Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan

Hardback:  320 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publisher:  Jonathan Cape 2012
Source: Tywyn Public Library  
First Sentence: 'My name is Serena Frome (rhymes with plume) and almost forty years ago I was sent on a secret mission for the British security service.'
Favourite Quote: “I turned the pages so fast. And I suppose I was, in my mindless way, looking for a something, version of myself, a heroine I could slip inside as one might a pair of favourite shoes.” 
Review Quote: What you see is not what you get, and the twist at the end reminds us of how many of this author's works confound readers imaginations... A well-crafted pleasure to read, its smooth prose and slippery intelligence sliding down like cream. (Amanda Craig Independent )
My Opinion: What a great read.

What a great read Ian McEwan's latest novel is, spies and love set in a time of political turmoil in the early seventies. A period I was able to empathise well with as I was working myself during the three day week. From the first page you know the outcome of the story, but there is still a secret to be discovered,  McEwan is uses his characters brilliantly in this novel to tell us just how MI5 prompted the cultural cold war.

'Sweet Tooth' is narrated by the female heroine of the novel  Serena Frome, the daughter of an Anglican bishop, who during her final year at Cambridge studying for a maths degree, has an affair with an older man.  Not such an unusual occurrence but she later discovers that thanks to her lover she was being groomed for a career in the intelligence services, her intelligence and beauty making her the perfect spy!  The world is divided by 'The Cold War' and the government of the time wants to give financial but secret aid to promising young writers that will boost the anti - communist propaganda. 
Serena as an avid reader is seen as the perfect choice to be sent on a secret mission, code named 'Sweet Tooth' to infiltrate herself into the literary circle of a promising young writer, Tom Haley. Her task is to gauge his suitability for such financial aid. Serena discovers that at first she loves Tom's writing and of course approves him, however she had not reckoned on falling in love with him.  What will she do, whom can she trust and will she be able to keep her secret life from the man she has fallen for?  

Once again another brilliant novel from Ian McEwan, a clever and ingenious story with plenty of intrigue, that will satisfy his fans  and maybe attract new ones. Do give it a try.

Sweet Tooth - Reading - Ian McEwan

       Ian McEwan introduces Sweet Tooth

My previous reviews for  Amsterdam,   Atonement, On Chesil Beach,  Saturday and The Cement Garden were written for Bookcrossing  before this Book Review blog was in existence. 

Author Profile

Photo Credit: Annalena McAfee

Ian McEwan was born on 21 June 1948 in Aldershot, England. He studied at the University of Sussex, where he received a BA degree in English Literature in 1970. He received his MA degree in English Literature at the University of East Anglia.

McEwan's works have earned him worldwide critical acclaim. He won the Somerset Maugham Award in 1976 for his first collection of short stories First Love, Last Rites; the Whitbread Novel Award (1987) and the Prix Fémina Etranger (1993) for The Child in Time; and Germany's Shakespeare Prize in 1999. He has been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction numerous times, winning the award for Amsterdam in 1998. His novel Atonement received the WH Smith Literary Award (2002), National Book Critics' Circle Fiction Award (2003), Los Angeles Times Prize for Fiction (2003), and the Santiago Prize for the European Novel (2004). He was awarded a CBE in 2000. In 2006, he won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for his novel Saturday and his novel On Chesil Beach was named Galaxy Book of the Year at the 2008 British Book Awards where McEwan was also named Reader's Digest Author of the Year.

McEwan lives in London and is currently writing a new novel. His most recently published work is For You, a libretto.

Photo and Biographical Information is with thanks to the following sites where you can also find out more about the author and his writing. 

Goodreads Author Profile     Ian McEwan - Official Author Website    Amazon Profile - Ian McEwan

Peaches For Monsieur le Cure by Joanne Harris

Hardback: 458 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publisher: Doubleday 2012   
Source: Tywyn Library, Wales.
First Sentences: Someone once told me that, in France alone, a quarter of a million letters are delivered every year to the dead. What she didn't tell me is that sometimes the dead write back.
Review Quote:   Her characteristic love affair with texture - scents, smells and sounds - immerses the reader in a bath of seductive imagery in a brave and grippingly confected story (The Sunday Times )
Favourite Quote:“Some people spend the whole of their lives sitting waiting for one train, only to find that they never even made it to the station.” 
My Opinion: A pure delight to read.

I was thrilled when I found ' Peaches for Monsieur le Cure' sitting on the bookshelf at the local library in the town where I am based at present. 'Chocolat' is an all time favourite novel of mine and although I was not writing reviews when I read that you will find one for the second book in the series. 'The Lollipop Shoes' which carried on perfectly from where Joanne Harris left us in 'Chocolat'.  The characters had become familiar during the reading of the two novels leaving me feeling rather attached to them and longing for a sequel.  This much anticipated sequel has not disappointed it has been a pure delight to read, Joanne Harris's writing is as evocative as always with that hint of magic.

It is four years since the 'The Lollipop Shoes' ended with Vianne and Roux living on a houseboat in Paris. Vianne's daughter Anouk is fifteen and almost a young woman whilst Rosette is eight, a mysterious little girl. They seem settled and happy then on a changing summer wind, a letter arrives from a dead friend calling them back to the village of Lansquenet, where eight years previously she had opened her chocolaterie. They return there and find in many ways it is unchanged, the church, the cobbled streets and the old tanneries along the river are all just the same, but there have also been changes! On the far side of the river Tannes there is a minaret, the perfume of spices, mint tea and incense hangs in the air and veiled women in black walk the streets of the Les Marauds district.  A rural French village that has not changed for over fifty years has suddenly found itself in turmoil as two very different cultures try to live together in disharmony.  The story takes place during August the time of Ramadan in the Islamic faith. Vianne is surprised to find that her old adversary Father Reynaud is in disgrace, despite having appeared to have mellowed a little over the years he still has very strong beliefs which he stubbornly adheres to. Vianne and Francis Reynaud discover that they are not so different after all, as we had maybe thought in 'Chocolat'.  Vianne now being a happier woman seems ready and able on meeting him again to work with him to discover just what is at the heart of the problems in Lansquenet.
Could it be that Vianne is the only one who can save him? Well I do not believe in spoilers so to find out you will have to read the book.  However the ending still leaves me wanting more so I do hope Joanne Harris will return to these wonderful characters that she has created again one day.

I have been a fan of Joanne Harris for many years and there are two previous reviews of her novels on this blog, for those of you that may be interested. 

The Lollipop Shoes    Blueeyedboy  

Author Profile

Amazon author photo.

About Joanne Harris (courtesy of her official website)

Joanne Harris was born in Barnsley in 1964, of a French mother and an English father. She studied Modern and Mediaeval Languages at St Catharine’s College, Cambridge and was a teacher for fifteen years, during which time she published three novels; The Evil Seed(1989), Sleep, Pale Sister (1993) and Chocolat (1999), which was made into an Oscar-nominated film starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp.

Since then, she has written eight more novels; Blackberry Wine, Five Quarters of the Orange, Coastliners, Holy Fools, Gentlemen and Players, The Lollipop Shoes and Runemarks, and  blueeyedboy, plus; Jigs & Reels, a collection of short stories and, with cookery writer Fran Warde, two cookbooks;The French Kitchen and The French Market. most recently published are Runelight and  A Cat, A Hat and A Piece of String, a new collection of short stories. Her books are now published in over 40 countries and have won a number of British and international awards. In 2004, Joanne was one of the judges of the Whitbread prize (categories; first novel and overall winner); and in 2005 she was a judge of the Orange prize.

Her hobbies are listed in Who’s Who as: “mooching, lounging, strutting, strumming, priest-baiting and quiet subversion of the system”, although she also enjoys obfuscation, sleaze, rebellion, witchcraft, armed robbery, tea and biscuits. She is not above bribery and would not necessarily refuse an offer involving exotic travel, champagne or yellow diamonds from Graff. She plays bass guitar in a band first formed when she was 16, is currently studying Old Norse and lives with her husband Kevin and her daughter Anouchka, about 15 miles from the place she was born.

For more fascinating facts visit 101 Facts About Joanne Harris.

The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing. 

Amazon Author Profile - Joanne Harris    Official Website - Joanne Harris   Goodreads Author Profile

The Italian Wedding by Nicky Pellegrino

Paperback: 362 pages
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Fiction
Publisher:  Orion 2009
Source:  Tywyn Library, Wales.
First Sentence: The mannequin was propped up in the corner of Pieta's attic room.
Review Quote:

“If your soul needs some nourishing, The Italian Wedding is a great pick.” 

– Mindfood magazine

 My Opinion:  A novel to lose yourself in for a few hours undemanding read.

This is the second title by this author that I have read and I doubt it will be the last as I believe they are all set in Italy. Although I am already living the Italian dream it was a pleasure to lose myself in the setting for this delightful novel for a few hours of undemanding reading. A relaxing read written by an author whose passion for Italy is obvious from the delightful way she writes, even including some authentic recipes in the storyline.

With a simple plot about love, feuding families and plenty of recipes for delicious Italian food, I was quickly immersed. The Martinelli family live and work in the area of Little Italy in London, running the family business of a restaurant.  Father, Beppe resides over the kitchen at home and at work, the latter with his younger daughter Addolorata. The older daughter Pieta is a designer of bridal gowns so it is only natural that she should be designing and making the wedding gown for her sister's forthcoming nuptials. She is helped by their English mother Catherine who has always seemed to the girls to be quietly in the background of family life. It is when she is helping Pieta with the time consuming intricate beading for the dress that the two women start to chat about the past and for the first time Catherine opens up to her daughter about how she and Beppe met and fell in love. The story also eventually explains why there is a long standing feud with another local Italian family. With realistically portrayed characters the unfolding story is a charming read. Romantic fiction with an Italian theme which will appeal to many fans of this genre.

My earlier review for Recipe For Life

Author Profile

Image credit: New Zealand Woman's Weekly

Nicky Pellegrino's Italian father came to England and fell in love with a Liverpool girl which is where Nicky was born on the first of January 1964. Bringing his passion for food to his new family, his Italian mantra that you live to eat not eat to live is one of the inspirations behind Nicky's delicious novels. Now living in New Zealand, where she works as a journalist, Nicky hordes her holidays so she and her husband can return to Italy to see family, eat the best mozzarella and research her books.

When Nicky first started writing fiction it was her memories of childhood summers in Italy that came flooding back and flavoured her stories: the passions, the feuds but most of all the food.

She works as a freelance journalist, has weekly columns in the Herald on Sunday newspaper and the New Zealand Woman’s Weekly and her novels are distributed in the UK, Australia and New Zealand, and have been translated into 12 languages.

She loves cooking for friends, drinking red wine, walking on New Zealand’s amazing beaches, riding her horse through the forest and lying in bed reading other people’s novels.

The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing. 

Goodreads   Nicky Pellegrino - Official Website   Nicky Pellegrino - Twitter

Summer of Love by Katie Fforde

Paperback : 376 pages 
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Fiction 
Publisher: Arrow books 2012
Source: Gift from a fellow Bookcrosser
First Sentences: 'Er, hello!' Sian put down her fork and looked over the garden wall. A woman was smiling at her, holding a bottle of wine in one hand and a jam jar full of flowers in the other.
Review Quote:Captivating ... Fforde's novels are notable for their gentle humour and this one is no exception... Summer of Love is as deliciously addictive as Fforde's earlier books...if you're after an escapist novel that fizzes with warmth and wit, then this is perfect. (Daily Express )
My Opinion:  Met my expectations from an author I have been enjoying since 1995!


Feel good romance with a happy ever after ending, just the sort of read I expect and enjoy from Katie Fforde whose novels I have been reading since 1995! Her characters are always believable and set in places we can imagine in real life, stories that are easy to read but with enough drama to keep you interested. 

'Summer of Love' revolves around Sian Bishop and her life changing decision to move from the city to create a better life for her and her young son, Rory. She immerses herself in country life, enjoying her garden, making friends with the locals, her furniture restoration business and settling her son into new routines. Of course love is the last thing she is looking for as she already has a dependable male friend in Richard, the person in fact who wanted her to make the move. In fact it is obvious that he is interested in far more than friendship but Sian is just not interested in him in that way. Sian however is thrown into confusion when the charming son of her new found friend and neighbour Fiona Berresford, Angus returns home after a long absence. Does this unexpected meeting change her life as she tries to convince herself that this exciting young man is an inappropriate person for her to consider getting involved with and anyway she is not looking for love! Or is she? 

In recommending this I would have to say you need to be a fan of  Katie Fforde or contemporary romantic fiction if you have not yet read any of her novels. She is perfect reading for when you are in the mood for a touch of romance, families and village life presented in a readable novel with the inevitable happy ending that one can relax with. The world of Katie Fforde is always a pleasant one to escape to for a few hours, where life always seems relatively unstressed, lovely escapism.

The following two short videos are well worth listening to if you have a few minutes as Katie Fforde talks  first about her research for the novel and in the second one about her heroine.

                                           Katie Fforde talks about her novel Summer of Love

                                                             Katie Fforde talks about the heroine of Summer of Love

Author Profile

Catherine Rose Gordon-Cumming was born on 27 September 1952 in Wimbledon, London, UK.  She has lived near Stroud, Gloucestershire  for over twenty years, with her husband and three children. It was after the birth of her third child that she started writing using her married name of Katie Fforde.  She is founder of the Katie Fforde Bursary for writers who have yet to secure a publishing contract. She was for many years a committee member of the Romantic Novelists' Association and was elected its twenty-fifteenth chairman (2009–2011) and later its fourth president. In June 2010 she was announced as a patron of the UK's first National Short Story Week.

I am also sharing here what she has to say about herself on her website as she says it so well.

About Katie

I was born and brought up in London but I am basically a country girl. I’ve lived in Stroud with my family for thirty years and while I love London and visit it frequently, I don’t think I could actually live there.

My husband Desmond and I started married life on the water, where we took two 70’ x 6’10 narrowboats around the canals as a hotel. It was very hard work! From there we went to Wales where we had two baby boys and narrowly avoided keeping goats. It was while we lived in Wales that I became addicted to Mills & Boon novels. My husband was away at sea for a lot of the time, leaving me with two small children who didn’t sleep well. I loved the fact that you could pick up a Mills & Boon and be able to follow the plot and enjoy the escapism even if you’d had little sleep. They were my reward for every household task. I’m so glad I was addicted to reading and not chocolate or Valium.

I did have the idea that I wanted to write Mills & Boon novels but didn’t do anything about it until my mother gave me a writing kit for Christmas. By now we lived in Stroud, and I also had a daughter as well as the two sons, Irish Wolfhound and two cats we had in Wales (although not the hens.). I didn’t think I had time to write but my mother thought differently and I took up the challenge. Ten years later I had a book on the shelves. It wasn’t a Mills & Boon, although I had tried to write one for eight years; it was Living Dangerously.

I had met an agent through the Romantic Novelists’Association and, when I was about to give up my ambitions to become a writer, she convinced me I could write something else. I was extremely lucky that the novel was chosen as part of a WHSmith’s Fresh Talent promotion, which gave it a terrific start in life.

There have been over seventeen novels since, as well as some grandchildren and a few stone of extra weight. However, I love being a writer. It gives me the chance to have all the jobs I couldn’t get now even if I did know anything about horses or pottery or indeed almost anything else. I love doing the research, although it has taken me way out of my comfort zone at times. I have been a porter for an auction house, learned how to gut fish, and taken part in a Ray Mears survival course. I loved it!

My hobbies, when I have time for them, are singing in a choir and flamenco dancing. Watching television is research and so I call it work.

Novels

• Living Dangerously (1995)
• The Rose Revived (1995)
• Wild Designs (1996)
• Stately Pursuits (1997)
• Life Skills (1999)
• Thyme Out (2000) aka Second Thyme Around
• Artistic Licence (2001)
• Highland Fling (2002)
• Paradise Fields (2003)
• Restoring Grace (2004)
• Flora's Lot (2005) aka Bidding for Love
• Practically Perfect (2006)
• Going Dutch (2007)
• Wedding Season (2008)
• Love Letters (2009)
• A Perfect Proposal (2010)
• Summer of Love (2011)
• Recipe for Love (2012)

 Flora's Lot is the only other novel I have reviewed here and even that was copied from my  Bookcrossing journal entry where the book last checked in from Spain! 

The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing. 

Twitter Profile   Goodreads Author Profile  Katie Fforde - Official Website   Katie Fforde - Wikipedia

Amazon Profile    Katie Fforde - Facebook