A Different Reflection

by Jane Gibson

Katharina Stuart, nicknamed Kat, has a pretty normal life. She has a great job in London writing for a magazine and comes home every night to her beautiful apartment and her fiancé John. Most people would envy her, but Kat has always felt like something is missing from her life…

After being assigned a new set of stories, from which she is struggling to gain any enthusiasm, Kat is given a new lead on an old property for sale called 'Northfield'. It intrigues her that the old butler still lives there and she finds a flurry of excitement that this could be her new story, so proceeds to try and get him to agree to an interview.

Northfield does not disappoint in any way. It is old, in beautiful grounds and the grandeur it radiates has Kat captivated from the moment she arrives. She befriends the charming George who still lives there, and as he gains her trust he allows the story of how he came to live there to unfold. He is not alone in the house, and his unbelievable tale of witches, magic and spells makes Kat begin to question her own beliefs…

It’s not long before Kat experiences the magic of Northfield first hand, and as she spends more time with the occupants of the old house she so desperately wants to help her new friends. But in doing so, her relationship with John becomes strained, with the added complication of Nadine, his work colleague… Will Kat decide to follow her heart and her dreams, or follow her head and the voice of reasoning? Whatever path she chooses, she knows that her decision will change her life forever.

A Different Reflection is a modern day fairytale that captures the lives of regular people alongside romance and fantasy.

Genres: Romance, Fantasy, Contemporary, Fiction

480 pages, Paperback

First published April 21, 2015

Reviews

[Carmen Blankenship · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Different Reflection by Jane Gibson is based on a fairytale. I have noticed this is becoming a common theme amount new releases lately and if done right can be a lot of fun.

I did not dislike this book but for me it is just too long. If you are at all like me and have a to be read list a mile long, a book really needs to take me away to keep me from getting impatient and wanting to crack open the next on my list. I found myself skimming to get to the ending. I noticed I could skim quite a bit and not miss anything really.

I did enjoy the charachters and love it when a cool old house is also a character. If you love whimsy, romance, and fairytales please don't let my impatience keep you from trying A Different Reflection.

This copy was provided to me by Netgalley and Troubador Publishing Ltd in exchange for this review.

[Kristina Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Different Reflection by Jane L. Gibson is a magical tale. Katharina “Kat” Stuart lives in London with her fiancé, John Cardel, she loves fairy tales (thanks to her mother), and she is a journalist for Resolute magazine. Her newest assignment is to find unusual heart-warming true stories (a tall order). Then she hears about Northfield and George. Northfield is a beautiful estate that is over 300 years old. George is the caretaker of the estate. Northfield is being offered as a lease-hold (no renovations can be made to house, George can go anywhere in the house, and the estate returns to George’s family after 99 years). Kat sets out to find out more about George and the estate. On the first visit George starts by telling her the history of the estate. They have a wonderful time together (friendly not romantic) and Kat arranges to come back again. Kat loves beautiful old homes and Northfield is just gorgeous. On the next visit Kat gets more history on the home and enjoys a lovely meal with George. They arrange for her to come and spend the night (to get information on George for the story).

John, the fiancé, is rarely at home because he is busy with a big business deal. He does like having Kat on hand for business dinners and drinks with clients. Kat and John have been growing apart over the last six months. Claire, Kat’s assistant and best friend, has never liked John and thinks that Kat can do much better. When Kat spends the night at Northfield, George tells her the story of James Henry Aldersley who was born in 1720. After the death of his father, James became something of a rake. He went from woman to woman breaking hearts. When James was thirty he spent a week with a woman named Alice. Alice fell in love with James and did not take kindly to him leaving and breaking her heart. She arrived on the day of party at Northfield. Turns out Alice was a witch. She put a spell on James. He was confined to the mirror. He could look out, but could not interact. He was given one person to keep him company at that was George. The spell could only be broken by Alice (who said she would break it after fifty years) or if a woman fell in love with James (and he fell in love with her) with just his words. Only someone pure of heart can see James in the mirrors. Unfortunately for James, Alice was killed after ten years in the witchcraft trials. Two hundred sixty four years later and James is still in the mirror.

Because Kat grew up loving and believing in fairy tales (thanks to her mother), she believes the story and can see James. James can interact with her and George. Kat is determined to help them. Kat sets out to find someone who can see James and fall in love with him. A Different Reflection is a charming book. I just loved it. Now I knew how this story would play out, but I still enjoyed reading it. I give A Different Reflection 4.25 out of 5 stars. I found Claire very annoying. She is the type of person who likes to party and talk (and talk and talk). Kat’s loyalty to John was another sore point (I cannot say much more without spoilers) and the over indulgence in alcohol (it seemed they were always drinking and getting drunk). I would have loved just a little more of the magical element in the story (maybe Kat consulting with a witch). Overall A Different Reflection was a very enjoyable book, and I look forward to reading more books by Jane L. Gibson.

I received a complimentary copy of A Different Reflection from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The review and opinions expressed are my own.

http://bibliophileandavidreader.blogs...

[Tânia · Rating 2 out of 5]

The idea of a modern day fairytale easily caught my attention. It's my kind of story and yet I didn't love it as much as I though I would. I felt so disappointed because the idea behind the story was so captivating, but I simply couldn't enjoy it.

I like detailed stories, but they must be fast-paced as well. There were a few parts that could have been cut from A Different Reflection and the story would flow so much better. I don't think the reader needed to know how Monday and Tuesday went on before the meeting on Wednesday; it didn't add anything to the story.

I confess that I forced myself to end the book and when I finally did it, I could only think of the negative aspects. There were moments I wondered if I wasn't reading the same part over and over again - how many times did Kate/George/James have to say how much they liked each other? Or that they felt like a family? Also, there was so much talk about food (too much coffee, tea and wine were drunk in every single chapter). And I can't believe how many times the words "sarcastically", "happily" and "honestly" were written. Too many unnecessary adverbs!


[I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.]

[Tara Kable · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Pretty good, I did skim through some as it was a bit long for me at 480 pages...I felt it could have been shorter, but over all a pretty ok story. I love fairy tales, so that is what hooked me to begin with.

[Desirae Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved LOVED this book! When it came in the mail I was so excited. I loved the story line and the whole dialogue. The description of the house and settings was amazing, I felt like I was actually in the book. I fell in love with this book and hate that it wasn't longer though!

[Tasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely adult fairytale, struggled to put this book down!

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A great idea for a modern fairy tale but some of the dialogue and writing was awkward.

[K.S. Marsden · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Kat follows up on a possible story for her magazine job, she has no idea that she will be part of a real-life fairytale. A beautiful house, 200 year-old curse, and their caretaker George, all start to enchant Kat.

I got a signed copy of this book when I met the author at Keighley library recently, which was awesome. I mean, modern fairytale and magic, I had no choice!

I really enjoyed this book, it's light-hearted, fun, and just a nice read for a lazy weekend.

It starts with Kat, who is happy with her life. She has the London apartment; the fiance who is building on his successful business deals; a job as a journalist; and potentially her first big story on its way.
On paper, everything is perfect.
I really liked that, as the story goes on, Kat realises how disillusioned London life has made her. She feels almost a debt to society that she should have all of the above, and she has forgotten her dreams. She feels a duty to her relationship with her fiance John, after all the time they've been together; even though it seems like they're just going through the motions.
I think she needed this challenge to wake her up, as much as anyone!

We meet George as the potentially senile old man, who lives alone in this beautiful old house. He is a very sweet character, and after getting to know Kat, he enlightens her to the secret of the house, and the history of one cursed young lord.
George becomes like a father-figure for Kat (and a poor, cursed Lord James). After so long alone, he takes a lot of pleasure in taking care of somebody again.

And then there's the mysterious James at the middle of it all. In his time, he was lord of the manor, and a bit of a cad, breaking many hearts, including his mother's. Now, he is the victim of a curse, which will be his punishment, and his redemption.

I thought the story was lovely, and I was impressed how the magic was weaved into daily life. After questioning her sanity, Kat decides to believe, and accept it whole-heartedly.
Although the plot was fairly predictable, it's still a nice, cosy read; and the fairytale is very original.

The downside - I felt there was a lot of repetition over how nice the house is, how homely Kat finds it; how connected she is with George and James.
I mean, it is nice, but verged on saccharine at points.
There's also some padding and musing over the same things, that made the slow down.
I thought that the book didn't need to be 480 pages, and could have been condensed, without losing the story or themes.

Overall, I'd recommend checking this modern fairytale out, and I can't wait to read Gibson's other work!

[Lyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really into the concept of this story - I love fantasy stuff like this. However, with the way it was written, I just couldn't get into it.
I read over half of it, but every single time I picked it up, I found myself getting really annoyed with the characters and skimming some of it, rather than actually enjoying it much. The characters are just way too peppy and forgiving for such a long book; if it was shorter, even half the length, it wouldn't have been so bad. But because of how it was written, really nothing happened in the 250 pages I read, despite the fact that it was so fast-paced, because it was repetitive. It was just like, "Well, John doesn't want me to go visit George, so I'll just tell him I'm working late, I can't tell anyone about James, anyway - oh, crap, John is cheating on me! No, wait, it's okay, they're just friends, John has a really sketchy explanation. Dang, I'm working late and lying to John again... AND HE'S CHEATING ON ME! Well, maybe not, another sketchy excuse..." etc. I just can't do it anymore, especially since I'm about 95% sure I know what happens at the end, anyway.
Note: I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways.

[Julie Kendrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t hate this book but I didn’t love it either. The story was ok but the ending was a given.

Unfortunately there were too many annoyances for me. If Kat said she loved the house once she said 1000 times. If the two guys said how happy they were that she was there they said that 10000 times. A lot of the supernatural stuff was not explained in fact the author went the other way and said that no one knew why certain things happened. It seems like she couldn’t think of why when she was writing so she took the easy way out

But the most annoying thing, for me, was the weird way she constructed her speech.

Instead of saying “I’m off to the shops” George said, she would put “I’m off to the shops” George then stated.

It made me think that there was something else to come like. “I’m off to the shops”, George then stated he didn’t have any money. This was every time someone spoke. Everyone stated everything too which is very odd to continually read.

Anyway this is her first book so I’m hoping this kind of jarring writing gets ironed out by the next book.

[Elaine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Initially, I found it to be quite lengthy; a more concise narrative could have enhanced the overall experience. While the story was okay, fairy tales are not typically my genre of choice, which might explain why it didn't fully engage me

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took a little bit to get used to the writing style for me but once I did I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's a quick, easy, upbeat read. I knew it would end happily and that was just what I needed today.

[Alisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, first things first, there were bits of this that I enjoyed, don't get me wrong, there were also really cute bits, like warm and fuzzies cutes. However, there were also bits that were very predictable, a bit too cheesy and a few other bits and pieces.

I was intrigued by this as it sounded like an original and fun idea, and it really was. This book is very original, and I liked the idea behind it and I think it was executed well. The book was a bit slow to get off the ground with the plot, I found my attention wandering a bit for the first half of the book, and I resorted to skim reading. The plot did pick up half way through, but things were quite predictable, and I felt like they were slightly over the top and over dramatic, but then at the same time, predictability in this genre isn't really all that much of a bad thing, I guess I was just coming off of a Fantasy book and was waiting for something totally surprising to happen and it never did. As soon as I got a bit in to the book, I knew what was going on with John and so on, as well as James. Again, some over dramatics and so on aren't always a bad thing, but I felt like there was just too much of it.

I skim read most of this book, and I found that I could actually skim read the majority of the book without missing anything. I'd skim read over the bits that didn't grab my attention, then there'd be an over dramatic bit, then I'd skim read another chunk, and there'd be another over dramatic bit, and so on.

My main issue with this book was the writing. I found it very monotonous and very repetitive, hence the skim reading because it reached a point were I couldn't go on reading it properly with the writing. There were so many exclamation points everywhere, these characters were very excitable clearly. The part of the writing I found most gruelling to read? The way that id' be told who'd spoken after a character had spoken every single time, "she said. He said. She said. He said. She said. He said" and so on. The other bit was that on multiple occasions, our main character would note something, then she'd say it out loud, there was a particular scene involving decorations and it was something like "He had decorated everything as well " and then the character was like "Oh and you've decorated everything". Right. After. The. Other. That's why I struggled with this book.

Considering I've seen a few reviews were people are mentioning how long it was as a bad point for it, I thin it could have been a few pages shorter if things weren't repeated and it wasn't mentioned every single time someone spoke. It was quite frustrating at one point. Someone will ask a question. Multiple times. Someone will reply. Someone will state what has just been said. Then someone will confirm what's been said. Then it will be said again. It was a very stilted way to write and so I felt like the book didn't really have any flow, it was quite clunky.

So like I said, don't get me wrong it was a good story, if a little bit predictable and over dramatic, but who doesn't love a bit of that sometimes? It was the writing/sentence structure that dragged this down in rating for me to be honest.

[Laura.125Pages · Rating 2 out of 5]

Original review at www.125pages.wordpress.com
*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

2.75 Stars

Kat Stuart is a typical 29 year-old Londoner, she writes for a magazine and has a fiancé John. Given an assignment to find a story that is true and heartwarming she discovers Northfield. Northfield is an old estate that comes with its own butler George, whose wild tales intrigue Kat. Soon Northfield becomes a haven for Kat, and she all she can hope, is that the stories are true.

A Different Reflection is a typical formulaic chick lit book. Kat’s job is as a journalist, her fiancé is good, but not great, and she has a quirky girlfriend Claire. The addition of the ghost story/ fairy tale aspect could have elevated this above the typical but that outcome was transparently obvious as well. But in chick lit obvious is not necessarily a bad thing, a good chick lit book is comforting, like putting on your favorite jammies after a long day. The problem with this book was not the story but the author’s fondness for certain sentence enders. I have never seen more excited characters, exclamation points ended at least half of the sentences in the book. Then when the sentence was finished you were constantly told that someone had spoken. In the following except there are more exclamation points after someone speaks than any other punctuation mark and someone asks (twice), replies, states, confirms and says. The entire book is patterned this way.

Excerpt from book –

John asked him.

“So how is the house hunting going?”

“Oh, don’t ask. It’s not as easy as I expected it to be!” Charles replied

“I didn’t know that you were planning on moving home!” I stated with surprise.

“Well we want a garden for the children, and plenty of space, including a spare room for guests to stay. It’s not as easy as you might imagine near London!” Helen confirmed. “Oh, Charles, tell them about the house we went to see on Wednesday!” She then excitedly said, “It was so strange!”

“How so?” I asked curiously.

These ways of ending the sentences were distracting and broke up the conversations so they did not flow but seemed very stilted. The story and premise were a solid 3 star read, but the sentence structure issues pulled it down. It was a fine story, but not a book that I will re-read.

[Tien · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a total cover crush for me. It’s such a beautiful pink and sparkly cover! It appeals to my very girly side. Plus this is a fairy tale told in modern times... SOLD!

The story is quite beautiful and romantic. It is a very sweet fairy tale that I’m sure all girls would have daydreamed of. It has all the tropes of a love-story x fairy-tales: a bad guy, a curse, a good girl, love, etc. All the characters, especially main protagonists, were easily likeable. All in all, a terrific fluffy-good-feels type of read but unfortunately, not what I was looking for, at the time of my reading it.

It was slow to start though it was fairly easy to get into in terms of language and with easily likeable characters, it wasn’t hard to keep reading. Despite my romantic side, I can’t but help feeling a bit cynical about some things... I couldn’t believe that someone can be as ‘good’ as Kat (yes, okay, she seems to have some issues but is very sensible, wise, and overall, very balanced person; she was too good to be believable –the very epitome of Miss Goody Two-Shoes). The way she speaks also seems a little wrong –I’m really not sure that a ‘normal-modern’ person will speak the way she does. This grated on me a little.

A Different Reflection is just like the cover: a bright, sparkly and sweet fairy tale romance. If you need to switch off your brain for a few hours or some cheering up, I’d highly recommend this book. It’s basically your fairy floss (cotton candy) in fiction.

Thanks to Troubador Publishing Ltd via NetGalley for eARC in exchange of honest review

[Nicki Ramsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved this book. I'd just been reading a really heavy book and this was the perfect antidote, very easy reading and a gentle flowing storyline. The bright pink sparkly cover unashamedly reveals it's chick-lit genre. Based on a fairytale, the hero was a prisoner of a spell cast centuries before and the heroine a hard working journalist with a not so great fiancé . You could see the happy ever after ending coming a mile off but that didn't make the book any less enjoyable. There were a few spelling and grammatical errors, for example if you mention a real life celebrity like Gordon Ramsay, you really should spell his surname correctly (not Ramsey), not bad enough to spoil the book though.
I received this book as a free giveaway.

[Vikki Spragg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this book, Jane has a knack of capturing the reader from the beginning. Kat and James are fantastic characters that show no matter how far time is stretched apart we all need acceptance and love. The references throughout the era's in the book made it seem more real, especially the pendle witch reference.I hope Jane produces another book soon, she makes the characters colourful, interesting and adorable. This book is a must read for people wanting a romantic , feel good book. Once I started reading this book I just could not put it down, I needed to know what was going to happen next.

[Sharon Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Different Reflection was a fantastic read right from the start. It had me quickly absorbed into the story of Katharina, and how she meets the other characters in the book called George and the gorgeous guy called Harry at the very beautiful old house named Northfield.
A really easy book to read and that is why you get sucked into the story so quickly.
Lots of thought and imagination as gone in this lovely fairy tale story and truly pays off .Can't wait for the next one.

[Tricia Shuttleworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story, well written, great characters that draw you in and make you not want to put the book down. I've read hundreds of books, but this one stands out - the romantic theme along with fantasy is a great combination crossing different eras. I look forward to reading the next novel from this author after this debut one. Great read - recommend it for your summer holidays!!

[Jen La Duca · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Different Reflection is a cute take on the modern day fairytale. I thought the story was pretty good but at almost 500 pages it was a bit long & I found myself skimming through some of it.

Thank you to the publishers, Troubador Publishing and to NeGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my review.

[Irene · Rating 2 out of 5]

Provided by publisher and Netgalley. This book desperately needs someone to proof read it - someone to cross out "kindly", "sincerely", "happily" and "sarcastically". These words were mentioned far, far too often. I did like the idea of this story.

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book Jane. I could have read it straight through but had to force myself to put it down as I wanted it to last as long as possible! I loved the characters & story. All in all, a wonderfully, magical book. Thank you. Looking forward to the next one now!

[Ella Zegarra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Original de: El Blog del Gato - El Extraño Gato del Cuento

A Different Reflection es un libro que si te lo piensas mucho te das cuenta que no lo disfrutaste tanto como creíste una vez que acabas el libro.

Leí este libro hace más de un año por lo que quizás no esté recordando bien, y mis apuntes se perdieron así que voy a guiarme únicamente de lo que mi cerebro me manda en emociones. Recuerdo que hubo un uso excesivo de signos de admiración, no hay nada que me irrite más que eso. Me pone nerviosa que un libro me grite tanto



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