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Summerland
6.0
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'A great beach read' - Every Little Thing She Does Book Blog On the night of high school...
I Know You Know
7.0
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From New York Times bestselling author Gilly Macmillan comes this original, chilling and twisty...
Laura Doe (1350 KP) rated All She Wants in Books
Sep 5, 2021
Characters (1 more)
Humour
This book had me giggling from the very start. The real type of giggles where people give you funny looks when you’re reading a book, not the giggles that you can suppress.
We follow Jodie McGee, a girl from Liverpool, who’s dreams seem to have come true. She’s an actress on the soap that she’s always dreamed of starring in and seems to have the perfect life, or does she?
We go back in time with Jodie to where her life started to go wrong, and comically so. We see that she doesn’t have the perfect life at all, and it makes you love her character all the more. She’s incredibly sarcastic and funny, which I absolutely loved. While some of the things in her life seem incredibly outlandish, they are also quite believable.
As someone from around the Liverpool area, the references to Liverpool were much appreciated in this book and I could imagine all of the places mentioned in the book and appreciated the references that may not have been appreciated by those not familiar with Liverpool or the scouse sense of humour.
I’ve loved Jonathan Harvey’s writing and will be on the lookout for more of his books. I would love a follow up to Jodie’s life but he ended it in such a way that it’s not needed and you can imagine where her life will go from there.
We follow Jodie McGee, a girl from Liverpool, who’s dreams seem to have come true. She’s an actress on the soap that she’s always dreamed of starring in and seems to have the perfect life, or does she?
We go back in time with Jodie to where her life started to go wrong, and comically so. We see that she doesn’t have the perfect life at all, and it makes you love her character all the more. She’s incredibly sarcastic and funny, which I absolutely loved. While some of the things in her life seem incredibly outlandish, they are also quite believable.
As someone from around the Liverpool area, the references to Liverpool were much appreciated in this book and I could imagine all of the places mentioned in the book and appreciated the references that may not have been appreciated by those not familiar with Liverpool or the scouse sense of humour.
I’ve loved Jonathan Harvey’s writing and will be on the lookout for more of his books. I would love a follow up to Jodie’s life but he ended it in such a way that it’s not needed and you can imagine where her life will go from there.
ClareR (6054 KP) rated Wandering Souls in Books
Mar 25, 2023
Since reading Wandering Souls on The Pigeonhole, it has made it on to the Women’s Prize long list. And well-deserved it is too.
This is the story of a family who make it by boat to Hong Kong from Vietnam. At least Anh and her two brothers do. Their parents and younger siblings come after them and drown.
This is Anh’s story, and how she copes on their journey from Vietnam to Hong Kong, and then on to London where they settle permanently. It’s a story of loss, life-long trauma and the struggle to find security and happiness. It brought home the continuing issues of refugees - particularly those who take the dangerous route of the sea. It always makes me think of these lines from Warsan Shire’s “Home”:
“You have to understand that no one puts children in a boat
Unless the water is safer than the land”
Anh and her family want a better life than that of poverty, war and political oppression.
This is a dark story and the experiences have such a huge effect on every aspect of Anh and her brothers lives, and you can still see this in the interactions that Anh has with her own children.
It’s a wonderful book, and well worth reading. I’ve learnt so much about the Vietnamese people who resettled in the UK and their journeys here.
I wouldn’t be at all disappointed to see this make the short list.
This is the story of a family who make it by boat to Hong Kong from Vietnam. At least Anh and her two brothers do. Their parents and younger siblings come after them and drown.
This is Anh’s story, and how she copes on their journey from Vietnam to Hong Kong, and then on to London where they settle permanently. It’s a story of loss, life-long trauma and the struggle to find security and happiness. It brought home the continuing issues of refugees - particularly those who take the dangerous route of the sea. It always makes me think of these lines from Warsan Shire’s “Home”:
“You have to understand that no one puts children in a boat
Unless the water is safer than the land”
Anh and her family want a better life than that of poverty, war and political oppression.
This is a dark story and the experiences have such a huge effect on every aspect of Anh and her brothers lives, and you can still see this in the interactions that Anh has with her own children.
It’s a wonderful book, and well worth reading. I’ve learnt so much about the Vietnamese people who resettled in the UK and their journeys here.
I wouldn’t be at all disappointed to see this make the short list.
Cold Blows the Wind
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Hobart Town 1878 – a vibrant town drawing people from every corner of the earth where, with...
Historical Fiction Biographical Fiction Women's Fiction Australian Fiction
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2464 KP) rated A Plus One for Murder in Books
Dec 10, 2021
A Friend in Death
Emma Westlake has been talked into trying a new business as a paid companion for those who might need one. One of her first clients is Brian Hill, a local writer and conspiracy theorist. He wants Emma to be his cheering section at a local open mike night. When he dies not too long after starting his poem, Emma realizes he comments about there being people in the audience who wanted to kill him weren’t jokes. Feeling a sense of loyalty to Brian, Emma tries to figure out what happened to him. Can she do it?
As the first in a new series, this book has to balance setting up the premise of the series with giving us a good mystery. It does a good job of doing just that, and I was engaged the entire time. Naturally, the plot gets stronger the further we go into the book until we reach the logical climax. I did find one of the characters a little overbearing, but that was my only complaint. On the whole, I am already falling in love with the characters in the book, and it made me reflect on the friendships I have in my life. I also enjoyed the humor throughout the book. I laughed several times along the way. A new series from Laura Bradford is always reasons to rejoice, and this book proves why once again.
As the first in a new series, this book has to balance setting up the premise of the series with giving us a good mystery. It does a good job of doing just that, and I was engaged the entire time. Naturally, the plot gets stronger the further we go into the book until we reach the logical climax. I did find one of the characters a little overbearing, but that was my only complaint. On the whole, I am already falling in love with the characters in the book, and it made me reflect on the friendships I have in my life. I also enjoyed the humor throughout the book. I laughed several times along the way. A new series from Laura Bradford is always reasons to rejoice, and this book proves why once again.
ClareR (6054 KP) rated The Ghost Theatre in Books
Sep 10, 2023
The Ghost Theatre was one of those books that had me heading straight to Google. I was looking up “Aviscultan religion”. It doesn’t actually exist, but it sounds like it should.
Shay is an Aviscultan, but she is distracted from her home and way of life when she meets Nonesuch and his fellow young thespians at the Blackfriars theatre. She falls in love with him, neglects her failing, blind father, and eventually becomes something of a celebrity when she uses her ability to predict the future for Queen Elizabeth I. Soon, all wealthy Londoners want to see her, and the owner of Blackfriars theatre realises he can make some serious money out of Shay.
This is an exciting story with lots of running-across-rooftops-action, but I thought the real magic was in the descriptions of the narrow London streets, the smells, sights, the people and the animals. The descriptions of the birds, especially that of Devana, Shays falcon friend, truly expressed the wonder and reverence that Shay and her fellow Aviscultans had for all birds - and frankly, I can’t see what would be bad about a belief such as this!
The fact that a rebellion could be stoked by a guerrilla theatre group - a Ghost Theatre - showed the power of art, theatre and stories.
This is a mesmerising book; I was completely immersed in the birds, the magic and the dark London streets. And I didn’t want it to end.
Highly recommended.
Shay is an Aviscultan, but she is distracted from her home and way of life when she meets Nonesuch and his fellow young thespians at the Blackfriars theatre. She falls in love with him, neglects her failing, blind father, and eventually becomes something of a celebrity when she uses her ability to predict the future for Queen Elizabeth I. Soon, all wealthy Londoners want to see her, and the owner of Blackfriars theatre realises he can make some serious money out of Shay.
This is an exciting story with lots of running-across-rooftops-action, but I thought the real magic was in the descriptions of the narrow London streets, the smells, sights, the people and the animals. The descriptions of the birds, especially that of Devana, Shays falcon friend, truly expressed the wonder and reverence that Shay and her fellow Aviscultans had for all birds - and frankly, I can’t see what would be bad about a belief such as this!
The fact that a rebellion could be stoked by a guerrilla theatre group - a Ghost Theatre - showed the power of art, theatre and stories.
This is a mesmerising book; I was completely immersed in the birds, the magic and the dark London streets. And I didn’t want it to end.
Highly recommended.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2464 KP) rated Candy Canes of Christmas Past in Books
Dec 9, 2023
Murder in Lucy’s Past
This story takes us back in time to the first Christmas that Lucy Stone spent in Tinker’s Cove, Maine. Lucy is trying to deal with her husband's project, fixing up their home. So when town librarian Miss Tilly is nice to Lucy, Lucy looks for some way to repay her new friend. And that's how she begins trying to uncover the circumstances surrounding Miss Tilly's mother's death almost 50 years before. Was Mrs. Tilly murdered? If so, how can Lucy find out what happened after all these years.
This story is as much about Lucy's struggles to fit into a new town and live in an old house as it is about the mystery. Lucy and her husband are really struggling, which gives most of this story a darker tone for a cozy. It is also a weak mystery. The solution was very coincidental and almost an after thought compared to the resolution to the other story line. But I liked the characters. They are vivid and seem like people I would love to get to know better. While it didn’t turn out that way, this story lets me see the appeal for those who do like them.
NOTE: This story was originally part of the anthology Candy Cane Murder, so if you’ve read that book, there is no need to pick up this story a second time.
This story is as much about Lucy's struggles to fit into a new town and live in an old house as it is about the mystery. Lucy and her husband are really struggling, which gives most of this story a darker tone for a cozy. It is also a weak mystery. The solution was very coincidental and almost an after thought compared to the resolution to the other story line. But I liked the characters. They are vivid and seem like people I would love to get to know better. While it didn’t turn out that way, this story lets me see the appeal for those who do like them.
NOTE: This story was originally part of the anthology Candy Cane Murder, so if you’ve read that book, there is no need to pick up this story a second time.
The Honour of Rome (Cato and Macro #20)
7.0
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A stunning novel of courage, camaraderie and deadly enemies from the Sunday Times bestselling author...