life's better over there?

The other side of the story
Marian Keyes
SOLD at RM20
Condition Used - good condition

My thoughts
In the engaging way of Marian, the story comes alive almost immediately for readers to relate to her three characters. Humorous and with razor-sharp witticism, it's a book which will keep you glued to your seat, and hungering for more of Keyes' gems.

Synopsis
Jojo Harvey is a literary agent whose star is on the rise. In love with both her married boss and her burgeoning career, not much distracts her. Until she finds herself representing two women who used to be best friends. One of them, Gemma, has suddenly found herself from a broken home - at the age of thirty-two. Meanwhile, Lily - the woman Gemma has always blamed for stealing her one chance of happiness - is enjoying the overnight success of her debut novel. Set in the world of publishing, 'The Other Side of the Story' is about love, loyalty, glass ceilings and survival tactics - and what to do when you get your chance for revenge.

If you could see me now
Cecelia Ahern
SOLD at RM25
Retails at RM36.90
Condition NEW

My thoughts
Author of PS I love you, Ahern is easily one of the most popular writer of chick-lit. Set in Ireland, this story is magic, full of heart and elements of romance.

Synopsis
Elizabeth Egan is too busy for friends. As a reluctant mother to her sister Saoirse's young son, Luke and with her own business to run, every precious moment is made to count. But with Saoirse crashing in and out of their lives, leaving both her sister and her son reeling, Luke and Elizabeth are desperately in need of some magic. Enter Ivan. Wild, spontaneous and always looking for adventure, in no time at all Ivan has changed Elizabeth in ways she could never have imagined. But is Ivan too good to be true? Has Elizabeth opened her heart only to risk it being broken again? As for Ivan, he thought he was there to help Luke not Elizabeth - or himself!

If I were a princess.... I'll snort

Princess Diaries Vol 1
SOLD

Princess Diaries Vol 2

Princess Diaries Vol 3 - Princess in Love

SOLD

Princess Diaries Vol 4 - Princess in Waiting

SOLD

Princess Diaries Vol 5 - Princess in Pink
SOLD

BRAND NEW
Selling at RM15 each

My thoughts
If you have not heard/watched/read about the Princess Diaries, you must be living in a cave in some long-forgotten island. Sorry, don't mind me - I am a complete Princess Mia addict! She's zany, hilarious and completely un-princessy like which makes her absolutely adorable. An absolute good read! And if I may add, at an unbeatable price too! This is the series which made Meg Cabot a household name.

Bless your niece, your younger sister, and if you haven't already got the entire series (up to boook 10!) like I do, why not start your collection now?

Synopsis
She's just a New York City girl living with her artist mom…

News flash: Dad is prince of Genovia. (So that's why a limo always meets her at the airport!)
Downer: Dad can't have any more kids. (So no heir to the throne.)
Shock of the century: Like it or not, Mia is prime princess material.
The worst part: Princess lessons from her dreaded grandmere, the dowager princess of Genovia, who thinks Mia has a thing or two to learn before she steps up to the throne.
Well, her father can lecture her until he's royal-blue in the face about her princessly duty no— way is she moving to Genovia and leaving Manhattan behind. But what's a girl to do when her name is PRINCESS AMELIA MIGNONETTE GRIMALDI THERMOPOLIS RENALDO?

Light reads, laugh a lot

A grand night in...

Trading Up
Candace Bushnell
Selling at RM15
SOLD
Retails at RM32.95

My thoughts
If you liked Sex and the City. You'll love this too.

Synopsis
In Trading Up, Janey Wilcox (first introduced in 4 Blondes) is a beautiful underwear model who wants everything she can get from life. She drives a Porsche Boxter, snags a rich husband, and parties in the Hamptons with the rich and powerful set. Yet it's never enough for Janey, who uses her beauty and sex appeal to move her way up through high society. Candace Bushnell (author of Sex and the City) skewers the society she knows so well.

Learning Curves
Gemma Townley
Selling at RM15

REDUCED to

RM13

(inclusive of postage)

Retails at RM32.95

My thoughts
Chick-lit. All's well, ends well. A very light read with the potential to make you laugh.

Synopsis
Jennifer Bell used to travel the planet with her boyfriend, fighting the good fight for mother Earth. But after the breakup (not a good fight), Jen moved back to London to work for another mother: her own. Harriet Bell founded Green Futures, a consulting firm, after splitting up with Jen’s big-shot father, who runs a rival (and Harriet thinks corrupt) company. But Harriet can’t expose his crimes without proof. And she wants Jen to find some.

Since Jen hasn’t seen her dad in more than fifteen years, it’s a snap to infiltrate his company . . . under an assumed name, of course. Soon she’s worming her way into the good graces of the company’s managers to find evidence of wrongdoing. What she discovers is that her father’s world is a whole lot different from her own–filled with Palm Pilots, MBAs, martini lunches, designer suits, and Daniel Peterson, a guy who puts the gorge in gorgeous.

Teen Reads

Do Over

Niki Burnham

Love Lottery
Cathy Hopkins

SOLD at RM10 each
OR
2 for RM15

Postage included

When it comes to love, how many chances do you get?

Synopsis for Do Over
Girl meets prince. Girl looses prince. Girl gets prince back -- right? Well, that''s what Valerie is hoping. She''s back in Schwerinborg after spending some time with her mother in the good ol'' US of A, and hopes that sparks are still flying between her and Georg. At first it looks like things are going great, until a ski trip to the Alps has Val and Georg''s romance hitting some moguls. Could Val''s love life be heading for a face-plant?

Synopsis for Love Lottery
Becca's on a losing streak with boys and she's willing to resort to anything to have a little fun. So on a dare, she kisses the next guy she sees: Lal Lovering, who's on holiday in Cornwall and totally cute.

But when Becca realizes she's interested in more than just a holiday fling, she wonders if Lal can ever see through her rather overwhelming first impression. Between her own changing feelings and her parents' disintegrating marriage, Becca starts to see what sort of support a boyfriend can give...and just how important her friends can be.

Feast on books

It takes a true bookworm to understand another

The mad rush for books
The smell of new books
The new adventures within the pages
You've come to the right place
Dig in

Selling at RM20

REDUCED to

RM18

(inclusive of postage)

Condition: Pre-loved MINT CONDITION

My thoughts
This is solely for the lovers of historical fiction... Chevalier, author of the Girl with the Pearl Earring, weaves her magic yet again.

Synopsis
Burning Bright follows the Kellaway family as they leave behind tragedy in rural Dorset and come to late 18th-century London. As they move in next door to the radical painter/poet William Blake, and take up work for a near-by circus impresario, the youngest family member gets to know a girl his age. Embodying opposite characteristics – Maggie Butterfield is a dark-haired, streetwise extrovert, Jem Kellaway a quiet blond introvert – the children form a strong bond while getting to know their unusual neighbor and his wife.

Set against the backdrop of a city nervous of the revolution gone sour across the Channel in France, Burning Bright explores the states of innocence and experience just as Blake takes on similar themes in his best-known poems, Songs of Innocence and of Experience.

Set your taste buds a-tingling with these awesome reads...
from
JOANNE HARRIS

Selling at RM25

REDUCED to

RM20

(inclusive of postage)

Retails at RM36.90 each
Condition BRAND NEW

My thoughts
The enjoyment of chocolates and lollipop... need I say more?

Synopsis for Chocolat
Try me... Test Me... Taste Me...

When an exotic stranger, Vianne Rocher, arrives in the French village of Lansquenet and opens a chocolate boutique directly opposite the church, Father Reynaud identifies her as a serious danger to his flock - especially as it is the beginning of Lent, the traditional season of self-denial. War is declared as the priest denounces the newcomer's wares as the ultimate sin.

Suddenly Vianne's shop-cum-cafe means that there is somewhere for secrets to be whispered, grievances to be aired, dreams to be tested. But Vianne's plan for Easter Chocolate Festival divide the whole community in a conflict that escalates into a 'Church not Chocolate' battle. As mouths water in anticipation, can the solemnity of the Church compare with the pagan passion of a chocolate éclair?

For the first time here is a novel which chocolate enjoys its true importance, emerging as a moral issue, as an agent of transformation - as well as pleasure bordering an obsession. Rich, clever and mischievous, this is a triumphant read.

Nothing above RM30

Reads to suit everyone
All books are BRAND NEW
See which one piques your interest
Write in to thebookaffair@gmail.com

TRUE STORIES

A Child Called 'It'
Dave Pelzer
Selling at RM25

REDUCED to

RM20

(inclusive of postage)

2 SOLD, 1 AVAILABLE
Retails at RM34.90

An inspirational story of resilience! Unforgettable.

Synopsis
Dave Pelzer shares his unforgettable story of the many abuses he suffered at the hands of his alcoholic mother and the averted eyes of his neglectful father. Someone with no one to turn to, his dreams barely kept him alive. Through each of his struggles, readers will find themselves enduring his pain, comforting his loneliness and fighting for his will to survive.

The Lost Boy
Selling at RM25

REDUCED to

RM20

(inclusive of postage)

1 SOLD, 1 AVAILABLE
Retails at RM34.90

The sequel to the previous book, this is a sad, heart-wrenching but amazing book.

Synopsis
Imagine a young boy who has never had a loving home. His only possesions are the old, torn clothes he carries in a paper bag. The only world he knows is one of isolation and fear. Although others had rescued this boy from his abusive alcoholic mother, his real hurt is just beginning -- he has no place to call home.

This is Dave Pelzer's long-awaited sequel to A Child Called "It". In The Lost Boy, he answers questions and reveals new adventures through the compelling story of his life as an adolescent. Now considered an F-Child (Foster Child), Dave is moved in and out of five different homes. He suffers shame and experiences resentment from those who feel that all foster kids are trouble and unworthy of being loved just because they are not part of a "real" family.

Hidden
Cathy Glass
Selling at RM28
2 SOLD
Retails at RM44.90

A page-turner. Get ready to get so absorbed in the story, that you'd rather forfeit go without food and sleep, than put it down. That happened to me! :)

Synopsis
From the author of Number One bestseller 'Damaged' comes the poignant and shocking memoir of Cathy's recent relationship with Tayo, a young boy she fosters whose good behaviour and polite manners hide a terrible past.

Tayo arrives at Cathy's with only the clothes he stands up in. He has been brought to her by the police, but he is calm, polite, and very well spoken, and not at all like the children she normally fosters. The social worker gives Cathy the forms which should contain Tayo's history, but apart from his name and age, it is blank. Tayo has no past. Tayo is an 'invisible' child, kidnapped from his loving father in Nigeria and brought illegally to the UK by his drink and drugs dependent prostitute mother, where he is put to work in a sweat shop in Central London. When he sustains an injury and is no longer earning, he is cast out. When Cathy takes Tayo to school he points out a dozen different addresses where he has stayed in the last six months, often being left alone. Tayo lies, and manipulates situations to his own advantage and Cathy has to be continually on guard.Tayo's social worker searches all computer databases but there is no record of Tayo -- he has only attended school for 3 terms and has never seen a doctor. He and his mother have been evading the authorities by living 'underground'. With his mother recently released from prison, Tayo is desperate to live with his father in Nigeria, but no one can track him down or even prove that he exists.

CHICK-LIT

Did the Earth Move?
Carmen Reid
Selling at RM25
2 SOLD
Retails at RM35.90

For a night in, chick-lit is my guilty pleasure. Laugh, cry, sympathise, empathise ... there's just something about the light, hysterical and often stupid things the heroine does that keeps me so entertained. I guess I'm just a girl!

Synopsis
Eve Gardiner is a rather cool urban single mum who lives in a small North London flat with her four kids, Denny (22), Tom (20), Anna (9) and Robbie (2). She gardens and does yoga every day to keep herself sane, while holding down a stressful job as a probation officer. She is pretty content and her life is filled with her children, friends, work and occasional casual sex. Then suddenly Tom announces that his 20-year-old girlfriend Deepa is pregnant and that they want to get married, (her family deeply disapprove of the match). And things start to get really complicated when Tom decides to track down his father Dennis (who walked out of their lives when his business collapsed leaving them penniless) and invite him to the wedding. And if that's not enough to put the cat among the pigeons, Eve's alarmingly attrative, much-younger ex-boyfriend Joseph (and father of Anna and Robbie) appears on the scene again and they both begin to wonder whether they did the right thing when they split up...

ROMANCE

Blood Brothers
Selling at RM25

REDUCED to

RM20

(inclusive of postage)

Retails at RM33.95

I must admit. I'm not one for romance novels. I outgrew that when I turned 20. I remember reading Roberts and loving her books though. This is not her usual style... she has forayed into the supernatural realm. And it's actually quite interesting :)

Synopsis
In the small village of Hawkins Hollow, three best friends who share the same birthday sneak off into the woods for a sleepover the evening before turning 10. But a night of pre-pubescent celebration turns into a night of horror as their blood brother oath unleashes a three-hundred year curse. Twenty-one years later, Cal Hawkins and his friends have seen their town plagued by a week of unexplainable evil events two more times - every seven years. With the clock winding down on the third set of seven years, someone else has taken an interest in the town's folklore. Quinn is a well known scholar of local legends, and despite Cal's protests, insists on delving in the mystery. But when the first signs of evil appear months early, it's not only the town Cal tries to protect, but also his heart.

Frivolous reads are sometimes good...

Selling at RM15 each
or
Buy both at RM20

SOLD

My thoughts on both books

A very light and fun read. A chick-lit that will keep you laughing and entertained

Shhh...

Selling at RM25
Author autographed copy

Condition: Pre-loved (MINT condition)

My thoughts
I absolutely love..love..love Mary Janice Davidson. Similarly, this is a must read for all her fans. This book contains three short stories (interwoven) - sweet strangers, lovely lies and delightful deception.

In sweet strangers...
Renee Jardin never meant to become the world's most sought-after thief. But the minute she walks out of her biotech firm accidentally carrying "The Cure" -- the most important scientific discovery of the century -- she's on the run from ruthless bioengineers, cops, and the U.S. government.

In lovely lies...
Peter Random lost everything when he was outwitted by that goody-goody Renee Jardin. Late in his rent, his job gone, Peter vows he'll never let anyone get close enough to burn him again. So why can't he seem to tell Lori Jamieson and her troubles to hit the road?

In delightful deception...
At the biotech firm, they call her Thea "I.Q." Foster -- "I.Q." for either Intelligence Quotient or Ice Queen, depending. Slipping the Cure into Renee's tote bag was satisfying revenge, but now that the fun's over, Thea sets her sights on a new challenge: sarcastic, secretive Jimmy Scrye.

Delicious cakes - not all bad girls

Selling at RM20

Condition: Pre-loved (MINT condition)

My thoughts
Sit back, relax and enjoy the gastronomical delight which makes up this book. Smell the cakes baking and join in the laughter. This is one book which is filled with passion, love. loyalty and secrets. Hey, they are girls, after all.

Synopsis
Rachel, Alex, Billy and Jemima: four women whose lives are changed for ever by the Haven, a home for unmarried mothers. Theirs are tales of sadness and heartbreaking loss, but also of discovery: of intense and magical friendships, chocolate sponges, unexpected kisses and the secret world of the Memory Lane cafe. When Erica, a young woman just out of prison, begins to stir up the past, she discovers that the Haven's story is far from over.

High School Never Ends

RM8 each (postage included)

Titles
Prom Trilogy
Also sold in bundle - RM15
Prom Trilogy - Max and Jane
Prom Trilogy - Jake and Christy

Brothers Trilogy
Sold in bundle - RM20
Brothers Trilogy - Jonny
Brothers Trilogy - Kevin
Brothers Trilogy - Danny

Let's face it, as teenagers, we all receive guilty reading pleasures from books bearing the titles - 'Love Stories' or 'Sweet Valley' in our shelves. I'm one of them too. Obviously, I've outgrown them now and have moved on to more intellectual (I hope) reading pleasures.

So, I've decided to let them go at RM8 each. Or you can choose to buy it in a bundle. The price is inclusive of postage. They may be just a little older than the rest of my books, but they are still in really good condition. They are also wrapped nicely in clear plastic and have no dog eared pages.

So relive your childhood, anyone? Or maybe bless your niece, daughter, younger sister with these reads at a cheaper price? :)

Cabot goes detective...

Size 12 is not Fat
Meg Cabot
SOLD

Retails at RM55.90

Condition: Pre-loved (not for fussy buyers)

Synopsis
Former teen pop sensation Heather Wells has hit rock bottom: tired of singing other people's lyrics, she hasn't exactly been bombarded with recording contracts for he own songs. Worse, Dad's in jail, Mum's bolted for Buenos Aires, and Heather can't seem to stop drowning her sorrows in KitKat bars. To top it all, Heather's fiance Jordan Cartwright has replaced her-on the charts as well as in his bed-with America's newest number one pop sensation, Tania Trace.

The meaning of family

Digging to America
Anne Tyler

Selling at RM20
SOLD

Retails at RM35.90

Condition: Pre-loved *almost BRAND NEW*

My thoughts

Anne Tyler has crafted yet another amazing novel of human relationships. You'll find yourself incredibly drawn to the characters within the book. Humorous, quirky and full of personality, this novel provides an insight into a mish-mash of cultures - American, Iranian and Korean. It's a well-crafted tale of family and friendship.

Synopsis

Full of wonderfully hilarious moments, Digging to America is a novel about belonging and otherness pride and prejudice, young love and unexpected old love, and about families and the impossibility of ever getting it right...

Reality bites!

Bachelorette #1
Jennifer O' Connell
Selling at RM20
SOLD

Condition: Pre-loved

My thoughts

A very light. lively and funny read. Perfect for a rainy day in with a mug of hot coffee or milo. That's the way to enjoy life. yumMm!

Synopsis

Sarah Holmes is one of the glamorous young hopefuls competing for the heart of "The Stag"—the sexy, charming bachelor on America's hottest reality TV show. But she isn't just another bachelorette. She's an undercover reporter for Femme magazine, writing a juicy expose about the women desperate enough to go on TV to vie for a man and the bachelor shallow enough to view dating as a ratings game. But what she discovers is an alternate reality far more seductive than she ever expected. Caught up in a whirlwind of moonlight swims, limo rides, and champagne toasts, Sarah stops working on her article...and starts wanting to win.

I want to swap shoes too!!

Shoe Addicts Anonymous by
Beth Harbison

Selling at RM25
Retails at RM49.90
SOLD

Condition: Pre-loved MINT CONDITION

My thoughts
I just finished reading this book two weeks ago. I must admit I bought it because it was something akin to the shopaholic series which I fell in love with five years ago. After buying it and reading it.... I find myself identifying with the girls, laughing with them, and getting paranoid together with them. It was funny, hysterical and delightful :) Beth Harbison may just be my next fave author yet - clean, crisp writing. To keep me at the edge of my seat, I really enjoyed the several plots going on at the same time - yet it was not too messy.

Synopsis

`Life is all about the perfect fit...'

`Helene Zaharis's politician husband keeps her on a tight leash and cancels her credit cards as a way of controlling her. Lorna Rafferty is up to her eyeballs in debt and can't stop her addiction bidding for Jimmy Choos on eBay. Sandra Vanderslice, battling agoraphobia, pays her shoe bills by working as a phone sex operator. And Jocelyn Bowen is a nanny for the family from hell (who barely knows a sole from a heel but who will do anything to get out of the house).

On Tuesday nights, these women meet to trade shoes, and, in the process, form friendships that will help them each triumph over their problems—from secret pasts to blackmail, bankruptcy, and dating.'

Experiments - to do it or not?

Flowers for Algernon
Daniel Keyes

Selling at RM23

SOLD

Condition: Pre-loved MINT CONDITION

"A tale that is convincing, suspectful and touching..."
-- The New York Times.

My thoughts

One of the best reads I own! A must-have! It basically revolves around a simpleton (mental retard), Charlie, who volunteered himself as a human lab rat for scientists, and his 'progris riports'. Through the countless experiments he was put through, from one with an IQ of 68, he became, almost overnight, a genius. The book is basically written journal entry style, where Charlie, laboriously compile all of his 'progris riports'. As you read, you'll be able to see huge changes in grammar, spelling, sentence structure and depth of each report.

From lawyer to housekeeper

Selling at RM20

SOLD

Condition: Pre-loved

My thoughts
True to Kinsella's writing style, the read was engaging, fast-paced, enjoyable, witty and fun-tastic! If only there were more writers like her, we would have so many more good books to read. Samantha Sweeting was on her way to be made Partner at her law firm when she makes a costly mistake and subsequently was mistaken for a housekeeper. She decided to keep up with the charade and learnt how to cook and clean. I laughed out loud so many times, that I started my sleeping cat on my lap awake - and got a loud meow.

Life can be perfect!

Selling at RM40
SOLD

Retails at RM74.90

Condition: Pre-loved - almost new condition

My thoughts
I don't know about you, but I reckon that at some point of our lives, we all wished that we can wake up one morning and find our lives perfect. This was exactly what happened with Lexi - After a car accident, she woke up to discover that she's beautiful, married to a ridiculously good looking rich guy, make lots of money and lives in a gorgeous house. The latest addition to the Sophie Kinsella (Shopaholic series) range of books, this book really showcases Kinsella in her element.

Please note that the size of this book is bigger than the normal paperback, thus it's more expensive.

More than just being Amish...

Plain Truth
Jodi Picoult

Selling at RM20
SOLD

Retails at RM36.90

Condition: Pre-loved - almost new condition

My thoughts
Plain truth is another courtroom drama from Picoult. This time she delves into the lives of the Amish. I just finished reading the book not too long ago and true to Picoult's style, I just got really caught up as the story unfolded. I also learnt quite a fair bit of the Amish way of life - interesting.

Synopsis
Moving seamlessly from psychological drama to courtroom suspense, Plain Truth is a fascinating portrait of Amish life rarely witnessed by those outside the faith. When a young Amish teen hides a pregnancy, gives birth in secret, and then flatly denies it all when the baby's body is found, urban defense attorney Ellie Hathaway decides to defend her. But she finds herself caught in a clash of cultures with a people whose channels of justice are markedly different from her own… and discovers a place where circumstances are not always what they seem.

Life is all about my sister.. or is it?

My Sister's Keeper
Jodi Picoult

Selling at RM20
SOLD

Retails at RM36.90

Condition: Pre-loved - almost new condition

“MY SISTER’S KEEPER has the emotional tenacity to fuel tears and talk as it becomes a book club must-read.”

—New York Daily News

My thoughts

Alternating between wanting to strangle her parents for making Anna go under the knife countless times for her sister, and feeling sorry for the same sister, I find myself drawn so deeply into the story that I felt Anna's pain and anguish.

A mother's love is endless

Things I want My Daughters to Know
Elizabeth Noble

Selling at RM40
SOLD

Retails at RM65.90 (Borders)

Condition: Pre-loved - almost new condition

My thoughts

This heartfelt novel celebrates family, friends . . . and the glorious, endless possibilities of life. Trust me, you'll find yourself relating to the ladies within these pages.

Perfect Match - Jodi Picoult

Perfect Match
Jodi Picoult

Selling at RM20
SOLD

Retails at RM39.90

Condition: Pre-loved

"At the heart of Perfect Match lie the true emotions of motherhood, with all the contradictions and intensity… It is impossible not be held spellbound by the way she forces us to think, hard, about right and wrong."

—The Washington Post

My thoughts

Picoult is not for every reader. She deals with the realities of life in most of her novels. In this one, she talks about a lawyer who had to deal with her child being molested. It took me only two days to complete this book - yes, it's that engaging.

Synopsis

What happens when you do all the right things for all the wrong reasons? As an assistant district attorney in York County, Maine, Nina Frost prosecutes the sort of crimes that tear families apart. She helps clients navigate their way through a nightmare – even though the legal system is not always the faultless compass they want and need it to be. She learns that the easiest way to cross this devastating minefield time and time again is to offer compassion, battle fiercely for justice, and keep her emotional distance.

But when Nina and her husband Caleb discover that their five-year-old son Nathaniel has been sexually abused, that distance is impossible to maintain.