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28/8/2018 0 Comments

Review: Something in the Water

Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Page Length: 352 Pages
Publication Date: 26 July 2018 (Hardcover)
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Source: ARC via NetGalley


Stars:  4 out of 5

Link: AMAZON (UK)

ABOUT SOMETHING IN THE WATER:

Erin is a documentary filmmaker on the brink of a professional breakthrough; Mark a handsome investment banker with a bright future. They seem to have it all, until Mark loses his job and cracks start to appear in their perfect life.
 
But they’re determined to make it work. They book their dream honeymoon and trust that things will work out – after all, they have each other.
 
On the tropical island of Bora Bora Mark takes Erin scuba diving. Mark is with her – she knows he’ll keep her safe. Everything will be fine. Until they find something in the water.

Erin and Mark decide to keep their discovery a secret -- after all, if no one else knows, who would be hurt? Their decision will trigger a devastating chain of events...  which will endanger everything they hold dear.

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My Review:

2018 IS THE YEAR FOR DEBUT NOVELISTS!
 
The story starts slap bang in the middle of drama and then you go back to the beginning where there is a very slow build. By the time that Erin and Mark reach their honeymoon it feels like they are family and you know everything you need to know, you are left in a complete (false) sense of security.
 
Erin and Mark find something in the water, which may or may not be illegal, and may or may not be illegal for them to keep. The conundrum is – what should they do? Its very careful and clever plotting keeps you in suspense until the very end.
 
A stupendous debut!
 
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
 
Thank you so much the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a complimentary electronic copy in return for an honest review. 
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19/8/2018 0 Comments

Review: The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager

The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sagar
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Page Length: 368 Pages
Publication Date: 12 July 2018
Publisher: Ebury Digital
Source: ARC via NetGalley
 
Stars:  4.5 out of 5

Link: AMAZON (UK)
 
ABOUT THE LAST TIME I LIED:
 
Have you ever played two truths and a lie?
 
It was Emma's first summer away from home. She made friends. She played games. And she learned how to lie.
 
Then three of her new friends went into the woods and never returned. .
 
Now, years later, Emma has been asked to go back to the newly re-opened Camp Nightingale. She thinks she’s laying old ghosts to rest but really she’s returning to the scene of a crime.
 
Because Emma’s innocence might be the biggest lie of all. . .
 
A gripping new thriller that you won't be able to put down with a plot that will keep you guessing. If you enjoyed A. J. Finn's The Woman in the Window, you'll love Last Time I Lied

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My Review:

Emma is a delicate soul who spends her adult years trying to make sense of a tragedy that happened when she was thirteen years old. When she gets the opportunity to get closure on what happened at Camp Nightingale she takes it. At this point I'm shouting at her to not go back. Of course things go wrong immediately, and Emma has to confront the repercussions of the lies she told.
 
The tension and the plot are riveting and the story is beautifully told.
There are so many lies and assumptions, it's difficult to guess who did 'it' then and now. 
 
It was a complete surprise at the end as the story unfolded.
 
VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
 
Thank you so much the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a complimentary electronic copy in return for an honest review. 
 
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12/8/2018 0 Comments

Review (NSFW): Jonathan Pie: Off the Record

 Jonathan Pie: Off the Record
by Jonathan Pie, Tom Walker, and Arthur Doyle

Genre: Political Satire  
Page Length: 158 Pages  
Publication Date: 5 October 2017
Publisher: Amazon

Stars:  5 out of 5

Link: AMAZON (UK)

ABOUT JONATHAN PIE: OFF THE RECORD
 
Want to know more about history and politics? Then you should probably go find a proper book. Fancy a laugh at some smutty jokes? Then go read Viz. But if you fancy a combination of the two, this is the book for you.
 
In Off The Record, bitter and twisted leftie news reporter Jonathan Pie picks ten of the world's worst wankers and tears them apart. Here you'll find the answers to some difficult questions. Was Blair just a Tory in disguise? Did Cameron really have sexual relations with that pig? Just how the fuck did we end up with President Donald Trump?
 
It's the ultimate guide to political arseholery. With extra swearing.

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My Review:

Before I start, if you're not aware of Jonathan Pie – he's a very shouty, sweary, ranty man:
 
And the book is very much in the same vein of shouty, sweary, ranty, and downright pissed off view from the aforementioned Mr Pie. If the YouTube clip causes a reaction similar to nails being scrapped down a blackboard – then this probably isn't for you.  However, if you want political revue, past and present, served in a bowl of vitriol with a side comedic ire – then I can wholeheartedly recommend Jonathon Pie: Off the Record.
 
Mr Pie pulls no punches in this short and fast read. Tackled in ten chapters, perfect to dip in and out of, Mr Pie's contemptuous case studies include: Henry VIII, Adolf Hitler, David Cameron, Margaret Thatcher, Donald Trump, Rupert Murdoch (real name: Keith), Tony Blair, and Teresa May.
 
Very funny - if you can handle, and even enjoy - the shouty and sweary delivery.
 
VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

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3/8/2018 0 Comments

Review: The Plus One

The Plus One by Sophia Money-Coutts
 
Genre: Contemporary Fiction/Romantic Comedy
Page Length: 384 Pages
Publication Date: 9 August 2018
Publisher: HQ
 
Stars:  4 out of 5
 

Link: AMAZON (UK)
 
ABOUT THE PLUS ONE
 
The Plus One [n] informal a person who accompanies an invited person to a wedding or a reminder of being single, alone and absolutely plus none
 
Polly’s not looking for ‘the one’, just the plus one…
 
Polly Spencer is fine. She’s single, turning thirty and only managed to have sex twice last year (both times with a Swedish banker called Fred), but seriously, she’s fine. Even if she’s still stuck at Posh! magazine writing about royal babies and the chances of finding a plus one to her best friend’s summer wedding are looking worryingly slim.
 
But it’s a New Year, a new leaf and all that. Polly’s determined that over the next 365 days she’ll remember to shave her legs, drink less wine and generally get her s**t together. Her latest piece is on the infamous Jasper, Marquess of Milton, undoubtedly neither a plus one nor ‘the one’. She’s heard the stories, there’s no way she’ll succumb to his charms…
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My Review:

I started to read this at the beginning of a 200km journey from Kampala to Hoima squished between two locals on a matatu taxibus. Unfortunately early on a sentence caught the eye of my new travel neighbour: 'Can men just Uber at – I looked at my phone – 2.54a.m. after a blow job, having not returned the favour and think it's acceptable?'  Although I couldn't be sure my fellow passenger had read the sentence, it was enough to make my cheeks blush and read something less risqué for the rest of the journey.
 
This is the third book I've read this summer concerning weddings, and in particular the impromptu engagements of best friends, so there was a presumptive here-we-go-again… but I was very pleasantly surprised.
 
Jasper "Jaz" Marquess of Milton, is a cad, but when he turns on the charm and gives more than just a hint of vulnerability one can't help falling for the charismatic rogue. What possibly could go wrong? Everything it seems!
 
The will-they won't-they romance merry-go-round was kept grounded by the news that Polly's mother has breast cancer. Polly tries to juggle a new love life, her mother's health, her maid of honour duties, and her insufferable place of work.
 
The writing was fresh and the story was absorbing. The dialogue was contemporary and the descriptive narrative was engaging –when Polly goes to interview Jasper in the country, I felt like a fly-on-the-wall at the family dinner. The modern dating was realistic as were the sex scenes to the point of awkward and yet not a truism in sight.
 
I happily say I Do to The Plus One.
 
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
 
Thank you so much the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a complimentary electronic copy in return for an honest review.

 
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