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Russell Evans (179 KP) rated The Songs of Us in Books

Feb 22, 2020

The Songs of Us

Emma Cooper | 2018 | Contemporary

10.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Heartwarming, heartbreaking and beautiful

‘The Songs of Us’ is an amazingly emotional book. Beautifully written and quirky, it made me laugh out loud many times, but in perfect balance, it made me cry as it also dealt very sensitively with some more serious issues. It’s hard to explain without spoilers, but it was heart-warming, heart-breaking, funny and sad all at the same time.
I highly recommend reading this debut novel from Emma Cooper – perhaps have some tissues at the ready!

The Blurb
‘Our life – no matter what happens in between – starts and ends with a heartbeat: our own personal rhythm, our own song’
If Melody hadn't run out of de-icer that day, she would never have slipped and banged her head. She wouldn't be left with a condition that makes her sing when she's nervous. And she definitely wouldn't have belted out the Arctic Monkeys' 'I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor' in assembly at her son's school.
If Dev hadn't taken the kids to the zoo that day, then the accident wouldn't have happened. He wouldn't have left Flynn and Rose without a dad. Or shattered the love of his life's heart.
But if they hadn't seen the missing person report that day, they might never have taken the trip to Cornwall. And, in the last place they expected, discovered what it really means to be 'Us'.

Kudos

Sarah (7800 KP) rated Night Shift in Books

Feb 23, 2020

Night Shift

Stephen King | 1978 | Fiction & Poetry, Horror, Science Fiction/Fantasy

8.4

(22 Ratings)

Book Rating

King at his best

This is one of the first Stephen King books I remember reading, probably when I was far too young at around the age of 10/11, if not earlier. I loved it then, I loved it the handful of times I've picked it up over the past 2 decades and having decided to read it again this week, I still love it.

King is my favourite author, and it's books like this that really highlight why. I've never before known an author who can bring such detail and intrigue into 20 different short stories, even those stories that are only a few pages long. He's a master storyteller and this book is a great example. Every single story is engaging and filled with horror, telling you just enough to leave you satisfied and not feeling like you're missing out and with a well developed plot and characters.

Out of these 20 short stories, I'd only highlight one of these that is maybe weaker than the rest: 'The Woman in the Room' and this isn't bad, just more that it's lacking in the horror that the rest of the stories have and it's a shame because this is the final story. But aside from this every single story is a brilliant read and if you ever want to find a place to start reading Stephen King, without tackling his major epic novels, there's no finer place to start than this.