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Deborah (162 KP) rated White Rose Dies in Books

Dec 21, 2018

Main problem is that as its heart it assumes that the skeletons found in the reign of Charles II are the so-called Princes in the Tower and that they were murdered, neither of which I believe to be true. There isn't a shred of evidence that they were killed by anyone and the skeletons in questions we can't even be sure of the gender of. The author claims they are where Thomas More said they were buried, but in fact they were supposedly found exactly where More said they weren't! Said skeleton were also supposedly tipped on a rubbish heap and then later recovered, so there can be no absolute certainty that the bones interred in Westminster Abbey are the same ones. Of course science could answer so many of our questions now, but these bones have been refused permission for further examination - presumably as the powers that be realise that this will put paid to what they see as a good story on their tourist trail!

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Sara Cox (1845 KP) rated The Psychology of Time Travel in Books

Feb 8, 2020

The Psychology of Time Travel

Kate Mascarenhas | 2018 | LGBTQ+, Mystery, Science Fiction/Fantasy

8.3

(4 Ratings)

Book Rating

When I first started reading this book, what I did not expect was it to be a murder-mystery!
Four women have invented a time machine and this book explores how time travel effects the women and their different personalities. There is a running theme of death within the story - and let's be honest, that's what everyone would be asking themselves about their own future. I really like the thoughtfulness of the language, the slang that time travellers would use, for example "green self" is used to describe yourself from a time period before where you are and "silver self" the opposite. I really enjoyed reading this and found the jumping through time quite easy, I even forgot to read the date on some chapters and still managed to figure out where in the timeline the chapter stood pretty quickly without getting confused. The writing is clear and easy to read. I found the murder-mystery especially interesting! And how motives jump through time as well as the detective who has to solve it without altering the timeline. Highly recommend.

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Sarah (7800 KP) rated Reasons to Stay Alive in Books

Apr 10, 2020

Refreshingly frank

Considering the subject matter of this book, I came away from it feeling a lot better than I thought I would. This is a rather honest and frank insight into depression and anxiety, told around Matt Haig’s personal struggles and I found it absolutely fascinating. It isn’t a pleasant read at times especially when he starts to talk about suicidal and the very dark sides of depression, but it was still interesting to read about something that I’ve never experienced myself and there were a lot of lighter chapters in which Haig depicts his periods of recovery and the things that helped him get better.

This isn’t a long book, but it’s still one that I found hugely informative and interesting and it helps that Haig has such an engaging style of writing. Considering the rather strange times we’re all in at the moment with Coronavirus and lockdowns, I don’t doubt that we’re all feeling a little low right now and whilst this book isn’t an instant fix all pick me up, it might really help.