I wait?
First off, I loved it. I loved having a brand new Harry Potter story to read. It took me right back to my childhood of dressing up in my homemade cloak (Ravenclaw if you're interested) at midnight outside the relevant book shop. (This time bought on the motorway from a service station...) 
Now here comes the but... I couldn't help but notice the MAJOR plot hole. And it disappointed me. That being said, this is the rehearsal script. The one the actors used to rehearse the play.This is not the final script that has ended up on stage, and so I hope this has been addressed.
Moving away from the story for a minute, it's worth talking about the format. Over the years we've been treated to novels, text books, childrens stories, and information about the characters from JK Rowling on Pottermore, so we don't necessarily expect the same format every time a new publication is released. This is new again. This is a stage script. There is little in it other than dialogue. And if you haven't read many scripts in the past, it will take you time to get into it. I have read many scripts over the years, but even i struggled with this. Most scripts tend to have longer scenes, in few sets. This is because on the stage, set and costume changes take time and can interrupt the flow of the story telling. This was filled with lots of short scenes in many differed sets. So I can only assume that the setting will be very minimalist. I'll have to wait and see.
All that being said. I really did enjoy the new story. And I can't wait to see the show. 
-still  24974 people in the que to buy tickets before me...

-EDIT: I didn't get tckets

Interview: Baatty About Books - pt2

Part 2 of my interview with Helen from Baatty About Books https://baattyaboutbooks.wordpress.com/

Can you tell me about the current book you are reading? 

Sadly not too much as it is an ARC (Advance Reader Copy) of Never Alone by Elizabeth Haynes but I have just finished The Devil’s Work by Mark Edwards which is due for release shortly and it is set in a publishing house office and revolves around office life but certainly not everyday office occurrences – well worth a read for pysc thriller fans (full review on my blog plug plug) [EDIT: https://baattyaboutbooks.wordpress.com/]

What’s your one pet peeve? 

Spoilers !!! Hate them with a vengeance – why people feel the need to share when there is a twist in a book, or the ending, or even worse when a central character dies!! really really does annoy me beyond belief..Had to censor comments then!!

Who would be on your dream dinner party guest list and what would you cook? (Knowing that Helen isn’t a keen chief I’m going to insist that everything is cooked by hand by her ;) ) 

How many am I allowed? Ermm I will go with Sean Bean (he could have featured in another answer but was way more suitable here), Cynthia Payne, Posh and Becks (maybe just Becks), Will Smith, Jackie Collins and lastly Ian Fleming if I was forced to cook then we would start with halloumi kehabs, followed by onion in the hole (toad in the hole minus the sausage) and pudding would be Eton Mess.

I know how busy you are with your blog these days, do you have anything exciting coming up? 

Always busy with the blog these days and yes I have a couple more blog tours coming up and also Simon Kernick will be guest posting hopefully in September so that is also a huge big deal for me as he another long standing favourite of mine.

Do you have a lucky number? 

13 or 666

What’s your current hair colour? 

Pink with purple streaks (it really is)

What’s the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you as a blogger?

So far nothing and hope it stays that way tbh x

And finally, if you were able to interview one author from history who would it be and how would the interview go?

I would like to ask Jane Austen if Colin Firth lived up to her expectations as Mr Darcy, would imagine the interview would be quite dull by my standards but as we very clearly 2 different people and not quite sure how she would take to my continued use of lol.

Really enjoyed the questions Louise thanks for asking me x

Thanks Helen, it's been a pleasure.

x

Book Review: See How They Run - Tom Bale

My Thoughts:

I’ve been putting off writing this review for a few days now. This was for a few reasons. 1, the book was so fast paced that by the end I needed time to get my breath back. 2, it was so emotionally charged that I was left speechless. Now I’ve had a few days to reflect on it I’m still left with a feeling of wow! Every full star review that this book has received is deserved. From the moment that you open the first page you will be hooked. My fiancé read this after me and read it within 24 hours and I’m so glad he did. Almost every chapter he read was met with loud exclamations of OMG or WOW or questioning “did that really happen?” “yes darling, it did!”

One of the best things about this book is that I pictured myself in the main roll. This was a blessing and a curse as it’s not a situation I EVER want to be in. Thank you Tom Bale for scaring the bejesus out of me.

My advice is go to amazon, don't read anything else (even thebook description will tell you a lot about this book that you don't want to know in advance) and buy it. 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/See-How-They-Run-Gripping-ebook/dp/B01D25LZD0

Interview: Baatty About Books

I hope you don't mind but I wanted to do another interview and Helen Claire from Baatty About Books kindly agreed to be the subject. I really enjoyed talking to her, as I always do. I hope you enjoy reading as much. Don't forget to check out her own blog at https://baattyaboutbooks.wordpress.com/

Helen has been a book worm for years and after her recent promotion to the Admin Team on TBC I thought it was about time someone turned the table and asked her the questions. She's interviewed many authors on her own blog, so, lets see how she got on answering some...

Hi Helen,
As a successful blogger I know you are more used to asking questions instead of answering them but I thought it might be fun for people to learn a little more about you. 
Hi Louise, can I just say am delighted that you consider me to be a successful blogger, right to the questions.

To warm us up what is the first thing you think of when I say these words:

Hello…
Hello, can I help (best work voice)

Sticky…
Fly traps

Moist…
Now that would be telling...

Yellow…
Jaundice

Tomato…

Roasted with garlic and aubergines yum

Dogs…

Madness inducing hounds who bark constantly but I love them dearly – honest.

Now that’s out of the way and we are thoroughly warmed up, can you tell me a little about how long you have been blogging, and how you got into it? 

I have not been blogging that long hence why I so pleased to be classed as successful (still got a way to go) but its nearly a year now and the blog grew from my love of reading and being invited to join TBC on Facebook by a long standing friend of mine who is also a book geek and the obsession has just grown and grown from there. It is a great community and I am thrilled to be part of it as have made many new friends.

Any advice for new bloggers? 

Yeah, go for it. And remember it’s your blog and you are writing about what is important to you - so its your chance to voice your thoughts and views, but be prepared that you may get some comments or remarks in return that you don’t always agree with so always best it moderate any comments before they appear on your blog.

What (PG) word always makes you laugh? 

Rollocks. The other choice sounded rude even though its not..

What has been your most memorable thing about blogging? 

Interviewing and  meeting my ATF author Peter James (20 million copies sold) will always be a highlight of my life, being part of the advance reading group for The Devils Work was pretty awesome, oh and seeing my name inside a book cover so many things have happened is hard to choose most memorable. 

Stay tuned for part 2 coming soon...

A Big Thank You

I just wanted to take a quick minute to thank each and every person who has read my blog. Today I received my 1000th visitor. 
My blog has developed and grown since I began it, and it's turned from somewhere I could chat/rant about random topics into an outlet for one of my biggest passions, Books. Books with a capital B! You may not know this but I've been a fan of books for years, so much so that I did my degree in English Literature. I now enjoy reading books for pleasure instead of coursework but I'm grateful I still have the opportunity to continue thinking about those books after I've closed the last page to write my reviews.
My next review is coming up shortly, plus I enjoyed my interview with Oli J so much that I'm planning on more interviews in the future. Hold onto your hats.

TTFN
x