Magician (The Riftwar saga #1-2) Raymond E. Feist

Blurb-

He held the fate of two worlds in his hands... Once he was an orphan called Pug, apprenticed to a sorcerer of the enchanted land of Midkemia.. Then he was captured and enslaved by the Tsurani, a strange, warlike race of invaders from another world.

There, in the exotic Empire of Kelewan, he earned a new name-- "Milamber." He learned to tame the unnimagined powers that lay withing him. And he took his place in an ancient struggle against an evil Enemy older than time itself.

Genre - Fantasy

Rating - 4 stars

My review - 

Almost comparable to Lord of the rings but not quite.

Feist has done a fantastic job of creating the two worlds of Midkemia and Kelewelen and the invading battle between them. There is just so much going on that some promising storylines never reached full potential.

Based mainly on the characters- 
Pug: magicians apprentice and in my opinion star of the book. 
Thomas: Princes squire, meets dragon never to be the same again (one of the storylines that could have been so much more, or infact never highlighted past Pugs childhood friend and it wouldn't have impacted on the story.
Arutha: Prince, traveler and protector.

I loved the idea of dwarfs and elves but they could have been so much more epic. The rest of the story is basically a coming of age of Pug as he grows into a man of great power whilst his world is at war. 

Read from January 07 to 12, 2016

Salt to the sea - Ruta Sepetys

Blurb- 

In 1945, World War II is drawing to a close in East Prussia, and thousands of refugees are on a desperate trek toward freedom, almost all of them with something to hide. Among them are  Joana, Emilia, and Florian, whose paths converge en route to the ship that promises salvation, the Wilhelm Gustloff. Forced by circumstance to unite, the three find their strength, courage, and trust in each other tested with each step closer toward safety.

Just when it seems freedom is within their grasp, tragedy strikes. Not country, nor culture, nor status matter as all ten thousand people aboard must fight for the same thing: survival.(

Genre - YA, Historic fiction

My rating- 5 stars

My review-

Wow, such an amazing and moving book. Packed with the horrors of the Second World War but softened with unexpected friendships between the young people involved. 

Written from the four different the perspectives of each protagonist they blend beautifully to create a powerful story of war, love and loss. A new favourite of mine.

River Cottage Love Your Leftovers: Recipes for the resourceful cook - Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

Blurb -

We all occasionally suffer a guilty conscience about those languishing ingredients that stay untouched in the fridge or cupboard for days: the bendy carrots, the wilting salad, the foil-wrapped roast chicken, the rock-like bread and that little nugget of Cheddar? 

In this new pocket bible, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall offers nifty and creative ideas to transform leftovers into irresistible meals. Hugh starts by giving practical advice for cooking on a weekly basis with leftovers in mind ? helping to save money and avoid waste ? and provides tips on how best to store your ingredients to make them last for as long as possible. 

Hugh then gives handy recipe templates that can be applied to all kinds of leftover ingredients, and provides simple and flexible recipes. He shows, for instance, how you can transform leftover meat into Chilli beef noodles, Stew enchiladas, Spicy chicken salad with peanut butter dressing; surplus root vegetables into Roast root hummus, Quick lentil and parsnip curry and Beetroot and caraway seed cake; spare eggs into Hazelnut roulade and easy Macarons. He also gives ingenious ideas for Christmas leftovers, shows how to assemble a delicious meal in under ten minutes, and how to make simple store-cupboard suppers.

With more than 100 recipes, gorgeous photographs and illustrations, this is the ultimate companion for everyones kitchen ? and youll never be bored of leftovers again.

Genre - cookbook

My rating - 4 stars

My review -

Another great cookbook. This one, as the title describes is based on using up leftovers instead of throwing them away. In our house this isn't really a problem - I cook for a family of 5 including two teenage boys, but I have to (and like to) cook frugally so it caught my eye on Amazon.

This book has a great ethos and has some excellent recipes. Some I wouldn't touch with a barge pole - deep fried fish bones anyone? 
Other things I don't usually have as leftovers but if the recipes are good then I will make anyway - I will just make do with similar items that I have. I also think this book is great to help with 'yellow stickered' or reduced items. Yup, I now have a recipe to use with that fish I brought for 50p reduced to clear, that has sat in the freezer for two weeks or the tomatoes that I got on offer when I forgot I already had some - you know what I mean. We are actually having the quick cassoulet for dinner tonight with things I had on hand.

Great buy will be using this a lot.