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31/5/2018 0 Comments

Review: Florida

Florida by Lauren Groff
​
Genre: Literary Fiction/Short Story Collection
​Page Length: 288 Pages
Publication Date: 5 June 2018
Publisher: Cornerstone Digital
Source: NetGalley

Stars:  4 out of 5

LINKS: Amazon (UK)

ABOUT FLORIDA

Storms, snakes, sinkholes, and secrets: In Lauren Groff’s Florida, the hot sun shines, but a wild darkness lurks.

The New York Times-bestselling author of Fates and Furies returns, bringing the reader into a physical world that is at once domestic and wild—a place where the hazards of the natural world lie waiting to pounce, yet the greatest threats and mysteries are still of an emotional, psychological nature. A family retreat can be derailed by a prowling panther, or by a sexual secret. Among those navigating this place are a resourceful pair of abandoned sisters; a lonely boy, grown up; a restless, childless couple, a searching, homeless woman; and an unforgettable, recurring character—a steely and conflicted wife and mother.

The stories in this collection span characters, towns, decades, even centuries, but Florida—its landscape, climate, history, and state of mind—becomes its gravitational center: an energy, a mood, as much as a place of residence. Groff transports the reader, then jolts us alert with a crackle of wit, a wave of sadness, a flash of cruelty, as she writes about loneliness, rage, family, and the passage of time. With shocking accuracy and effect, she pinpoints the moments and decisions and connections behind human pleasure and pain, hope and despair, love and fury—the moments that make us alive. Startling, precise, and affecting, Florida is a magnificent achievement.
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My Review

I like all stories, but there is something that stops me at buying short story anthologies.  Having said that - David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas felt more like a collection of short stories than a novel. And after reading this book, I can't help but wonder where all other other short story compendiums are? If Florida was not by the acclaimed new literature it girl - Lauren Groff - would I have noticed it? Probably not. 

I enjoyed all but one of these stories, and the theme of Florida was ever present without feeling forced.  Ms Groff is an exceptional writer and her words and sentences are beautiful and leave you wanting more. The really lovely thing about this book of short stories is bedtime reading consisted of indulging in one entire story each night, resulting in a sense of completion before turning off the light. Utter bliss. 

I look forward to her next writing in whichever form. 


HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me a complimentary e-copy of Florida in exchange for my honest review.
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24/5/2018 0 Comments

Review: The Last Romeo

The Last Romeo by Justin Myers
​
Genre: Romance Fiction
​Page Length: 304 Pages
Publication Date: 31 May 2018 (Paperback)
Publisher: Piatkus
Source: NetGalley

Stars:  5 out of 5

LINKS: Amazon (UK)


ABOUT THE LAST ROMEO

James is 34 and fed up. His six-year relationship with Adam has imploded, he hates his job making up celebrity gossip, and his best friend Bella has just announced she's moving to Russia.

Adrift and single in loved-up London, James needs to break out of his lonely, drunken comfort zone. Encouraged by Bella, he throws himself headlong into online dating, blogging each encounter anonymously as the mysterious Romeo.

After meeting a succession of hot/weird/gross men, James has fans and the validation he's always craved. But when his wild night with a closeted Olympian goes viral and sends his Twitter-fame through the roof, James realises maybe, in the search for happy-ever-after, some things are better left un-shared. Seriously, wherefore art thou Romeo. . . 

From Justin Myers, author of sensational blog The Guyliner, this razor-sharp and cringingly candid account of one man's quest for The One is as sad, fearless and funny as dating itself.

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My Review:

To quote a line from Chapter 5:
“You’re just what we’ve been waiting for…”

Ain't that the truth!

I love the Guyliner so my expectations for Justin Myers' debut novel were high. And I was not disappointed. This Boy meets Boy(s) story is heart-warming, funny, real, raw, embarrassing (at times), deep felt, and uplifting.  I hope the book gets the audience it deserves. It’s a brilliant, universal take on modern romance and how to date on and off the internet. 

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

PS - Although I feel ever so guilty for leaving my own best friend to deal with his relationship woes whilst I travel halfway around the world.

Many thanks to Little Brown Book and NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of The Last Romeo in exchange for my honest review.
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14/5/2018 0 Comments

Review: Then She Was Gone

Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell
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Genre: Psychological Fiction/Thriller
​Page Length: 422 Pages
Publication Date: 16 November 2017
Publisher: Cornerstone

Stars:  4.5 out of 5

LINKS: Amazon (UK)


​ABOUT THEN SHE WAS GONE

She was fifteen, her mother's golden girl. 
She had her whole life ahead of her. 
And then, in the blink of an eye, Ellie was gone.

Ten years on, Laurel has never given up hope of finding Ellie. And then she meets a charming and charismatic stranger who sweeps her off her feet.
But what really takes her breath away is when she meets his nine-year-old daughter.
Because his daughter is the image of Ellie.
Now all those unanswered questions that have haunted Laurel come flooding back.

What really happened to Ellie?
And who still has secrets to hide?
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My Review: 

Lisa Jewell is a brilliant author, her recent books - I Found You, The Girls, and The Third Wife were all excellent and well worth visiting. 

THEN SHE WAS GONE begins with a clear opening with the grief Laurel is still suffering after her daughter Ellie went missing ten years previously. Laurel's hurt is heartfelt and the revelations and view points of other characters were incredibly woven, and coincidental without breaching plausibility. Twist after painful twist. The novel not only stayed with me during the day, it infiltrated my dreams. 

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. 

Update - a few days on and I still can't stop thinking about this book.

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11/5/2018 0 Comments

Review: The Unbelievable Truth (Series 15)

The Unbelievable Truth by Jon Naismith & Graeme Garden
Narrated by: David Mitchell
Length: 2 hrs and 50 mins
Release date: 11 January 2018 
Publisher: Random Entertainment

Stars: 5 out of 5
 

Link: Audible (UK)

ABOUT THE UNBELIEVABLE TRUTH 
 
David Mitchell hosts the hilarious panel show which turns honest men into lying cheats. In this devious and delightfully funny competition, four comedians have the audacity to lie through their teeth for victory.  They compete against each other with lies, untruths and dishonesty. Tall tales, white lies, blatant bluffs and misdirection rule. Can they smuggle the truth past each other or will they be caught in the act of lying? Listen in, play along and try to separate fact from fiction in the ultimate lying game.
 
The show is devised by Graeme Garden and Jon Naismith, the team behind Radio 4's I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue.
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My Review:

ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS!!!
​
A dream of a comedy show, to the point that fellow commuters on public transport have given me the side-eye when I've repeatedly laughed out loud.

David Mitchell is a brilliant host, and the comedians' essays of lies are works of genius. My favourite episodes of this series were the ones when David Mitchell was joined by four female comedians - Sarah Millican, Victoria Coren Mitchell, Holly Walsh and Katherine Ryan, lying about princesses, diets, sauce, and paper. A special mention goes to Victoria Coren Mitchell - the interactions between husband and wife were entertaining and delightful to behear.  

VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
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7/5/2018 0 Comments

Review: Double Kiss

Double Kiss by Ronnie O'Sullivan
​
Genre: Crime Fiction/Thriller
​Page Length: 353 Pages
Publication Date: 16 November 2017
Publisher: Macmillan

Stars:  4.5 out of 5

LINKS: Amazon (UK)


ABOUT DOUBLE KISS
The race is on. The stakes are high.

Frankie James thought his troubles were behind him. He’s busy running his Soho Club, and his brother’s finally out of prison. But when a postcard arrives from Mallorca, he’s stopped in his tracks . . . Is it from his mother – the woman who’s been missing for eight years

When the goddaughter of London’s fiercest gangster, Tommy Riley, goes missing in Ibiza, Tommy knows there’s one man for the job – Frankie James. Just when Frankie was on the straight and narrow, he’s now faced with an impossible choice. If he agrees to help find Tanya, he’ll be thrown into a world of danger. If he doesn’t, Tommy could destroy him.

For Frankie James, old habits die hard. One thing’s for sure, playing with this gang is no game. But with everything at stake, how can Frankie say no?
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My Review:

Double Kiss is the second book of Ronnie O'Sullivan's Soho Trilogy (read my review for Framed here).

Yes, that Ronnie O'Sullivan. The Snooker World Championship has been on for the last fortnight culminating in tonight's final, and although Ronnie didn't make it to the quarter finals this year it seemed an apt time to read Double Kiss, and what a ride!

The opening chapter starts with: 
'It's coming home... It's coming home... It's coming... Football's coming home...
And with eleven words the book time travels you to the nineties for Euro '96.

The story is a perfect for a middle-trilogy book. The adventure is fast and furious without giving away too many answers, it leaves you wanting to see how the James family saga ends. It's difficult not to think of Ronnie's stance and gait when reading the adventures of Frankie James. He's tall, dark, and handsome with a cocky manner and armed cheeky glint in his eye.

Framed was published in November 2016, Double Kiss in November 2017, let's hope November 2018 brings us the final frame in this Soho set. 
​
Highly recommended. 
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