Monday, 7 December 2015
Friday, 20 November 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - Did You Ever Have A Family
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
This week my book beginning is from a novel I've only just this minute started reading, Did You Ever Have A Family by Bill Clegg.
He wakes to the sound of sirens. Many, loud, and very near. Then horns; short, angry grunts like the buzzers signaling time-out in the basketball games he watches but does not play in at school.
Book Description
This book of dark
secrets opens with a blaze. On the morning of her daughter’s wedding,
June Reid’s house goes up in flames, destroying her entire family – her
present, her past and her future. Fleeing from the carnage, stricken and
alone, June finds herself in a motel room by the ocean, hundreds of
miles from her Connecticut home, held captive by memories and the
mistakes she has made with her only child, Lolly, and her partner, Luke.
In
the turbulence of grief and gossip left in June’s wake we slowly make
sense of the unimaginable. The novel is a gathering of voices, and each
testimony has a new revelation about what led to the catastrophe –
Luke’s alienated mother Lydia, the watchful motel owners, their cleaner
Cissy, the teenage pothead who lives nearby – everyone touched by the
tragedy finds themselves caught in the undertow, as their secret
histories finally come to light.
Lit by the clarity of understanding that true sadness brings, Did You Ever Have a Family is an elegant, unforgettable story that reveals humanity at its worst and best, through loss and love, fracture and forgiveness. At the book’s heart is the idea of family – the ones we are born with and the ones we create – and the desire, in the face of everything, to go on living.
Monday, 16 November 2015
Mailbox Monday
Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It was created by Marcia @ A Girl and Her Books but now has a permanent home here
I received two review books this week:
The One in a Million Boy by Monica Wood
Miss Ona Vitkus has - aside from three months in the summer of 1914 - lived unobtrusively, her secrets fiercely protected.The boy, with his passion for world records, changes all that. He is eleven. She is one hundred and four years, one hundred and thirty three days old (they are counting). And he makes her feel like she might be really special after all. Better late than never...
Only it's been two weeks now since he last visited, and she's starting to think he's not so different from all the rest.
Then the boy's father comes, for some reason determined to finish his son's good deed. And Ona must show this new stranger that not only are there odd jobs to be done, but a life's ambition to complete . .
Published by Headline on 5th April 2016
The Ballroom by Anna Hope
Where love is your only escape .... 1911: Inside an asylum at the edge of the Yorkshire moors,
where men and women are kept apart
by high walls and barred windows,
there is a ballroom vast and beautiful.
For one bright evening every week
they come together
and dance.
When John and Ella meet
It is a dance that will change two lives forever.
Published by Doubleday and Transworld on 11th February 2016
I loved Anna Hope's previous novel Wake and you can read my review here
Wednesday, 11 November 2015
Dead Ringers by Christopher Golden
Tess Devlin sees hers ex husband Nick out on the street but is left unimpressed when he tries to ignore her and insists he's not who she thinks he is. Tess phones him to make her feelings known but he tells her he's away with his girlfriend. The man she saw looked and sounded exactly like the father of her child so when her friend Lili says she's heard there's a woman who could be her twin she realises something is very wrong.
Frank Lindbergh lives alone and hears an intruder in his house late one night, he's scared but nothing prepares him for what he sees, someone who is his double.
I loved the idea of the doppelgangers and was hooked at the start. The characters are likable and believable which is something I like to have in a horror novel. However when the link from the characters past and the reason behind the strange happenings is revealed I was left a little confused and subsequently I started to lose interest. Perhaps I wasn't concentrating enough or this was a different story to the one I was expecting but for me Dead Ringers then became a good rather than great story. If you enjoy horror it's worth a read but I'm a little disappointed after the author's previous novel Snowblind.
Thanks to St. Martin's Press & Netgalley for a copy of this in return of an honest review.
Rating: 3 out of 5
Monday, 26 October 2015
Mailbox Monday
Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It was created by Marcia @ A Girl and Her Books but now has a permanent home here
This week I received a copy of A Snow Garden and Other Stories from Transworld Publishers. It's a short story collection by Rachel Joyce and looks like a great read for the winter and the lead up to Christmas.
Seven stories to span the Christmas holidays:
A Faraway Smell of Lemon:
The School Term has ended. It is almost Christmas but Binny, out
last-minute shopping couldn't feel less like wishing glad tidings to all
men. Ducking out of the rain she finds herself in the sort of shop she
would never normally visit.
The Marriage Manual:
Christmas Eve. Two parents endeavour to construct their son’s Christmas
present from a DIY kit and in the process find themselves
deconstructing their marriage.
Christmas at the Airport: A glitch in the system, travellers stranded and all sorts of lives colliding in the face of a sudden birth...
The Boxing Day Ball: Maureen has never been out with the local girls before. Who knew that a disco in the Village Hall could be life-changing?
A Snow Garden:
Two little boys, dumped with their divorced father for his share of the
Christmas holidays and none of them with a clue how to enjoy it.
I'll Be Home for Christmas The most famous boy in the world comes home hoping to escape the madness with a normal family Christmas.
Trees:
As if Christmas wasn't wearing enough, now his elderly parent is asking
for a hole in the ground … Father and son break old habits and plant a
tree to mark the start of the new year.
Six stories as funny, joyous, poignant and memorable as Christmas should be.
Publication date: 5th November 2015
Friday, 9 October 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - The Watchers
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is
for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book
you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the
sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the
opener inspires. Please remember to include the title
of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on
the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
This week my book beginning is The Watchers by Neil Spring. It's the follow up to his first novel The Ghost Hunters and you can read my review of that here
Perhaps it was the prospect of meeting the new prime minister that accounted for his ashen expression; perhaps it was the weight of history which lay behind that famous black door. Whatever it was, the young man looked fearful. I might even go so far as to say tortured.
Book Description:
1977
The Havens, Wales
My Name is Robert Wilding.
Since childhood I have been running from my parents' deaths. From my grandfather Randall Llewellyn Pritchard - his fanatical omens about fires in the sky. From what happened at Broad Haven.
But now my memories have returned to haunt me.
In the ministry of Defence Room 800 I met the man who keeps the nation's secrets - who wants me to investigate the sightings at Broad Haven: the ghostly figures, the lights from another world.
In know its is my duty to expose the truth behind 'the happenings', even if it will be dangerous. Even though I may not live to tell the tale.
I know it is my duty, but still I am afraid. I know the Watchers will be waiting for me there.
The Havens, Wales
My Name is Robert Wilding.
Since childhood I have been running from my parents' deaths. From my grandfather Randall Llewellyn Pritchard - his fanatical omens about fires in the sky. From what happened at Broad Haven.
But now my memories have returned to haunt me.
In the ministry of Defence Room 800 I met the man who keeps the nation's secrets - who wants me to investigate the sightings at Broad Haven: the ghostly figures, the lights from another world.
In know its is my duty to expose the truth behind 'the happenings', even if it will be dangerous. Even though I may not live to tell the tale.
I know it is my duty, but still I am afraid. I know the Watchers will be waiting for me there.
Friday, 2 October 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - The Radleys
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is
for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book
you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the
sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the
opener inspires. Please remember to include the title
of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on
the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
My book beginning is The Radleys by Matt Haig. It was in the Kindle daily deal offer yesterday and I started reading it this morning.
It is a quiet place, especially at night.
Too quiet, you'd be entitled to think, for any kind of monster to live among its pretty, tree-shaded lanes.
Book Description:
Just about everyone
knows a family like the Radleys. Many of us grew up next door to one.
They are a modern family, averagely content, averagely dysfunctional,
living in a staid and quiet suburban English town. Peter is an
overworked doctor whose wife, Helen, has become increasingly remote and
uncommunicative. Rowan, their teenage son, is being bullied at school,
and their anemic daughter, Clara, has recently become a vegan. They are
typical, that is, save for one devastating exception: Peter and Helen
are vampires and have--for seventeen years--been abstaining by choice
from a life of chasing blood in the hope that their children could live
normal lives. One night, Clara finds herself driven to commit a
shocking--and disturbingly satisfying--act of violence, and her parents
are forced to explain their history of shadows and lies. A police
investigation is launched that uncovers a richness of vampire history
heretofore unknown to the general public. And when the malevolent and
alluring Uncle Will, a practicing vampire, arrives to throw the police
off Clara's trail, he winds up throwing the whole house into temptation
and turmoil and unleashing a host of dark secrets that threaten the
Radleys' marriage.
Friday, 18 September 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - A Slanting of the Sun
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is
for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book
you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the
sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the
opener inspires. Please remember to include the title
of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on
the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
My book beginning this week is from A Slanting of the Sun which is a short story collection by Donal Ryan. I loved his first two novels so was excited to get this from Netgalley. It is published on 24th September by Doubleday & Transworld Digital. I think it's impossible to read these first few sentences and not want to continue.
She cries sometimes, without noise. I know not to talk, only to leave my hand under hers on the gearstick. Where were you all the time before the court case, she asked me once, early on.
Book Description:
An old man looks into
the fearful eyes of a burglar left to guard him while his brother is
beaten; an Irish priest in a war-torn Syrian town teaches its young men
the art of hurling; the driver of a car which crashed, killing a teenage
girl, forges a connection with the girl’s mother; a squad of broken
friends assemble to take revenge on a rapist; a young man sets off on
his morning run, reflecting on the ruins of his relationship, but all is
not as it seems.
Donal Ryan’s short stories pick up where his acclaimed novels The Spinning Heart and The Thing About December left
off, dealing with the human cost of loneliness, isolation and
displacement. Sometimes this is present in the ordinary, the mundane;
sometimes it is triggered by a fateful encounter or a tragic decision.
At the heart of these stories, crucially, is how people are drawn to
each other and cling on to love, often in desperate circumstances.
In haunting and often startling prose, Donal Ryan has captured the brutal beauty of the human heart in all its hopes and failings.
In haunting and often startling prose, Donal Ryan has captured the brutal beauty of the human heart in all its hopes and failings.
Wednesday, 16 September 2015
Waiting on Wednesday - The Bazaar of Bad Dreams
Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme, hosted by Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases we can't wait to be published.
The Bazaar of Bad Dreams is the latest short story collection from Stephen King and is published on 3rd November.
A thrilling collection of
twenty stories - some brand new, some published in magazines, all
entirely brilliant and assembled in one book for the first time - with a
wonderful bonus: in addition to his introduction to the whole
collection, King gives readers a fascinating introduction to each story
with autobiographical comments on their origins and motivation...
In The Bazaar of Bad Dreams
there is a curio for every reader - a man who keeps reliving the same
life, repeating the same mistakes over and over again, a columnist who
kills people by writing their obituaries, a poignant tale about the end
of the human race and a firework competition between neighbours which
reaches an explosive climax. There are also intriguing connections
between the stories; themes of morality, guilt, the afterlife and what
we would do differently if we could see into the future or correct the
mistakes of the past.
Monday, 14 September 2015
Mailbox Monday
Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It was created by Marcia @ A Girl and Her Books but now has a permanent home here
This week I received an ARC of Fiona Barton's debut novel, The Widow. It's a psychological thriller due to be published by Bantam Press on 14th January 2016. There's a lot of anticipation and hype surrounding this book already and I have to say since I started reading it yesterday I can see why.
We've all seen him: the man - the monster - staring from the front page of every newspaper, accused of a terrible crime.
But what about her: the woman who grips his arm on the courtroom stairs – the wife who stands by him?
Jean Taylor’s life was blissfully ordinary. Nice house, nice husband. Glen was all she’d ever wanted: her Prince Charming.
Until
he became that man accused, that monster on the front page. Jean was
married to a man everyone thought capable of unimaginable evil.
But now Glen is dead and she’s alone for the first time, free to tell her story on her own terms.
Jean Taylor is going to tell us what she knows.
Friday, 11 September 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - Eventide
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
This week my book beginning is Eventide by Kent Haruf, the second novel in his Plainsong trilogy.
They came up from the horse barn in the slanted light of early morning. The McPheron brothers, Harold and Raymond. Old men approaching an old house at the end of summer.
Book Description:
Harold and Raymond McPheron are finally waving goodbye to their beloved
Victoria, a young mother with a first chance at an education. Betty and
Luther Wallace are struggling to keep their heads above water and their
children out of care, and in the same town young friends Dena and DJ
find solace away from their own troubled homes. As these stories unfold
and entwine, tragedy strikes the McPheron household and life is thrown
irrevocably off course.
Wednesday, 9 September 2015
Waiting on Wednesday - A Slanting of the Sun
Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme, hosted by Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases we can't wait to be published.
I'm looking forward to A Slanting of the Sun which is a short story collection by Donal Ryan. I haven't got long to wait as it's published on the 24th September by Doubleday Ireland. I loved his first two novels and you can read my reviews of them by clicking on the novel name below:
The Spinning Heart
The Thing About December
An old man looks into
the fearful eyes of a burglar left to guard him while his brother is
beaten; an Irish priest in a war-torn Syrian town teaches its young men
the art of hurling; the driver of a car which crashed, killing a teenage
girl, forges a connection with the girl’s mother; a squad of broken
friends assemble to take revenge on a rapist; a young man sets off on
his morning run, reflecting on the ruins of his relationship, but all is
not as it seems.
Donal Ryan’s short stories pick up where his acclaimed novels The Spinning Heart and The Thing About December left
off, dealing with the human cost of loneliness, isolation and
displacement. Sometimes this is present in the ordinary, the mundane;
sometimes it is triggered by a fateful encounter or a tragic decision.
At the heart of these stories, crucially, is how people are drawn to
each other and cling on to love, often in desperate circumstances.
In
haunting and often startling prose, Donal Ryan has captured the brutal
beauty of the human heart in all its hopes and failings.
Friday, 21 August 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - The Boy Between by Susan Stairs
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is
for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book
you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the
sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the
opener inspires. Please remember to include the title
of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on
the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
My book beginning this week is from The Boy Between by Susan Stairs. This is the author's second novel and you can read my review of her first, The Story of Before, here
Mags unlocks the wardrobe. With cold fingers she parts the thick wall of hanging clothes, sliding a hand through to the darkened depths behind. She leans in as she feels around, fabrics brushing against her cheek, their movement releasing the dusty, perfumed scent of the past. Her breath catches in her throat when she finds it, its edges rigid lines under the flimsy folds of an old, threadbare shawl.
Book Description:
Mags keeps
everything safe in the box. Letters. Postcards. Photographs. Each
memento plays a role in the secret story that's always in her thoughts. A
story that can't remain hidden forever.
When Orla is handed an
envelope by her father, she is perplexed by what she finds - a
photograph of her parents, taken the summer she was born. Her heavily
expectant mother, unusually, is smiling. Between her parents stands a
teenage boy, her mother's arm lovingly around him.
Orla later asks
her father about the boy's identity, but he refuses to be drawn. Her
mother's mood is low again and he doesn't want her upset. So begins the
daughter's investigation, back to the summer of 1983, and the story of a
young English boy on holidays in rural Ireland. As the circle closes on
a web of tragedy and deceit, the truth that emerges will impact on all
their lives.
Friday, 24 July 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - Plainsong by Kent Haruf
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is
for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book
you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the
sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the
opener inspires. Please remember to include the title
of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on
the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
This week mine is Plainsong by Kent Haruf. I'm thoroughly enjoying it and taking my time reading it. It won't be too long before I read the others in the series either.
Here was this man Tom Guthrie in Holt standing at the back window in the kitchen of his house smoking cigarettes and looking out over the back lot where the sun was just coming up. When the sun reached the top of the windmill, for a while he watched what it was doing, that increased reddening of sunrise along the steel blades and the tail vane above the wooden platform.
Book Description:
Set in Colorado in the 1980s, Plainsong tells the story of various Holt residents. There's teenager Victoria Roubideaux, pregnant and homeless, taken in by two ageing, shy and somewhat taciturn cattle-farming brothers -- and the changes wrought in all their lives as a result. Then there's high-school teacher and single-father, Tom Gutherie, who has two sons, Ike and Bobby, and a second chance at romance in the shape of colleague Maggie Jones. Filled with unforgettable characters, Plainsong is both convincing and compelling; a glorious, eloquent waltz of a novel. 'Like all the best novels, Plainsong takes you into a world that is at once real and vividly imagined. Here is a poetry of landscape, a tender and passionate evocation of ordinary people in majestic country .
Friday, 17 July 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - How I Lost You by Jenny Blackhurst
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
My book beginning is from How I Lost You by Jenny Blackhurst.
It's still there.
No matter how many times I leave the room and try to go about my normal life, every time I go into the kitchen there it is.
Book Description:
I have no memory of what happened but I was told I killed my son. And you believe what your loved ones, your doctor and the police tell you, don't you? My name is Emma Cartwright. Three years ago I was Susan Webster, and I murdered my twelve-week-old son Dylan. I was sent to Oakdale Psychiatric Institute for my crime, and four weeks ago I was released early on parole with a new identity, address and a chance to rebuild my tattered life. This morning, I received an envelope addressed to Susan Webster. Inside it was a photograph of a toddler called Dylan. Now I am questioning everything I believe because if I have no memory of the event, how can I truly believe he's dead? If there was the smallest chance your son was alive, what would you do to get him back?
Friday, 10 July 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - The Quality of Silence by Rosamund Lupton
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is
for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book
you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the
sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the
opener inspires. Please remember to include the title
of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on
the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
My book beginning is The Quality of Silence by Rosamund Lupton, it was published by Little Brown on 2nd July.
It's FREEZING cold; like the air is made of broken glass. Our English cold is all roly-poly snowmen and 'woo-hoo! it's a snow day!' a hey-there friendly kind of cold. But this cold is mean.
Book Description
On 24th November Yasmin and her deaf daughter Ruby arrived in Alaska.
Within hours they were driving alone across a frozen wilderness
Where nothing grows
Where no one lives
Where tears freeze
And night will last for another 54 days.
They are looking for Ruby's father.
Travelling deeper into a silent land.
They still cannot find him.
And someone is watching them in the dark.
Wednesday, 8 July 2015
Someone to Watch Over Me by Madeleine Reiss
The book starts with every parents worst nightmare; Carrie's young son Charlie disappears from a beach. The story then moves on three years and there's still no clue as to what happened to him. Carrie is now separated from husband Damien and runs a shop with her friend Jen.
Max was playing with Charlie on the beach the day he vanished. His Mum Molly brings him up alone since splitting up with her abusive husband Rupert.
I enjoyed the beginning and felt it described very well what it must be like to realise your child is missing. However I was disappointed, I expected this to be more of a thriller about the search for Charlie. In reality the story seemed to have more about Carrie's shop and the beginning of her relationship with neighbour Oliver. Others may like this to stop it being too dark and upsetting, but for me it didn't work. It seemed like the author couldn't decide what type of book to write. There was the Molly, Max and Rupert storyline but this became too far fetched.
Despite all of this I never felt like giving up and wanted to find out what would happen. The end when it came though was predictable.
Rating: 2 out of 5
Thursday, 2 July 2015
In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware
Nora is surprised to be invited to Clare's hen weekend but agrees with
her friend Nina that they'll go. Nora walked out of school and away from
her boyfriend James ten years ago, that was also the last time she saw
Clare. They had been best friends throughout their school years so what
happened? As the story progresses in the isolated house in the woods we
find out why.
Other characters attending the weekend away are Tom who works in the theatre, Melanie who is away from her baby for the first time and Clare's obsessive best friend Flo.
I thought this was a good, fast paced psychological thriller and for most of it I wasn't sure what was going to happen next. I found the ending was predictable though, I'd worked it out earlier and it wasn't the big shock I'd been hoping for. Worth a read if you like psychological thrillers and I'll look out for future novels by this author.
Thank you to Harvill Secker for my review copy.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Publication date: 30th July 2015
Wednesday, 1 July 2015
June Roundup
Here is a list of the books I read in June:
A Thorn Among the Lilies by Michael Hiebert - review
Finders Keepers by Stephen King
First One Missing by Tammy Cohen - review
Mockingbird Songs by R.J. Ellory
The Summer of Secrets by Sarah Jasmon - review
The Girl in the Red Coat by Kate Hamer
The Mistake I Made by Paula Daly - review
Tuesday, 30 June 2015
The Mistake I Made by Paula Daly
Roz is a single parent to her 9 year old son George since splitting up from her husband Winston. She works full time as a physiotherapist to try and make ends meet and clear some debts. When her financial situation worsens, she is forced to take up an offer. A married man she knows wants her to spend the night with him for money, no strings attached. She has never done anything like this before but can see no other quick alternative to keeping a roof over her and George's heads. Obviously this doesn't turn out to be as simple as she'd hoped and soon her life is getting out of control.
This is the third of Paula Daly's novels I've read, they're all excellent but I think this one is her best yet. It's a real page turner so please don't start reading this on a day you have plans, they won't come to fruition until you've finished this book.
Thanks to Transworld Publishers & Netgalley for my copy.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Publication date: 27th August 2015
My reviews of other Paula Daly novels:
Just What Kind of Mother Are You?
Keep Your Friends Close
Friday, 26 June 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - The Girl in the Red Coat by Kate Hamer
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
My book beginning this week is The Girl in the Red Coat by Kate Hamer.
I dream about Carmel often. In my dreams she's always walking backwards.
Book Description:
She is the missing girl. But she doesn't know she's lost.
Carmel Wakeford becomes separated from her mother at a
local children's festival, and is found by a man who claims to be her
estranged grandfather. He tells her that her mother has had an accident
and that she is to live with him for now. As days become weeks with her
new family, 8-year-old Carmel realises that this man believes she has a
special gift...
While her mother desperately tries to find her, Carmel embarks on
an extraordinary journey, one that will make her question who she is -
and who she might become.
Carmel Wakeford becomes separated from her mother at a local children's festival, and is found by a man who claims to be her estranged grandfather. He tells her that her mother has had an accident and that she is to live with him for now. As days become weeks with her new family, 8-year-old Carmel realises that this man believes she has a special gift...
While her mother desperately tries to find her, Carmel embarks on an extraordinary journey, one that will make her question who she is - and who she might become.
Tuesday, 23 June 2015
The Summer of Secrets by Sarah Jasmon
Sixteen year old Helen doesn't have any friends from school to spend the summer holidays with. Her parents have split up, her Mum moved away and Helen lives with just her Dad who is busy working on his boat. When the Dover family move in next door they seem exciting to Helen and provide a welcome distraction from her loneliness. But something happens during that summer, something that changes everything.
This is a very impressive debut novel and I loved all the characters. The story is mainly set during 1983 with a few chapters in the present day.
Thank you to Transworld Publishers Netgalley for my review copy.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Publication date: 13th August 2015
Book Description:
One day she was there . . .
and the next day, the day after the fire, she was gone.
In
the summer of 1983, when Helen is sixteen, Victoria Dover and her
eccentric family move in next door, at once making her lonely world a
more thrilling place. But the summer ends with a terrible tragedy, and
everyone involved – her father and the entire Dover family – simply
disappears.
Then one day, thirty years later, Victoria comes back.
A
suspenseful, spell-binding coming-of-age story about young friendship,
damaged families and how one simple action on a long, sultry summer can
echo through the years. Perfect for fans of Louise Doughty's Apple Tree Yard, Liane Moriarty's The Husband's Secret and Helen Dunmore's The Lie.
Monday, 22 June 2015
Mailbox Monday
Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It was created by Marcia @ A Girl and Her Books but now has a permanent home here
Three for me this week, all review books:
In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware
In a dark, dark wood there was a dark, dark house
Until, out of the blue, an invitation to Clare’s hen do arrives. Is this a chance for Nora to finally put her past behind her?
And in the dark, dark house there was a dark, dark room
But something goes wrong. Very wrong.
And in the dark, dark room…
Some things can’t stay secret for ever.
The Summer of Secrets by Sarah Jasmon
One day she was there . . . and the next day, the day after the fire, she was gone.
In the summer of 1983, when Helen is sixteen, Victoria Dover and her eccentric family move in next door, at once making her lonely world a more thrilling place. But the summer ends with a terrible tragedy, and everyone involved – her father and the entire Dover family – simply disappears.
Then one day, thirty years later, Victoria comes back.
The Mistake I Made by Paula Daly
The Mistake I Made
is the latest page-turner from one of the England’s most
captivating new thriller writers. In her provocative and riveting third
novel, Paula Daly focuses her masterful eye for psychological suspense
and family drama on an indecent proposal that has fatal repercussions. Single mother Roz has reached breaking-point. After the dissolution of her marriage, Roz’s business has gone under, debts are racking up, the rent is late (again), and she's struggling to provide for her nine-year-old son, who is starting to misbehave in school. Roz is in trouble. Real trouble.
When Roz returns home from work one day and finds an eviction notice, she knows that it’s time for action—she has two weeks to find a solution otherwise they will be kicked out of their home. Increasingly desperate, Roz doesn’t know where to turn. Then the perfect opportunity presents itself. At her sister’s fortieth birthday party, Roz meets Scott Elias—wealthy, powerful, and very married. But the impression Roz leaves on him is indelible. He tracks her down and makes Roz an offer to spend the night with him—for money. He wants no-strings-attached intimacy and can guarantee total discretion. Could it be as simple as it sounds? With that kind of cash, Roz could clear her debts and get her life back on track. But as the situation spirals out of her control, Roz is forced to do things she never thought herself capable of. Can she ever set things right again?
Friday, 19 June 2015
Book Beginnings on Fridays - The Summer of Secrets by Sarah Jasmon
Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is
for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book
you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the
sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the
opener inspires. Please remember to include the title
of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on
the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.
This week my book beginning is The Summer of Secrets by Sarah Jasmon. It's her debut novel and is published on 13th August in paperback by Black Swan and ebook/kindle by Transworld.
So much blue. From where she sat at the very back of the ferry, this was all Alice could see. The island had changed from a place to a shape to the faintest blur and now it was gone, without leaving a trace. She wanted to take off, to dive into the sea and make her way back. Jakob was out there.
Book Description:
One day she was there . . .
and the next day, the day after the fire, she was gone.
In
the summer of 1983, when Helen is sixteen, Victoria Dover and her
eccentric family move in next door, at once making her lonely world a
more thrilling place. But the summer ends with a terrible tragedy, and
everyone involved – her father and the entire Dover family – simply
disappears.
Then one day, thirty years later, Victoria comes back.
A
suspenseful, spell-binding coming-of-age story about young friendship,
damaged families and how one simple action on a long, sultry summer can
echo through the years. Perfect for fans of Louise Doughty's Apple Tree Yard, Liane Moriarty's The Husband's Secret and Helen Dunmore's The Lie.
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