Hi guys, long time no read.
We’re back in Manchester with an all new blog entry but this time it’s a little different. I’m joined behind my laptop by the always delightful Jessica Angel! She’s here to tell all you beautiful people that her amazing EC book group, EC Booktok is going from strength to strength!
‘To go from strength to strength’ (idiom)
This is a common phrase that means ‘it’s getting better and better’
Chapter 1:
EC Booktok right here in Manchester, is one of those wonderful places where students can practise their English while giving their opinions about the things they love and absolutely hated, (I’ve also heard that they still have a ridiculous amount of biscuits, which have been proven to improve student’s English skills by at least 40%) Here’s a review of a book that was really popular on Booktok. It’s called ‘Verity’ and it’s by one of most exciting authors around, Colleen Hoover.
So, let’s get started shall we? Jess are you ready?!!!
‘…I’d actually prefer it, if you called me Jessica’
‘Right …should we start the introduction again from the beginning?’
‘…Just give me the laptop please’
EC BOOKTOK REVIEW
VERITY BY COLLEEN HOOVER
Set on the East Coast of the United States and split between New York and Vermont, this book starts with a sharp shock and so keeps you hooked from the very first line.
It is a gripping starting point and makes you wonder what else will take place if so much happens on the first page!
The main character, Lowen Ashleigh, is a published writer but is only just making enough money to live on and is struggling to afford her New York apartment. This is why she accepts an unusual request from her publisher’s new client: to finish a series of popular books started by the client’s talented wife, Verity, who is now too ill to continue writing. Lowen is invited to stay at the family home in Vermont to research the previous novels.
Once at the house, the novel takes a creepy and unnerving turn. Reminiscent of other great novels, such as Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier or Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, where the story revolves around a character’s inability or unwillingness to leave an increasingly hostile situation, it has an unsettling tone.
Lowen, herself is not a reliable narrator. After suffering trauma and having a history of mental illness, she is not certain about her own senses. Did she see what she thought, or not? As a reader, we are not sure if we can trust her, so we are left wondering what is real and what is not.
This is great eerie fun for anyone who loves thrillers and mysteries.
Happy reading!
(Attention! This book contains adult themes and language)
….And with that Jessica rushes off with another book in her hand. After all there are places to go, books to read and in each of them another adventure into the world of the English language!
Until next time, happy reading everyone and good luck with your next English conversation!