When in Rome

When in Rome... by Gemma Townley
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I left this book unfinished at 110 pages. It was a painful decision, I'll admit. I wanted a light read - this is. I wanted a well-written book - this is. I wanted great characters - the author has obviously lived with this character for a very long time. But I didn't like her. At all. I found nothing redeeming about her, she was stupid, lazy, and materialistic. Which is sad, I mean I realize people like that exist (and, geesh, I've even been known to have that kind of day) but I don't want them to be the heroine. Sidekicks or protagonist, sure, bring 'em on. This just makes me sad because I really enjoyed the writer's style, the way she moved plot along, I was even entertained when I wasn't busy hating Georgie.

Summary: When in Rome, do as Audrey Hepburn would do. Failing that, run off with your ex-boyfriend, carry suspicious packages through customs, and lie to the person who loves you. . . .Georgie Beauchamp is totally happy and in love with her wonderful, dependable boyfriend, David. So why does she always daydream about running into her gorgeous ex-boyfriend Mike? It can’t mean she’s still in love with him—especially since the cad dumped her so horribly. As luck would have it, when Georgie’s daydream actually comes true, she is dressed in unglamorous sweats and carrying a curtain rod down the street, while Mike is driving an expensive sports car and looking better than Brad Pitt at the Oscars. She longs to have the glamorous life Mike can offer—and starts to think that he might want her back in his arms.

But when he invites her for a weekend in Rome, Georgie is torn. David has always said he’d take her there for the romantic getaway of a lifetime, but his work keeps him totally tied up. So she must choose: David, all comfort and reliability, or Mike, all flirtation and butterfly-stomachs. The decision isn’t too hard to make, and faster than she can say Vespa, she’s off to Rome with Mike, full of plans to frolic on the Spanish Steps and sip wine in intimate trattorias. But when David shows up unexpectedly, this roman holiday gets a hell of a lot more complicated. . . .

Breakthrough

Breakthrough!: How the 10 Greatest Discoveries in Medicine Saved Millions and Changed Our View of the World by Jon Queijo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book much more than I expected to. I found the subjects interesting and told clearly in personal stories.

Summary: The unforgettable life-or-death stories behind antibiotics, vaccines, DNA, X-rays, and more. What happened, how it happened, and what it means to you today. A colorful cast of characters whose discoveries were often driven not only by personal tragedy, curiosity, and hard work, but petty bickering, dumb luck, and a healthy dose of humor. For anyone interested in science, medicine, and beyond...

Why are you alive right now? Chances are, you owe your life to one of the remarkable medical discoveries in this book. Maybe it was vaccines. Or antibiotics. Or X-rays. Revolutionary medical breakthroughs like these haven’t just changed the way we treat disease, they’ve transformed how we understand ourselves and the world we live in. In Breakthrough!, Jon Queijo tells the hidden stories behind 10 of history’s most amazing medical discoveries. This isn’t dry history: These are life-and-death mysteries uncovered, tales of passionate, often-mocked individuals who stood their ground and were proven right. From germs to genetics, the ancient Hippocrates to the cutting edge, these are stories that have changed the world—and, quite likely, saved your life.