The Woman Who Went To Bed For A Year by Sue Townsend.

Years ago I read 'The Queen And I' and I loved it so I was looking forward to another funny read from Sue Townsend.

The book did make me laugh out loud at times but on the whole I was a bit underwhelmed.  The story was far too over the top, which combined with characters who were unbelieveable made for a very unrealistic story.  I couldn't relate to any of the characters and didn't even feel much sympathy for the main character, Eva, finding her quite selfish as I don't think enough was done to explain why she took to bed for a year.

As far as books go, this one is an easy read, and would be great if you wanted a very light hearted, funny read.

Title: The Woman Who Went To Bed For A Year.
Author: Sue Townsend.

P.S. I Love You by Cecelia Ahern.

I saw this film a long time ago and although I really enjoyed it, I did spend near enough the entire film crying - each time she received a letter I had tears streaming down my face.  Because of this I have never got around the reading the book, I guess I thought it would be a bit depressing.

So I finally picked up the book and was a little disappointed.  So many people have raved about it, and I loved the film so had big expectations for the book. It wasn't anything like I thought it would be; the letters were so short and did nothing to make me sad, the story was too much like every other chick-lit style book.

It's probably not the book's fault, it's been so long since I watched the film that I couldn't really remember the story, I would probably have really enjoyed the book if I wasn't comparing it so much to the film.

Film aside, if you're looking for a good chick-lit read, this book has everything you could want.

Title: P.S. I Love You
Author: Cecelia Ahern

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.

This was a very interesting book.  It's written from the perspective of a teenage boy.  It takes a few pages to get used to the style of writing but much like when I read 'Room' by Emma Donaghue, you quickly get used to it.  There are a lot of 'he said', 'she said' sentences but these add to the chatty style of the book.

It's only a short book, written in a series of letters.  To be honest I never understood who these were too (maybe that's just me) but it didn't stop me enjoying it.  The style of the book was quite refreshing and it was a page-turner.

I knew that there has been a film made of this book, and although I haven't watched it, I knew which actors played the characters and could easily visualise them in the book.  I would love to watch the film now, I'm really interested to see how the story is interpreted.

Title: The Perks Of Being A Wallflower
Author: Stephen Chbosky

It Started With A Kiss by Miranda Dickinson.

Despite looking like a Christmas book this isn't a 'full-on' Christmassy tale like other Christmas stories.  The story starts at Christmas and then takes place throughout the following year.  Nevertheless, this doesn't mean that the story isn't magical; it's a lovely story with very like-able characters.

I would definitely read more of Miranda's books in the future.  They have everything you could want in a feel-good read; friendship, romance, a big chunk of optimism and a little bit of magic. 

I must admit that the fact that each page is edged in red I absolutely loved, and it added to that Christmassy feel and makes the book stand out from others on the shelf.

Title: It Started With A Kiss
Author: Miranda Dickinson.

Twelve Days of Christmas by Trisha Ashley.

As another of the Christmas books that I've read this year, I loved the fact that the entire story took place over Christmas, the twelve days in fact (unsurprisingly) and involved every aspect that I think you'd look for in a Christmas story.  As an added bonus it even included some very interesting snippets of cookery information/recipe ideas.

Much as with the other Trisha Ashley book I have read (Wedding Tiers) I enjoyed this book, but don't feel the need to rave to other people about it.  It was enjoyable but not fantastic.  It just missed that bit of mystery pulling you through the book, I guessed the ending and the story and the 'secret' that would be uncovered.  But the characters were likeable so it's well worth adding to your festive book list.

Title: Twelve Days of Christmas
Author: Trisha Ashley

With Love At Christmas by Carole Matthews.

...a book about family and friendship, I absolutely adored it.

In the past I have read one book by an author, enjoyed it, gone on to read more and been disappointed   So when I read 'The Only Way Is Up' by Carole Matthews earlier this year and loved it, I went out and bought a few more of her books but never got round to reading them.  I picked this one up hoping that I would enjoy it just as much; and I did, this is a wonderful book.  In fact it's now up there as one of my two favourite books of the year.

The story is a wonderful Christmas tale, but it's more than just a fluffy Christmas book; you'll read about life, death, births, marriages, illness but mostly it's a book about family and friendship; I absolutely adored it.

Carole's writing is beautifully detailed, she pulls you straight into the story and I felt just like I was there with the Joyce family sharing their Christmas.  I found myself unable to put the book down, but the more I read, the more I worried that I was just getting nearer the end... and I didn't want the pleasure of reading this book to stop.

I really would recommend this book, it's the perfect Christmas read and will take you on a rollercoaster of emotions.  On one page I was having to read the words through tears of sadness, before the next page literally had my laughing out loud.

I never read books more than once but this may become the exception to the rule, I can imagine snuggling up with this book every Christmas, a brilliant way to start the season.

Title: With Love At Christmas
Author: Carole Matthews