Friday Conversation 20/7

This week's Book Blogger Hop question for discussion is "what's the ONE super-hyped book you’ll NEVER read?"

Which is a difficult question to answer, because I'm mildly alergic to the word never. (Particularly when it's all in capitals.) That said, there's an obvious and topical example in the form of the Fifty Shades trilogy. Absolutely nothing I've heard about these books has made me want to read them. The basic story doesn't appeal, and I don't read much romance, let alone erotica. Whereas everything that's been criticised (from poor writing style to lack of feminist credentials) is likely to bug me. Let's just say it isn't going to make it to the top of my reading list any time soon.

Meanwhile, for the Feature & Follow hop, it's Christmas in July! Someone gives you a gift card for two books (whatever that costs). What two books will you buy?

Now, in reality this would depend on who gave me the gift. If someone buys me book tokens, I like to buy something they've personally recommended to me.

But since I can't do that, I'd go for Tigana (by Guy Gavriel Kay) and Railsea (by China Mieville), both of which are high on my wish list. Both for the Kindle, of course.

This week, I've bought:

• Catching Fire (Hunger Games #2), by Suzanne Collins
• Perfect People, by Peter James
• The Stranger's Child, by Alan Hollinghurst
• Monday to Friday Man, by Alice Peterson

And received for review:

• The Vanishing Point, by Val McDermid
• DarkBeat, by James Solo
• Mad Science Institute, by Sechin Tower
• The Duchess of the Shallows, by Daniel Ravipinto & Neil McGarry
• The Last Bird, by Ewan Nordmark
• Caveat Emptor, by Ken Perenyi