Category: friendship
+ brothers, crime fiction, dark humour, Detective novel, fiction, friendship, grief, homelessness, loss, love, marriage, murder, police drama, review, rivalry
The Last Dance by Mark Billingham
The first new series in two decades from multi-award-winning international bestseller Mark Billingham that introduces Detective Miller – a man who’s unique, unconventional, and criminally underestimated. Maverick sleuth Declan Miller is back at work following the murder of his wife (and amateur ballroom dancing partner) Alex. Working with new partner and heavy metal enthusiast DS Sara Xiu, he is tasked with investigating the double … Read More The Last Dance by Mark Billingham
+ childhood, dementia, diary, family, fiction, fifties, friendship, grief, journal, memory, mystery, psychic, review, secrets
One Puzzling Afternoon by Emily Critchley
On a suburban street filled with secrets, 84 year old Edie Green must look back into the past to discover what happened to her friend Lucy, who went missing years before . . . A mystery she can’t remember. A friend she can’t forget. I kept your secret Lucy. I’ve kept it for more than sixty years . . . It is 1951, and at … Read More One Puzzling Afternoon by Emily Critchley
+ family, female friendship, feminism, fiction, friendship, grief, Historical fiction, loss, love, motherhood, review, sisterhood, suffragette movement, war, World War One
The Dictionary Of Lost Words by Pip Williams
In 1901, the word ‘Bondmaid’ was discovered missing from the Oxford English Dictionary. This is the story of the girl who stole it. Esme is born into a world of words. Motherless and irrepressibly curious, she spends her childhood in the ‘Scriptorium’, a garden shed in Oxford where her father and a team of dedicated lexicographers are collecting words for the very first Oxford English Dictionary. … Read More The Dictionary Of Lost Words by Pip Williams
+ alcoholism, childhood, fiction, friendship, Historical fiction, obsession, prostitution, relationships, review
The Misadventures of Margaret Finch by Claire McGlasson
Blackpool, 1938. Miss Margaret Finch – a rather demure young woman – has just begun work in a position that relies on her discretion and powers of observation. Then, her path is crossed by the disgraced Rector of Stiffkey (aka Harold Davidson), who is the subject of a national scandal. Margaret is determined to discover the truth behind the headlines: is Davidson a maligned hero or an … Read More The Misadventures of Margaret Finch by Claire McGlasson
+ art, coming-of-age, family, female friendship, fiction, friendship, grief, literature, loss, love, Magical realism, memory, psychiatric hospital, relationships, review, secrets, Thirties, whimsical, World War Two, WW2
Vita And The Birds by Polly Crosby
1938: Lady Vita Goldsborough lives in the shadow of her controlling older brother, Aubrey. Trapped and isolated on the East Anglian coast, Vita takes solace in watching the birds that fly over the marshes. But then she meets local artist Dodie Blakeney. The two women form a close bond, and Vita finally glimpses a chance to escape Aubrey’s grasp and be as free as … Read More Vita And The Birds by Polly Crosby
+ art, fiction, friendship, germany, jews, journalist, literature, love, nazi germany, review, secrets, World War Two, WW2
Café 7Rheinhardt by Patrick Gooch
Anton Fischer, a curator at the prestigious Belvedere art museum, stands at the crossroads. War is on the horizon. Should he stay in Vienna under Germany’s oppressive regime, hide to avoid conscription in the Wehrmacht, or flee and join those opposed to Adolf Hitler? Sacrificing his feelings for the woman he loves, Anton makes his way to England, and joins the Royal Air Force. … Read More Café 7Rheinhardt by Patrick Gooch
+ family, feel-good, female friendship, fiction, friendship, grief, loneliness, loss, love, relationships, review
Preloved by Lauren Bravo
Gwen’s life has stalled. She’s in her mid-thirties, perpetually single, her friends are busy procreating in the country and conversations with her parents seem to revolve entirely around herbaceous borders and the council’s wheelie-bin timetable. Above all she’s lonely. But then, isn’t everyone? When Gwen’s made redundant from a job she drifted into a decade ago and never left, she realises it’s time to … Read More Preloved by Lauren Bravo
+ crime fiction, family, fiction, folklore, friendship, lies, love, murder, psychopath, relationships, review, secrets, serial killer, thriller
Killing Jericho by William Hussey
Murder this twisted demands a new kind of detective. Fresh out of prison, former Detective Constable Scott Jericho is a desperate man. Disgraced and penniless after his assault on a violent suspect, he is forced to seek refuge with the fairground family he once rejected. Now, troubled by his failure, Jericho’s brilliant mind stagnates. That is until a series of bizarre murders reawaken his … Read More Killing Jericho by William Hussey
+ abuse, child abuse, crime fiction, family, fiction, friendship, kidnapping, loss, murder, police drama, police procedural, revenge, review, Scotland, serial killer
The First Cut (A Jane Renwick Thriller #1) by Val Penny
It’s hard to escape a brutal past. A vicious killer is on the loose. Victims targeted include an academic and members of Edinburgh’s high society. When the Murder Investigation Team find out that the killer is connected to her past, DS Jane Renwick is banished to the side-lines and forced to look on as the manhunt ramps up at a ferocious pace. #TheFirstCut @valeriepenny … Read More The First Cut (A Jane Renwick Thriller #1) by Val Penny
+ adventure, child abduction, childhood, eighties, fantasy, fiction, friends, friendship, Ghost story, horror, kidnapping, mythology, paranormal, review, supernatural, superstition
Amongst the Mists by M.L Rayner
It was the most anticipated summer break of their young lives. For Bran Lampshire, that summer of 1986 would be far different. The lure of a wilderness adventure sends him and his friends on a troublesome journey that would see them far from home and into the isolated shadows of the Sleathton Estate. #AmongTheMists #MLRayner @Zooloo’s Book Tours @zooloo2008 #ZooloosBookTours #blogtour In a forgotten land where nature … Read More Amongst the Mists by M.L Rayner
+ Ceylon, family, fiction, friendship, grief, Historical fiction, history, literature, loss, love, memory, racism, relationships, review, Sri Lanka
Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens by Shankari Chandran
Welcome to Cinnamon Gardens, a home for those who are lost and the stories they treasure. Cinnamon Gardens Nursing Home is nestled in the quiet suburb of Westgrove, Sydney – populated with residents with colourful histories, each with their own secrets, triumphs and failings. This is their safe place, an oasis of familiar delights – a beautiful garden, a busy kitchen and a bountiful … Read More Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens by Shankari Chandran