- Barbara Copperthwaite
14 Books To Read Before You Die + GIVEAWAY #booklove #ThePerfectFriend #mustreads
As bucket lists form a part of the storyline in The Perfect Friend, I thought I’d have a bit of fun and put some authors and book bloggers on the spot. I asked probably the toughest question anyone can ask a bookworm: what’s the ONE book you’d recommend someone should read before they die? The answers are fascinating – and I’d love to hear your thoughts, too…
Authors
Liz Eeles
Today’s answer – tomorrow’s might be different – is The Time Traveller’s Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger. The poignant ending reduced me to a blubbering wreck.
Richard Parker
Catch-22 is just so damn clever. It’s one of those books where you relish every single word.
Valerie Dickenson
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine is my recommendation.
Pam Howes
For me, Georgia, by Lesley Pearse. It inspired me to write.
Vikki Patis
Oh God. If I had to choose, it would have to be Burial Rites by Hannah Kent.
Tilly Tennant
The Book of Lost Things, by John Connolly – it never moves from my top five no matter what else I read!
Graham Smith
HMS Ulysses is the perfect mix of character, pace and plot.
Emma Robinson
The book I’d recommend people to read is Small Island, by Andrea Levy, because it’s a fantastic story with great characters and stirs compassion in your heart. The one book I want to read before I die is The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky. I studied Dostoevsky at university but this one escaped me!
Clare Wartnaby
I’ve been thinking about this ever since you first asked me and I still can’t decide! Maybe The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver?
Patricia Gibney
Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks. I read it years and years ago and really would love to read it again. I can remember the vivid descriptions of the trenches of World War One. It’s atmospheric and heart-breaking.
Bloggers
Joanne Robertson, My Chestnut Reading Tree
This is such a tough question! I’m going to be very boring and recommend Agatha Christie, And Then There Were None. I read it when I was 10 and it’s probably the book that affected me the most ever! It was my first ever experience of twist.
Linda Hill, Linda’s Book Bag
I would like to recommend Mary Anne Sate, Imbecile, which is by Alice Jolly, because it is a book that will pass by the majority of readers, but it’s the most extraordinary book I’ve ever encountered. It’s over 600 pages, yet it’s totally accessible!
Shell Baker, ‘Chelles Book Reviews
The Wronged, by Kimberly Chambers – because me and my family are in it and its bloody class!
Anne Williams, Being Anne
This might be a bit of an unexpected one, but I’d like to recommend The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova. It’s years since I read it, but it made a mighty impression – despite everything tellingme it wouldn’t be a book for me. It’s a slightly frightening 700 pages long, but has a cracking story (although I’ll admit it does slow in places, but I rather like that) and far more information than anyone could ever want to know about East European vampires. I found it mesmerising.
GIVEAWAY! How to enter
From 28 July until 8 August inclusive, my posts on this blog will be followed by a question about the content. Find the answer, and then either comment on the post or email InvisibleAuthor@outlook.com
Every person who answers correctly will be entered into a prize draw. The competition closes at midnight UK time on Friday 3 August. The winners will be chosen at random and announced on Friday 10 August.
** Today’s question is: Tell me the one book YOU would recommend people read before they die? Let me know! **
What am I giving away?
ONE lucky winner will receive a SIGNED COPY of The Perfect Friend.
TWO lucky winners will receive a SIGNED COPY of Her Last Secret.
ONE lucky winner will receive a SIGNED COPY of Flowers For The Dead.
ONE very lucky winner will have a CHARACTER NAMED AFTER THEM in my next book. *
WAIT! THERE’S MORE!
As well as this competition, check out Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, for more ways to enter over the next seven days. You can enter as many times as you want!
* Please note that the character will have your name but will not be based in any way upon you or any person living or dead. Any similarities are coincidence. They may be a good person or a bad person – they could even be a killer. So be prepared! The part they play may be large or small. Entry into the competition is taken as agreement to these conditions. Thank you.
About THE PERFECT FRIEND
My name is Alex, and my world has been shattered.
My husband has left me.
My children won’t speak to me.
My friend Carrie is the only person I have.
She’s the only one I can trust to keep all my secrets.
She’d never do anything to let me down.
Would she?
This dark, gripping psychological thriller will have you holding your breath until the very last page.
THE PERFECT FRIEND is available on: Amazon; iBookstore; Kobo; Googleplay