My Review: I absolutely adored MRC Kasasian's Gower Street series (start with the Mangle Street Murders, so I was delighted to get the chance to read the first Betty Church story.
Betty Church is one of the first female police detectives, and let's be fair if it wasn't near-war time she might not have got a look in. As if those weren't difficult enough odds, Betty only has one arm. It's Girl Power 1930s! Betty is a brilliant protagonist and as per Mr Kasasian's previous series, (set in Victorian London) the research of the time and location is exemplary. It's Team Betty the whole time when she comes up against common-place (of its time) discrimination and prejudice. It's heartbreaking at times how people are treated and disregarded. The book is a riot from start to finish. I hope to see and read more of Betty Church's escapades. 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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11/2/2019 0 Comments Review: Adèle
My Review: I thought this was pitched as a story about an unhappy marriage and it is but it is so much more. I went back to the book blurb and it says it all:
But beneath the veneer of 'having it all', [Adèle] is bored - and consumed by an insatiable need for sex, whatever the cost. Adele is unhappily married and feels trapped by her husband and child, both of whom she loves. She's addicted to strangers and risky one night stands. She alienates her best friend who she uses as a regular alibi. Adèle is a brilliant book, and the eponymous protagonist gives it all with little remorse. There are moments of sex, but rarely sensual. It concentrates of the perfunctory of coitus and Adèle's sex addiction is the chase and the conquest rather than the deed. As Adele herself confesses her only ambition is to be wanted. The betrayal of her family is deep-rooted. The story is fascinating as it flowed. It is intimate and revealing, as if I was being told the all the gory and exposing details from a friend. 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.
My Review: There is nothing more satisfying than finishing a good book. The Six Loves of Billy Binns is a beautiful tale that pivots around the small decisions that prove to have momentous consequences.
It did take me a few chapters to get into the story, which starts in 1900 and journeys the life and loves of the 117-year life of Billy Binns. The story flits between Billy Binn's history and current day in a retirement home where he tries to remember his lost loves. An exceptional debut. Mr Lumsden beautifully weaves Billy Binn's journey with historical and poignant moments of the twentieth century. He brings Shepherd's Bush to life. So much so you can almost smell the fish market. It is heartbreaking, uplifting, and altogether inspiring. 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. 17/10/2018 0 Comments Review: Hippie
My Review: I really enjoyed Paula Coelho's The Alchemist and I jumped at the opportunity of reading Hippie. I shopped short of reading Mr Coelho's Wikipedia page for fear of giving any of his story away.
Hippie starts: The stories that follow come from my personal experiences. I've altered the order, names, and details of the people here, I was forced to condense some scenes, but everything that follows truly happened to me. I've used the third person because this allowed me to give characters unique voices with which to describe their lives. With the above in mind, there are elements that are unbelievable – but as they say – truth is stranger than fiction! It was a quick read, but it still checked in at over 300 pages. In the first chapter I felt I had time-travelled to the seventies and I was reminded of the importance of travel and exploration for the body and mind. What I was expecting; a memoir of hippie-esque travels of free-love and discovery was anything but. It really did contain the bricks and mortar, good and bad experiences (woah, one really bad experience!), which maketh the man. I've not visited South America or Istanbul, nor even Amsterdam. The vivid descriptions of these exotic sounding far-flung lands incited wanderlust. A beautiful, if unexpected, book about love and self-discovery. 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. 4/10/2018 0 Comments Review: How to Stop Time
My Review: This book has been out since July 2017, and it passed me by. And all of a sudden it was everywhere and a classic and I had a deep feeling of missing out. The story cuts to different times and locations around the world, there is a magical feeling of travelling through time with Tom, seeing what he has seen. The isolation of not being able to grow close to someone is strongly felt. Together with the realisation that is near-eternal life can feel like a curse rather than a gift. The writing is beautiful and the story is sublime.
VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Having finished the book, I have discovered that Benedict Cumberbatch has been cast to play Tom – I'm so glad that a film and all the Cumberpeople* will bring more audiences to this deserving book. *Cumberbitches: Cumberbatch expressed objections to this term, referring to the female fans who've adopted the moniker as "Cumberwomen" or "Cumbergirls" instead. He explained: "It's not even politeness. I won't allow [these fans] to be my bitches. I think it sets feminism back so many notches. You are… Cumberpeople." |
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