Category: childhood
+ 1940s, childhood, fairies, fiction, Historical fiction, Ireland, Italy, List, Magical realism, nazi germany, review, USA, whimsical, WW2
My Top 6 Books of 2024
As we slip quietly into 2025 it’s time to reflect on my absolute favourite books of 2024. It’s six this time, four of which are audio books. It’s always hard. There were instant standouts again. I have tried to include a mix of genres but failed yet again. I read a lot of crime fiction, which occasionally make my quarterly selections, but my Top books of … Read More My Top 6 Books of 2024
+ audio book, childhood, fiction, gothic, Historical fiction, kidnapping, review, supernatural, superstition, Victorian Britain
Things in Jars by Jess Kidd
Bridie Devine, female detective extraordinaire, is confronted with the most baffling puzzle yet: the kidnapping of Christabel Berwick, secret daughter of Sir Edmund Athelstan Berwick, and a peculiar child whose reputed supernatural powers have captured the unwanted attention of collectors trading curiosities in this age of discovery. Winding her way through the labyrinthine, sooty streets of Victorian London, Bridie won’t rest until she finds … Read More Things in Jars by Jess Kidd
+ child abuse, childhood, family, fiction, friendship, lies, love, motherhood, review, secrets, thriller
A Safe Place by Stephanie Carty
What happens when your home becomes your prison? Twelve-year-old Cate has never left her village. She’s never had a friend. She’s never even hugged her mother. Imogen, Cate’s mum, spent her youth travelling the country with her father. He believed she had a gift and used her for his own gain. With her innocence snatched away, Imogen vowed to build an idyllic and safe … Read More A Safe Place by Stephanie Carty
+ brothers, bullying, child abuse, childhood, dark humour, depression, fiction, journal, loss, love, mental illness, obsession, psychiatric hospital, psychiatrist, review, therapy
The Funeral Portrait by Vincent Viñas
Guy doesn’t smile easily. He could be described as fundamentally glum. Tallulah doesn’t die easily. She could be described as annoyingly immortal. What if you wanted to die but were unable to? Such is the case with Guy Edwards and Tallulah Leigh, who want to end their miserable lives for different reasons. The only problem is, she’s been stricken with an unexplained (and unwelcome) … Read More The Funeral Portrait by Vincent Viñas
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
A foundling, an old book of dark fairy tales, a secret garden, an aristocratic family, a love denied, and a mystery. The Forgotten Garden is a captivating, atmospheric and compulsively readable story of the past, secrets, family and memory from the international best-selling author Kate Morton. Cassandra is lost, alone and grieving. Her much loved grandmother, Nell, has just died and Cassandra, her life already … Read More The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
+ child abuse, childhood, family, fiction, friendship, grief, loss, love, motherhood, murder, photographs, review, secrets, thriller
The Foster Daughter by Sonya Bateman
My daughter was murdered by my husband. Now I have a new little girl to look after. I have no idea who she is. It’s been five years since my daughter was killed. It still hurts every day. I’ll never be over it but I am finally moving on with my life. It’s pitch black when I wake up. I hear a child screaming … Read More The Foster Daughter by Sonya Bateman
The Rescue Sisters by Elaine Whiteford
Stirling and Quebec, 1900 A tale of blackmail, kidnap and terrible secrets. Of children being sent abroad, and of women trying to do the right thing at a time when they were second class citizens. How far will Jane Knight and Eliza Frew go to protect the ones they love … and save themselves? Child rescue and migration are the backdrops to this historical … Read More The Rescue Sisters by Elaine Whiteford
Esme’s Life as a Ten-Year-Old by Vicki Baxter
Meet Esme. The girl with two houses, but not because she is super rich, but because her parents are divorced. Esme talks about growing up with her younger sister, juggling school, hobbies, pets and two very different parenting styles. #EsmesLifeAsATenYearOld X(Twitter) #VickiBaxter@ZooloosBT #ZooloosBookTours #blogtour #BookX #booktwitterInstagram @vicki.the.author @zooloosbooktours #bookstagram A funny and truthful story, sharing a roller coaster ride of the life of a ten-year-old. My Review Life through the eyes … Read More Esme’s Life as a Ten-Year-Old by Vicki Baxter
The Rescue Sisters by Elaine Whiteford Out Now
Stirling and Quebec, 1900 A tale of blackmail, kidnap and terrible secrets. Of children being sent abroad, and of women trying to do the right thing at a time when they were second class citizens. How far will Jane Knight and Eliza Frew go to protect the ones they love … and save themselves? Child rescue and migration are the backdrops to this historical … Read More The Rescue Sisters by Elaine Whiteford Out Now
+ alcoholism, childhood, dark humour, domestic noir, family, fiction, forgiveness, haunting, lies, loss, love, mental illness, motherhood, psychiatrist, review
The Guests by Charlotte Stevenson
They weren’t invited. But they refuse to leave… Tamsin is being haunted by unwelcome visitors in her house she calls The Guests. Nobody knows about their presence but her. After confiding in her husband, he left, and she won’t make that mistake again. Genre: ThrillerPublisher: Bloodhound But now her relationship with her teenage daughter Summer is starting to suffer. As each day passes, the … Read More The Guests by Charlotte Stevenson
+ abuse, alcoholism, child abuse, childhood, dark humour, female friendship, fiction, murder, Psychological fiction, revenge, review, secrets, thriller, twins
Don’t Tell A Soul by Jessica Huntley
She thinks she’s safe. She couldn’t be more wrong. Elle, desperate to escape her abusive home, runs away to a seemingly cute small town where she gets a job as a waitress. And meets Vera, who offers her an attic room in her large house. For the first time in years, Elle feels something like contentment as she bonds with Vera who becomes almost … Read More Don’t Tell A Soul by Jessica Huntley
+ alcoholism, childhood, coming-of-age, family, family drama, fiction, grief, loss, love, motherhood, relationships, review, secrets, WW2
Junction of Earth and Sky by Susan Buttenwieser
A sweeping and emotional debut from a dazzling new voice – for fans of The Paper Palace, The Dutch House and Betty. Coming of age in 1940s England, Alice’s life is thrown into chaos under the shadow of the war. Forced to let go of her hopes and dreams, she finds herself uprooted to America and a life she never could have imagined. Decades later, it is … Read More Junction of Earth and Sky by Susan Buttenwieser
