Another book another film deal making me think immediately of our recently reviewed Nocturnal Animals where a book that has been around for a while and has undergone a few name changes reaches a wider audience as the film hits the big screen.
The book had an original topic - England's film industry during World War 2 and I did really enjoy reading about the advertisements, Madam Tussauds and script writing.
There were quite a few characters and the book did skip around a bit between them all (a trait I am finding happening more often at the moment). A few of the group struggled with this and I must admit it did take me a while to remember who was who.
Evans characters were very likeable, particularly Ambrose however I love Bill Nighy (who plays Ambrose in the film) and I do question whether I liked Ambrose so much because I could envisage Nighy.
I found Edith and Arthurs story to be strange, the random proposal and the sudden 'Edie' moment. I also didn't believe in Catrin and Buckley and was pleased in a way with their ending.
It was predictable in parts, there were moments of humour, generally nice characters and some interesting insights into wartime London. It was also easy to read. I have to say though that the book just didn't do it for me. I can't put my finger on why, it was a bit bland, a bit slow but nothing that really justified me not liking it. A few of the group also felt this way with one person taking a particular dislike and marking it a zero. I think this was unfairly harsh but also don't think it justified the 10 another of the group awarded it.
The book ended up with a 6 overall which I think was probably about right. I won't be keeping it but if you are after a light hearted read this could comfortably help you pass an hour or two.
Next book is The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena
The book had an original topic - England's film industry during World War 2 and I did really enjoy reading about the advertisements, Madam Tussauds and script writing.
There were quite a few characters and the book did skip around a bit between them all (a trait I am finding happening more often at the moment). A few of the group struggled with this and I must admit it did take me a while to remember who was who.
Evans characters were very likeable, particularly Ambrose however I love Bill Nighy (who plays Ambrose in the film) and I do question whether I liked Ambrose so much because I could envisage Nighy.
I found Edith and Arthurs story to be strange, the random proposal and the sudden 'Edie' moment. I also didn't believe in Catrin and Buckley and was pleased in a way with their ending.
It was predictable in parts, there were moments of humour, generally nice characters and some interesting insights into wartime London. It was also easy to read. I have to say though that the book just didn't do it for me. I can't put my finger on why, it was a bit bland, a bit slow but nothing that really justified me not liking it. A few of the group also felt this way with one person taking a particular dislike and marking it a zero. I think this was unfairly harsh but also don't think it justified the 10 another of the group awarded it.
The book ended up with a 6 overall which I think was probably about right. I won't be keeping it but if you are after a light hearted read this could comfortably help you pass an hour or two.
Next book is The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena
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