Tag: review
Snakes and Ladders by Victoria Selman
I really enjoyed reading this. A bit Silence of the Lambs meets Dan Brown and I particularly like the codes and clues aspect. Dr Sange is an interesting character as you don’t expect a serial killer to be so handsome and charismatic (unless it’s Keanu Reeves in The Watcher – though maybe not charismatic). I’m not sure Ziba would be my first choice of … Read More Snakes and Ladders by Victoria Selman
A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende
From Spain during the Civil War to Chile, then exile in Venezuela and back to Chile, this beautiful novel covers a period of history that most of us no nothing about. It follows the lives of Victor Dalmau and his wife Roser from youth to old age. It’s a sweeping epic of a novel with a host of likeable and not so likeable fictional … Read More A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende
The Mother I Could Have Been by Kerry Fisher
I wish to thank NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. This isn’t my usual genre but I thought I would give it a go. To start with I didn’t like Vicky at all. She is so hard done by and finds it easier to walk away than actually have a conversation with the people in her life she … Read More The Mother I Could Have Been by Kerry Fisher
The Only Child by Mi-ae Seo
Oh boy this could have been so good. The premise of the story is an excellent one and once I managed to understand what was going on (which took a while) it became really gripping. The story that is – because the writing (and I guess it gets lost in translation) is clunky and immature. From my experience of creative writing (I studied it … Read More The Only Child by Mi-ae Seo
+ fiction, literature, review, writing
The Memory Wood by Sam Lloyd
A very strange and different book about kidnapping and abduction with so many twists which I mostly didn’t see coming, though there were a few that were more obvious. Elissa is a 13 year old chess champion who is abducted while attending a tournament with her mother, She only pops to the car for a second when she is brutally grabbed and bundled into … Read More The Memory Wood by Sam Lloyd
The World That We Knew by Alice Hoffman
In 1941, during humanity’s darkest hour, three unforgettable young women must act with courage and love to survive, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Dovekeepers and The Marriage of Opposites Alice Hoffman. In Berlin, at the time when the world changed, Hanni Kohn knows she must send her twelve-year-old daughter away to save her from the Nazi regime. She finds her way to a renowned rabbi, but … Read More The World That We Knew by Alice Hoffman
+ dark humour, fantasy, fiction, literature, psi-fi, review, writing
Relatively Strange by Marilyn Messik
I really love this book. I love the way it is written from Stella’s point of view with her dry and often irreverent humour – there were many times when I laughed out loud. Stella has powers unlike anyone else she knows. She can fly, she can move things with her mind and she can read other people’s thoughts. Sometimes this can be helpful, … Read More Relatively Strange by Marilyn Messik
Last Request by Liz Mistry
I enjoyed reading this book though it’s not really my genre. There are a lot of plot threads which was sometimes confusing but thankfully they all tie up neatly in the end. However I did have my reservations. I found some of the characters to be real stereotypes and not very original. I tried to like Nikki but I still couldn’t by the end. … Read More Last Request by Liz Mistry
Happy Family by James Ellis
I absolutely loved this book. It’s quirky and original with some brilliant characters – all of whom are either eccentric, sad or totally bonkers. I admit that the gaming side was tiresome, at times silly – salamanders?? – and often unnecessary, but other than that it’s one of my favourite books that I have read with the Pigeonhole. Tom, artist and inventor of the … Read More Happy Family by James Ellis
Baby by Annaleese Jochems
I don’t really know where to start with Baby. It won some literary prize and in years to come will no doubt be regarded as a cult modern classic. That’s the only reason I’m giving it 3 stars instead of 2 in case I am missing something. It’s a book about two (one young and one slightly less young), self absorbed and stupid people. … Read More Baby by Annaleese Jochems
+ fiction, literature, review, writing
So Lucky by Dawn O’Porter
When I started this book I thought – this is not for me. My favourite programme when I was in my thirties was Thirtysomething – instant identification with what was going on. Now I’m in my sixties I thought I would not empathise with these twentysomething and thirtysomethings especially in a generation who probably see things very differently. How wrong I was. They are … Read More So Lucky by Dawn O’Porter
The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys
I had no idea this is YA and still don’t really know why – other than the main characters are all late teens/early twenties. I loved this book. In fact I loved it so much that I am struggling to read anything else now. The story is so real (of course much of it is based on fact apart from the individual stories). How … Read More The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys
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