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Hazel (2934 KP) rated Hope to Die (DI Adam Fawley #6) in Books
Aug 14, 2022
I have just finished the previous book in this series, The Whole Truth, and dived into this the 6th outing for DI Fawley and his team and, let me tell you, what a treat it is.
I have said it before and I will say it again, what an absolute cracker of a book this is and, once again, an excellent addition to this excellent series. Please be reassured that you don't have to have read the others as this works well as a standalone however, I recommend you do ... you won't be disappointed.
DI Fawley and his team are called after the violent death of an unidentified young man shot dead in an isolated farmhouse in an apparent burglary but things just don't add up and so begins a complex, challenging and thrilling investigation which uncovers secrets and lies and so, so much more.
Cara Hunter uses, very cleverly, other media to provide different perspectives to the story including Netflix and voicemail transcripts. This helps the story to flow and provides another element and makes it feel current and relevant. The only thing that I have a small quibble about is that some of this didn't work very well on my Kindle as it's quite small writing and I found myself constantly adjusting the font size but that may have been because I received an advance copy so I felt it was a small price to pay for what is an excellent addition to the way of telling the story.
Highly recommended to lovers of police procedurals with twists and turns that keep you guessing ... roll on number 7!
Many thanks to Penguin and NetGalley for enabling me to read Hope to Die and share my thoughts.
I have said it before and I will say it again, what an absolute cracker of a book this is and, once again, an excellent addition to this excellent series. Please be reassured that you don't have to have read the others as this works well as a standalone however, I recommend you do ... you won't be disappointed.
DI Fawley and his team are called after the violent death of an unidentified young man shot dead in an isolated farmhouse in an apparent burglary but things just don't add up and so begins a complex, challenging and thrilling investigation which uncovers secrets and lies and so, so much more.
Cara Hunter uses, very cleverly, other media to provide different perspectives to the story including Netflix and voicemail transcripts. This helps the story to flow and provides another element and makes it feel current and relevant. The only thing that I have a small quibble about is that some of this didn't work very well on my Kindle as it's quite small writing and I found myself constantly adjusting the font size but that may have been because I received an advance copy so I felt it was a small price to pay for what is an excellent addition to the way of telling the story.
Highly recommended to lovers of police procedurals with twists and turns that keep you guessing ... roll on number 7!
Many thanks to Penguin and NetGalley for enabling me to read Hope to Die and share my thoughts.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Good Samaritans [Audiobook] in Books
May 14, 2023
![Good Samaritans [Audiobook]](/uploads/profile_image/8d3/35178302-459f-4b44-a863-84f356c318d3.jpg?m=1684075253)
Oh my word ... what a book ... absolutely brilliant and the best audiobook I have listened to this year so far and, I think, it will take something remarkable to beat it!
This is a very dark, disturbing and extremely gripping story that will draw you in, shake you around and spit you out the other side and all the while you're thinking, what the heck and why am I enjoying this so much?!?
It's all kinds of wrong but so right and deliciously wicked and addictive.
I'm not even going to go into the story - you'll just have to buy it - but what I will say is that the characters are scarily normal which makes them ultra creepy, the story is riveting and there's some great twists that I didn't see coming and the build up of tension is palpable.
There are graphic descriptions of murder, a lot about suicide, mental health and a number of sex scenes (maybe too many if I'm honest and this is my only negative) so if any of these are triggers for you, I would steer clear.
Would I have enjoyed it as much had I read the physical book? I'm not sure if I'm honest because the narrator made all the difference and was absolutely perfect and brilliant. I fell in love with his voice from the beginning ... it was so contradictory to the content of what he was reading that it made the story all the more creepy and disturbing.
I haven't read or listened to any of Will Carver's work before and after listening to Good Samaritans, I won't make that mistake again and I must thank Bolinda Audio and NetGalley for enabling me to listen to and share my thoughts of Good Samaritans and introducing me to another excellent author.
This is a very dark, disturbing and extremely gripping story that will draw you in, shake you around and spit you out the other side and all the while you're thinking, what the heck and why am I enjoying this so much?!?
It's all kinds of wrong but so right and deliciously wicked and addictive.
I'm not even going to go into the story - you'll just have to buy it - but what I will say is that the characters are scarily normal which makes them ultra creepy, the story is riveting and there's some great twists that I didn't see coming and the build up of tension is palpable.
There are graphic descriptions of murder, a lot about suicide, mental health and a number of sex scenes (maybe too many if I'm honest and this is my only negative) so if any of these are triggers for you, I would steer clear.
Would I have enjoyed it as much had I read the physical book? I'm not sure if I'm honest because the narrator made all the difference and was absolutely perfect and brilliant. I fell in love with his voice from the beginning ... it was so contradictory to the content of what he was reading that it made the story all the more creepy and disturbing.
I haven't read or listened to any of Will Carver's work before and after listening to Good Samaritans, I won't make that mistake again and I must thank Bolinda Audio and NetGalley for enabling me to listen to and share my thoughts of Good Samaritans and introducing me to another excellent author.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Sing, Memory in Books
May 21, 2023
I have read a few books about the Holocaust but Sing, Memory is something quite different.
Focussing on the life of Aleksander Kulisiewicz, a non-Jewish Pole, this tells the story of his life before, during and after World War 2. He was imprisoned in the notorious concentration camp Sachsenhausen and paints a disturbing and vivid picture of the horrors he and other prisoners had to endure from being forced to take part in 'sport', to back-breaking work and endless hours of roll call.
In Sachsenhausen, music and singing were forbidden unless used as a form of punishment however, this didn't stop a secret choir being formed and led by conductor Rosebery d’Arguto, a Polish Jew. Aleksander became friends with Rosebery and as a result of Aleksander's amazing ability to memorise songs, Rosebery asked him to memorise his songs and ensure they are shared with the world after the war.
This became Aleksander's mission - to meticulously memorise songs from all the camp inmates and ensure that he survived so they would not be forgotten. After 6 long years of captivity, Aleksander was free however, his promise to those that did not survive was to become his life's work but also an obsession which, along with the horrendous experiences he endured, affected him and those around him deeply.
Sing, Memory is a detailed story written from meticulous research undertaken by the author with the help of a lot of other people and is a remarkable story of one man's mission to ensure a part of history is told and not forgotten.
Thank you to W.W. Norton & Company and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of Sing, Memory.
Focussing on the life of Aleksander Kulisiewicz, a non-Jewish Pole, this tells the story of his life before, during and after World War 2. He was imprisoned in the notorious concentration camp Sachsenhausen and paints a disturbing and vivid picture of the horrors he and other prisoners had to endure from being forced to take part in 'sport', to back-breaking work and endless hours of roll call.
In Sachsenhausen, music and singing were forbidden unless used as a form of punishment however, this didn't stop a secret choir being formed and led by conductor Rosebery d’Arguto, a Polish Jew. Aleksander became friends with Rosebery and as a result of Aleksander's amazing ability to memorise songs, Rosebery asked him to memorise his songs and ensure they are shared with the world after the war.
This became Aleksander's mission - to meticulously memorise songs from all the camp inmates and ensure that he survived so they would not be forgotten. After 6 long years of captivity, Aleksander was free however, his promise to those that did not survive was to become his life's work but also an obsession which, along with the horrendous experiences he endured, affected him and those around him deeply.
Sing, Memory is a detailed story written from meticulous research undertaken by the author with the help of a lot of other people and is a remarkable story of one man's mission to ensure a part of history is told and not forgotten.
Thank you to W.W. Norton & Company and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of Sing, Memory.
Love Is The Only Solution
Book
Love is the greatest thing in life and the greatest thing in the entire universe. But most people...
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated The Rules of Magic in Books
May 5, 2024
85 of 220
Book
The Rules of Magic ( Practical Magic 2)
By Alice Hoffman
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Find your magic.
For the Owens family, love is a curse that began in 1620, when Maria Owens was charged with witchery for loving the wrong man.
Hundreds of years later, in New York City at the cusp of the sixties, when the whole world is about to change, Susanna Owens knows that her three children are dangerously unique. Difficult Franny, with skin as pale as milk and blood red hair, shy and beautiful Jet, who can read other people’s thoughts, and charismatic Vincent, who began looking for trouble on the day he could walk.
From the start Susanna sets down rules for her children: No walking in the moonlight, no red shoes, no wearing black, no cats, no crows, no candles, no books about magic. And most importantly, never, ever, fall in love. But when her children visit their Aunt Isabelle, in the small Massachusetts town where the Owens family has been blamed for everything that has ever gone wrong, they uncover family secrets and begin to understand the truth of who they are. Yet, the children cannot escape love even if they try, just as they cannot escape the pains of the human heart. The two beautiful sisters will grow up to be the memorable aunts in Practical Magic, while Vincent, their beloved brother, will leave an unexpected legacy.
This was good much better than the previous one I read. I enjoyed learning of the 2 aunts and Vincent I got a little bored in places which is why I went with 3⭐️. Vincent was a colourful character. Definitely a nice set up for Practical Magic.
Book
The Rules of Magic ( Practical Magic 2)
By Alice Hoffman
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Find your magic.
For the Owens family, love is a curse that began in 1620, when Maria Owens was charged with witchery for loving the wrong man.
Hundreds of years later, in New York City at the cusp of the sixties, when the whole world is about to change, Susanna Owens knows that her three children are dangerously unique. Difficult Franny, with skin as pale as milk and blood red hair, shy and beautiful Jet, who can read other people’s thoughts, and charismatic Vincent, who began looking for trouble on the day he could walk.
From the start Susanna sets down rules for her children: No walking in the moonlight, no red shoes, no wearing black, no cats, no crows, no candles, no books about magic. And most importantly, never, ever, fall in love. But when her children visit their Aunt Isabelle, in the small Massachusetts town where the Owens family has been blamed for everything that has ever gone wrong, they uncover family secrets and begin to understand the truth of who they are. Yet, the children cannot escape love even if they try, just as they cannot escape the pains of the human heart. The two beautiful sisters will grow up to be the memorable aunts in Practical Magic, while Vincent, their beloved brother, will leave an unexpected legacy.
This was good much better than the previous one I read. I enjoyed learning of the 2 aunts and Vincent I got a little bored in places which is why I went with 3⭐️. Vincent was a colourful character. Definitely a nice set up for Practical Magic.
Ravens and Ruin (Brodyr Alarch #5)
10.0
Rate It
Book
In a land where gods still whisper through stone and stream, one man’s forbidden gift may be the...
Fantasy Romance Welsh Mythology Brothers Grimm Fairytale Retelling
Debbiereadsbook (1712 KP) rated A Lifetime of Tomorrows (Shattered Men #1) in Books
Apr 6, 2026
darker, but brilliant!
Independent reviewer for BookSirens, I was gifted my copy of this book.
This is the first in a new series frm Ms Adams, and it tackles some difficult topics: addiction, self-harm, internalised homophobia. Mention of suicide, both thoughts and intent. Please heed those warnings if you have any issues.
I loved this! It's not an easy read, by any means, given the subject matter involved, and Harvey and Killian are both struggling with a lot of different things. I loved how Killian seemed to be a catalyst for Harvey to push his boundaries, but hated that Killian (unintentionally) pushed Harvey that little bit too hard.
Harvey's issues span from a single event and it takes time for that event to be made clear. You can see why he thinks the way he does, once you know what triggered it all, but until that point, I couldn't figure Harvey out, at all and I loved being kept on my toes.
Killian's problems are different, and very early on we get why he set off down the road he did. No less traumatic than Harvey's but very different. I loved that Killian knew Harvey was going to be someone important in his life, from very early on.
It's a slow burn, given Harvey being how he is, but I think it was right and proper than it was.
My only niggle, I would have liked to hear from both men, during that 3 year gap. While this is still a 5 star read, I feel that would have just been the icing on the cake!
I loved the epilogue!! Beautiful!!
5 full an shiny stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
This is the first in a new series frm Ms Adams, and it tackles some difficult topics: addiction, self-harm, internalised homophobia. Mention of suicide, both thoughts and intent. Please heed those warnings if you have any issues.
I loved this! It's not an easy read, by any means, given the subject matter involved, and Harvey and Killian are both struggling with a lot of different things. I loved how Killian seemed to be a catalyst for Harvey to push his boundaries, but hated that Killian (unintentionally) pushed Harvey that little bit too hard.
Harvey's issues span from a single event and it takes time for that event to be made clear. You can see why he thinks the way he does, once you know what triggered it all, but until that point, I couldn't figure Harvey out, at all and I loved being kept on my toes.
Killian's problems are different, and very early on we get why he set off down the road he did. No less traumatic than Harvey's but very different. I loved that Killian knew Harvey was going to be someone important in his life, from very early on.
It's a slow burn, given Harvey being how he is, but I think it was right and proper than it was.
My only niggle, I would have liked to hear from both men, during that 3 year gap. While this is still a 5 star read, I feel that would have just been the icing on the cake!
I loved the epilogue!! Beautiful!!
5 full an shiny stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Debbiereadsbook (1712 KP) rated Bullets and Dandelions (Deputy Gemma Stone #0.5) in Books
Jan 30, 2025
struggled to keep up!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
This is billed as a kind of prequel to the Gemma Stone series. I have to say, I only read book 2 of those, but I am confused as to what Tess here has to do with Gemma in the main series.
That said, my review for this book will be almost a carbon copy of my review for book 2, Stilettos and Combat Boots.
Because in that book, Gemma gets into so many scrapes and incidents, almost as many as Tess does here! Well, I mean, her dad is trying to kill her, an enemy of said dad is also trying to kill her and a bunch of Marines are trying to keep her alive, but she doesn't trust them, especially when they won't give her the chocolate she craves! So, she isn't living the easiest of lives, but again, it's WAY too much for me in such a short book.
There is a lot of violence here, with bombs, guns and helicopter crashes, and I couldn't catch my breath between each event, so Lord knows how Tess kept up.
There is no smex here, but . . . .oh! I *think* I just made the connection. One of the Marines is called Alex Stone, and I wonder if he is Gemma's brother? I dunno if it was mentioned, to be honest. Anyway, back to my thoughts. There is very little smex here, but Alex Stone does talk a lot about Tess and what they are gonna get up to, once they are safe (but I'm not sure that would happen any time soon!)
I liked it, it passed a quiet morning at work. But I would have liked to hear from Alex as well as Tess.
3 very good stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
This is billed as a kind of prequel to the Gemma Stone series. I have to say, I only read book 2 of those, but I am confused as to what Tess here has to do with Gemma in the main series.
That said, my review for this book will be almost a carbon copy of my review for book 2, Stilettos and Combat Boots.
Because in that book, Gemma gets into so many scrapes and incidents, almost as many as Tess does here! Well, I mean, her dad is trying to kill her, an enemy of said dad is also trying to kill her and a bunch of Marines are trying to keep her alive, but she doesn't trust them, especially when they won't give her the chocolate she craves! So, she isn't living the easiest of lives, but again, it's WAY too much for me in such a short book.
There is a lot of violence here, with bombs, guns and helicopter crashes, and I couldn't catch my breath between each event, so Lord knows how Tess kept up.
There is no smex here, but . . . .oh! I *think* I just made the connection. One of the Marines is called Alex Stone, and I wonder if he is Gemma's brother? I dunno if it was mentioned, to be honest. Anyway, back to my thoughts. There is very little smex here, but Alex Stone does talk a lot about Tess and what they are gonna get up to, once they are safe (but I'm not sure that would happen any time soon!)
I liked it, it passed a quiet morning at work. But I would have liked to hear from Alex as well as Tess.
3 very good stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Debbiereadsbook (1712 KP) rated Perilous Cuties (Bucket List Buddies #1) in Books
Jul 5, 2025
Hector and Morty are perfect for each other!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
This is the first in a new series by this pair of authors, and it's a too-stinkin-cute, warm-and-fuzzies, fairly-low-angst AND hangover-read all rolled into one and I thoroughly giggled my head off at it!
Morty is a meerkat, a clumsy one at that. Hector is a warthog. Neither thinks he is a catch but both want *someone* for them, to love and cherish. Meeting at a dance class was a stroke of luck and after that? It's just a matter of dealing with Hector's mother, who is, in my opinion, an overbearing witch!
I have to admit, when I read the blurb, I had immediate thoughts of another meerkat and warthog from a certain animated movie, I'm sure you know the one. And then, one of Hector's friends is a lion, and I kept expecting them to all burst into song! They don't and I think I was a bit disappointed by that!
I loved Hector and Morty, together and apart. They really are perfect for each other, and push each other's buttons beautifully! I loved how Hector's dad finally, FINALLY stood up to Hector's mum and that she actually shuts up, and listens to both dad and Hector.
Some drama, with the witch mum, but other than that, a fun read, that filled far less time than I thought it should! Sweet and smexy, cute and cuddly, I really enjoyed it!
One of those fun reads that you can just lose yourself in.
4 very VERY good stars.
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
This is the first in a new series by this pair of authors, and it's a too-stinkin-cute, warm-and-fuzzies, fairly-low-angst AND hangover-read all rolled into one and I thoroughly giggled my head off at it!
Morty is a meerkat, a clumsy one at that. Hector is a warthog. Neither thinks he is a catch but both want *someone* for them, to love and cherish. Meeting at a dance class was a stroke of luck and after that? It's just a matter of dealing with Hector's mother, who is, in my opinion, an overbearing witch!
I have to admit, when I read the blurb, I had immediate thoughts of another meerkat and warthog from a certain animated movie, I'm sure you know the one. And then, one of Hector's friends is a lion, and I kept expecting them to all burst into song! They don't and I think I was a bit disappointed by that!
I loved Hector and Morty, together and apart. They really are perfect for each other, and push each other's buttons beautifully! I loved how Hector's dad finally, FINALLY stood up to Hector's mum and that she actually shuts up, and listens to both dad and Hector.
Some drama, with the witch mum, but other than that, a fun read, that filled far less time than I thought it should! Sweet and smexy, cute and cuddly, I really enjoyed it!
One of those fun reads that you can just lose yourself in.
4 very VERY good stars.
*same worded review will appear elsewhere