Book Haul

I usually do book haul posts in the weekends, but since we moved to our rented apartment on Saturday, I had no time to share with you all the new beauties I received/purchased. My posts are scarce these days because we don't have internet in the flat yet (that will change next Tuesday). I can't wait to be able to blog from the new place too!

Received as a Gift:

Last Firday was my brithday and my sweet boyfriend surprised me with two books:

Title: IT

Author: Stephen King

Goodreads

This book is huge. It's over 1300 pages long and will take some time to get through it but I can't wait to tackle it. We'd like to watch the new movie with David too, once I'm finished with the novel.

The other title I received from my beau is a Hungarian one, A Rudnay Gyilkosságok (Ambróczy Báró Estei #2) by Gyula Böszörményi. It's the second book in a detective series that is set in Budapest in the beginning of the 1900s. Unfortunately as far as I know it is not translated to English yet.

Purchased:

Even though my packing space was limited, I couldn't pass on the opportunity of buying at least one book in London.

Title: The Color Purple

Author: Alice Walker

Goodreads

I bought The Color Purple in the huge Waterstones near Piccadilly Circus. Now that's a place that is hard to leave after you entered... 

ARC:

Title: Time Crawlers

Author: Varun Sayal

Goodreads

I received this book from its author. It's a sci-fi short story collection, with stories from parallel universes. Sounds fascinating.

This is all for now, see you all again soon!

Tiny Romantic Book Haul

When will I get tired of the Romantics?
The answer is never.

Behold the new additions to my bookshelf:

Selected Poetry of Lord Byron 
(Oxford World's Classics)

Goodreads

A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

Goodreads

Shelley on Love: Selected Writings 

Goodreads

Ebook haul

Simon by Michael Mullin

Synopsis:

His father is dead. His mother has remarried. His uncle is . . . his new stepfather? When the ghost of Simon Elsinore's father returns and claims he was murdered by his own brother, the nineteen-year-old film student must determine what is true and exact the revenge his father demands.

I can't resist Hamlet retellings, I just can't. 

The author of this book was kind enough to send me an ebook copy. Thank you, Mr. Mullin!

Alien Love by Stan Schatt

Synopsis: 

In Stan Schatt’s latest Science Fiction novel, a dying astronaut reveals a secret that blows the lid on a government treaty with extraterrestrials while other alien races have come to Earth with their own agendas. Meanwhile an ancient alien race with a base on the Moon makes plans that could spell doom.

25 year- old EX-SEAL, Jack Starling, has plenty of his own problems, but he can’t help falling in love with the beautiful woman he rescues after she is brutally attacked. He learns how dangerous it can be to fall in love with someone who is not human who has her own plans for him. Jack finds himself pitted against aliens far stronger and far more cunning than any human enemies. Once he learns what the aliens have planned for him and for Earth, he must race against time before it is too late.

I received an ebook copy from the author. Human/alien love story? Bring it on!

Chivalrous by Dina L. Sleiman

Snyopsis: 

Strong and adventurous Gwendolyn Barnes longs to be a knight like her chivalrous brothers. However, that is not an option for her, not even in the Arthurian-inspired Eden where she dwells. Her parents view her only as a marriage pawn, and her domineering father is determined to see her wed to a brutish man who will break her spirit. When handsome, good-hearted Allen of Ellsworth arrives in Edendale searching for his place in the world, Gwendolyn spies in him the sort of fellow she could imagine marrying. Yet fate seems determined to keep them apart. Tournaments, intrigue, and battles--along with twists and turns aplenty--await these two as they struggle to find love, identity, and their true destinies.

I was fortunate enough to receive an ebook copy via NetGalley. I would read anything and everything about lady knights and this one sounds pretty good.

Book haul

Books I purchased recently:

The Lost Queen by Norah Lofts

Synopsis:

A novel based on the life of George III's sister, Princess Caroline-Matilda, whose marriage brought her to the throne and whose secret love brought her to disaster. This is a story of high romance and tragedy, a moving drama of human frailty set against the implacable demands of a royal crown. With careful attention to the historical record, Norah Lofts has recreated Caroline-Matilda's life in a tale that vividly evokes the stark contrasts of 18th century Denmark; the cruelty, poverty and oppression of existence under an absolute monarch sinking into madness; the royal court with its pomp and pageantry, and the hatreds and intrigues that swirled around the young, lovely figure who was, briefly, its queen.

I've already read Per Olov Enquist's The Visit of the Royal Physician some time ago and I can't wait to revisit 18th century Denmark and see the happenings from Caroline-Matilda's point of view. I didn't like the princess in the The Visit..., I hope I will grow to love her in this book. Along with the book I also bought En kongelig affære (A Royal Affair) on DVD, simply because I adore the movie too.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Synopsis: 

Streetwise George and his big, childlike friend Lennie are drifters, searching for work in the fields and valleys of California. They have nothing except the clothes on their back, and a hope that one day they’ll find a place of their own and live the American dream. But dreams come at a price. Gentle giant Lennie doesn’t know his own strength, and when they find work at a ranch he gets into trouble with the boss’s daughter-in-law. Trouble so bad that even his protector George may not be able to save him…

It only takes an afternoon to read this gem of American literature. Steinbeck's masterpiece portrays a true friendship, the like of which is hard to find.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee 

Synopsis:

'Shoot all the Bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a Mockingbird.' Atticus Finch gives this advice to his children as he defends the real mockingbird of this classic novel - a black man charged with attacking a white girl. Through the eyes of Scout and Jem Finch, Lee explores the issues of race and class in the Deep South of the 1930s with compassion and humour. She also creates one of the great heroes of literature in their father, whose lone struggle for justice pricks the conscience of a town steeped in prejudice and hypocrisy.

I'm currently reading it and it is brilliant.

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys 

Synopsis:

Born into an oppressive, colonialist society, Creole heiress Antoinette Cosway meets a young Englishman who is drawn to her innocent sensuality and beauty. But soon after their marriage, rumors of madness in her family poison his mind against her. He forces Antoinette to conform to his rigid Victorian ideals. 

I've read Jane Eyre. I'm fascinated with the mad wife. Enough said.

Daniel Deronda by George Eliot 

Synopsis:

Gwendolen Harleth gambles her happiness when she marries a sadistic aristocrat for his money. Beautiful, neurotic, and self-centred, Gwendolen is trapped in an increasingly destructive relationship, and only her chance encounter with the idealistic Deronda seems to offer the hope of a brighter future. Deronda is searching for a vocation, and in embracing the Jewish cause he finds one that is both visionary and life-changing. Damaged by their pasts, and alienated from the society around them, they must both discover the values that will give their lives meaning. 

I plan to write a review on this one, so shhhhhhh.... I bought the BBC mini series on DVD when I was about halfway through the book. Having read it I have to say it's not exactly a perfect adaptation, but if someone doesn't plan to read the book or doesn't mind that the series doesn't discover characters as deeply as the book does (how could it anyway?), it's worth to give it a watch.