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Tag: travel fiction

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – A Recipe for Christmas by Jo Thomas

Posted on 18th November 2024 By Nicola

A Recipe for Christmas by Jo Thomas is published by Transworld and available now in paperback, eBook and audiobook. I purchased my own copy of […]

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Reviews

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – The Hotel Where We Met by Belinda Jones

Posted on 23rd August 2019 By Nicola

I’m super happy today to be sharing my review of The Hotel Where We Met by Belinda Jones. My thanks to the author for sending […]

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Reviews

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shortbookandscribes

UK book blogger (Sheffield), Bookstagrammer and lover of all things bookish.
Just one person trying to read all the books.
Physical books only.

Ad/PR product - new review. Captain Quirky here to

Ad/PR product - new review. Captain Quirky here to tell you about Can You Solve the Murder by Antony Johnston which is published by Bantam and is out now.
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Like the author (in his Acknowledgements) I remember enjoying the Choose Your Own Adventure books in the 1980s so when I heard about this grown-up version I had to give it a go.
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You are the detective investigating the murder of a man found on the lawn of a wellness retreat. Who killed him, how and why? That is what you must try and work out by reading the first chapter and choosing from two (or sometimes more) options as to where to go or who to interview next.
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It makes for a fun and interesting read with a cast of largely unlikeable characters who may or may not have been up to no good. The storyline itself is more simplistic than many crime novels; it's not about having a convoluted plot but it is about the novelty of trying to solve the crime yourself.
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Did I solve it? Err…..well that would be telling (read that as no) but I did at least do fairly well with my clues and according to the points system at the back of the book I've made it to the heady ranks of Detective Inspector!
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There were a few things I would do differently if I read it again. First of all, when I put it down for a while I would write down the number of the last section I read, mainly because I would have liked to have refreshed my memory but also so that I could pick up the thread of my journey through the book if needed. There are some coded messages and I wish that I had at least written down where they were as later on I had to try and find them again (bad detective). Oh, and don't start trying to decode them when you're laying in bed at night!
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I enjoyed this quirky and entertaining novel and would read another one if more are in the pipeline. Maybe I'll make DCI next time.
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For associated reading, I recommend The Boy in the Book by Nathan Penlington.
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My thanks to the publishers for the proof copy. What's your detective name (photo 2).
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#bookreview #CYSTM #chooseyourownadventure #crimebooks #crimefiction #fortheloveofbooks #bookblogger #reader #reviewbooks #reviewer #booksread #shortbookandscribes

#CoverReveal 🎉🎉 - #TheToken by @sharonjbol

#CoverReveal 🎉🎉 - #TheToken by @sharonjbolton sounds brilliant.
⛴️
Seven strangers, a dangerous crossing, and a fortune to die for.

Linked by a secret and seduced by the fortune of a billionaire, seven strangers board a ship to a remote island. Will anyone make it back to shore alive?

The gripping new thriller from million-copy bestseller Sharon Bolton.

Coming 6th November from @orionbooks and available for pre-order now.

May Reads 📚 Goodbye May, hello June. These roun

May Reads
📚
Goodbye May, hello June. These round up posts seem to come round very quickly, don't they? It's been another seven books month. Here's what I read:

🛍️ New Horizons for the Woolworths Girls by Elaine Everest
This was a bittersweet read as it's the last book by Elaine Everest who very sadly died last year. I loved this story about Annie Brookes who takes a job working for Woolworths during WWII and meets an American soldier who she thinks will make her happy.

🚔 Human Remains by Jo Callaghan
This is book three in a series that I eagerly await the next instalment of. DCS Kat Frank and her AI sidekick, AIDE Lock, are back solving crimes. The end chilled me and made me consider the good and bad aspects of AI.

🍒 Consider Yourself Kissed by Jessica Stanley
This book follows Coralie and Adam over the course of a decade in London, against a politically turbulent backdrop. It's a superb character-driven debut.

💊 The Chemist by A.A. Dhand
My first book by this author and I really liked the fast-paced and gripping storyline of a chemist who finds himself in the middle of a dangerous turf war between two drug lords.

📿The Mourning Necklace by Kate Foster
This fictional story based on real events about Maggie Dickson who was hanged but didn't die is beautifully written and rich with historical detail.

✨ The Chevalier by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
Book 7 in the Morland Dynasty series sees Annunciata Morland follow King James II into exile as the Catholic Stuarts are forced out in favour of Protestant William of Orange.

✨ The Maiden by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
Book 8 in the Morland Dynasty series and the heir Jemmy and his daughter Jemima take centre stage amidst Jacobite rebellions.
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#MayReads #May2025Reads #MayReads2025 #monthlyroundup #monthlywrapup #bookstack #booksread #reviewbooks #reader #reviewer #bookblogger #historicalfiction #contemporaryfiction #literaryfiction #crimebooks #sagafiction #NewHorizonsForTheWoolworthsGirls #HumanRemains #ConsiderYourselfKissed #TheMourningNecklace #TheChemist #TheChevalier #TheMaiden #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: The Mourning Necklace b

Ad/PR product. New review: The Mourning Necklace by Kate Foster. Published by Pan Macmillan and out now.
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The Mourning Necklace offers up a fantastical story, one of Maggie Dickson who was hanged for the murder of her baby and yet lives to tell the tale. What makes this even more fascinating is that it's based on real events and Maggie really did exist, although I think there's rather more owed to fiction than fact in this book. Kate Foster has woven a compelling story around the scant details that are known about Maggie and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
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The book opens on Hanging Day and then takes the reader back in time to Fisherrow, the village where Maggie grew up and where her family lives. We witness her longing to escape the gutting of fish and her boorish da and make her way to London. When events take her away to Kelso in the Scottish borders she believes herself to be well on her way but it seems that nothing really goes Maggie's way, leading to the hanging and all that happens to her afterwards.
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Foster has done a brilliant job of fleshing out the details that are known about Maggie and by using rich historical detail she's written an immersive story that transported me from the harbour at Fisherrow to the sights and sounds of 18th century Edinburgh. Maggie is a survivor in every sense of the word, feisty and wily but still a victim of being a woman in such times.
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This is the third book by Kate Foster that I have read and I've enjoyed them all very much. She's a writer whose books I would pick up without hesitation. Highly recommended for all historical fiction fans.
📿
Thank you to the publishers for the proof copy of the book.
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#bookreview #TheMourningNecklace #historicalfiction #histfic #scottishbooks #fortheloveofbooks #bookishcontent #booklover #reader #reviewer #reviewbooks #booksread #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: The Chemist by A.A. Dha

Ad/PR product. New review: The Chemist by A.A. Dhand. Published by @hqstories and out now.
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A.A. Dhand is an author I hadn't read before but I was drawn to reading The Chemist after watching the DI Harry Virdee series on the television which I was completely gripped by. The Chemist didn't let me down and I was just as gripped by this story of a pharmacist and the people in the community he serves, both good and bad.
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I hadn't really thought before about how vulnerable a pharmacist is. Dealing with drugs all day long involves Idris Khan supplying methadone to the many addicts at The Mews, the notorious estate where a dangerous kingpin runs the show. Idris manages it all very well and maintains a kind of distance until Rebecca, a woman very close to him, needs his help and he finds himself drawn into a terrifying turf war between the two most prominent drug lords in Leeds.
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I couldn't imagine how Idris would get himself out of the situation he was in but I hadn't bargained for how very cunning and inventive he could be. As the tagline says, he knows how to save you and he knows how to kill you. This is a very clever story written by an author who is himself a pharmacist. It's authentic and informative whilst also keeping up the incredibly fast pace, aided by short and punchy chapters.
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I'm not sure if we'll see Idris again (the ending could certainly lead to more) but I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Chemist and would definitely pick up another book by this author.
💊
Thank you to the publishers for the review copy.
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#bookreview #TheChemist #crimebooks #thrillerfiction #thrillersofinstagram #fortheloveofbooks #booklover #bookish #reader #reviewer #reviewbooks #booksread #crimethriller #crimefiction #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: Consider Yourself Kisse

Ad/PR product. New review: Consider Yourself Kissed by Jessica Stanley. Published by Hutchinson Heinemann and out now.
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Consider Yourself Kissed is the story of Adam and Coralie and their lives in London over the course of a decade. Coralie is Australian and meets Adam when she saves his little girl, Zora, from a pond. They're instantly drawn to each other, a whirlwind romance which gave me all the feels as they fall in love and then begin a life together.
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This is a book about real life, about all the highs and lows of being in a partnership with someone, all those moments of feeling like everyone else is getting it right and having such a brilliant time while you slog along day by day, keeping all the balls in the air and seemingly achieving nothing. Coralie feels like her ambitions have been pushed aside in favour of Adam's work, the kids' wellbeing and everybody else in her life's needs (not to mention her frankly hideous father!). All of this is set against a backdrop of the most important political events of the time: Brexit, the conveyor belt of Prime Ministers and Covid, which makes it extremely relevant for the reader who cannot fail to remember it all so vividly.
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This is such a superb character-driven debut from Jessica Stanley. It's funny, it's sad, it's poignant and it has characters to love and relate to. I love this kind of story that is full of the minutiae of life, so rich with detail that I felt I was a part of Adam and Coralie's lives. Highly recommended for a grown up love story, warts and all.
🍒
Thank you to the publishers for the proof copy.
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#bookreview #ConsiderYourselfKissed #lovestory #literaryfiction #5starreads #reader #bookblogger #reviewbooks #reviewer #booksread #ilovebooks #fortheloveofbooks #bookish #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: Human Remains by Jo Cal

Ad/PR product. New review: Human Remains by Jo Callaghan. Published by Simon & Schuster and out now.
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The DCS Kat Frank and AIDE Lock series has fast become one of my favourite crime/police series and so I was very eagerly looking forward to reading book three, Human Remains. As expected I loved it.
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The main story at first appears to be the discovery of a headless and handless body on a farm and the team's investigation into what happened and who the body belongs to. However, it's not long before Kat's biggest case comes back to haunt her, that of the Aston Strangler. Kat solved the case back then but now a podcast is casting doubt as to whether the right person was caught and imprisoned.
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The team are back together and one of the strongest thing about this series is the characterisations and the way that individual members of the team interact with Lock, not to mention the sheer brilliance of Lock itself. The AI detective is brilliantly written and portrayed and I love how it can read hundreds of articles in seconds, or watch numerous TV series in the same amount of time. There's no denying it is a huge help within the team in terms of doing the work that it would take a human days or weeks to get through, but some developments in this book really highlighted the potential for AI to be misused or relied on too heavily.
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I was absolutely gripped by this book, particularly the last third or so where the pace accelerated rather quickly. I'm desperate now for book four, especially because of how this one ended. Talk about chilling! Human Remains is an absolutely fantastic and thoroughly absorbing read and I very highly recommend it and the whole series so far.
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Thank you to the publishers for the review copy.
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#bookreview #HumanRemains #crimeseries #crimebooks #AIdetective #policefiction #policeprocedural #fortheloveofbooks #5starreads #reader #reviewer #bookblogger #booksread #reviewbooks #ilovethrillers #booklover #grippingreads #shortbookandscribes

Last • Now • Next It's an age since I've done

Last • Now • Next

It's an age since I've done a post like this but I thought I'd share my last, now and next reads.

Last - Human Remains by @jocallaghankat
What a brilliant book! This is a series that is going from strength to strength. Loved it.

Now - Consider Yourself Kissed by @dailydoseofjess
Honestly, I don't think I could love this book more. I'm enjoying it immensely.

Next - The Chemist by @aa_dhand
I haven't read any books by this author before but I'm really keen to do so, particularly after watching Virdee on the television which I was completely gripped by.

Huge thanks to @likely_suspects @simonschusteruk @hutchheinemann and @hqstories for the review copies.
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#LastNowNext #LastNowNextReads #HumanRemains #ConsiderYourselfKissed #TheChemist #contemporaryfiction #crimeseries #thrillerfiction #crimebooks #crimethriller #5starreads #reviewbooks #reader #reviewer #bookblogger #ilovereading #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: New Horizons for the Wo

Ad/PR product. New review: New Horizons for the Woolworths Girls by Elaine Everest. To be published by @panmacmillan on 8th May.
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New Horizons for the Woolworths Girls is especially poignant as it was Elaine Everest's last book. I shed a little tear at the end when I read the piece written by her friend, Vivien Brown, for the loss of a brilliant saga writer whose books I have so enjoyed reading, and with sadness that I won't get to read any more books featuring the characters I have come to love.
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In fact, this book, although a Woolworths book, is a kind of companion to the series. It features Annie Brookes who works at her family's laundry business. Wanting to branch out on her own, she takes a job working for Woolworths in Bexleyheath in 1940. The war throws a spanner in the works and she has to work temporarily at the Erith branch where she meets some of my favourite characters from the series such as Sarah, Freda, Maisie and Betty. I really loved how they were weaved into Annie's story and became her friends.
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Annie goes through some difficult times but when she meets an American soldier she thinks she's found happiness. I won't say any more about that but I was really pleased with how the story ended and I can fondly imagine Annie's life post-war.
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I absolutely loved this wonderful book. The characters have the warmth and community spirit that I've come to expect from Elaine Everest's creations and I found it easy to imagine the settings such as Annie's family home on the marshes and the two stores, one larger than the other but both so relied on by their customers. What a joy it has been to read this book and indeed the whole of this series which is highly recommended for those who love a really good saga as I do.
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Thank you to the publishers for the review copy.
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#bookreview #NewHorizonsForTheWoolworthsGirls #WoolworthsGirlsSeries #sagafiction #historicalfiction #5starreads #fortheloveofbooks #reader #reviewer #bookblogger #booksread #reviewbooks #ilovebooks #booklover #ElaineEverest #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. It's my stop on the #BlogTour for #

Ad/PR product.
It's my stop on the #BlogTour for #NewHorizonsForTheWoolworthsGirls by Elaine Everest today.

It's my current read and I'm loving it just as much as I have loved all of the other books in the series. This one is especially poignant as it was Elaine's last book. Review coming next week!

The book will be published in paperback on 8th May by @panmacmillan.
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#sagafiction #historicalfiction #Woolworths #Woolworthsseries #shortbookandscribes

April Reads 📚 ✨The Death of Us by Abigail De

April Reads
📚

✨The Death of Us by Abigail Dean
An intelligent and thought-provoking story of a couple and their relationship before and after a shocking and terrible attack.

✨Closest Kept by Kitty Johnson
A lovely story about Lily whose childhood traumas have affected her adult life, her friendship with Inga, and her relationship with Alex. Emotional and ultimately uplifting.

✨Sanctuary by Tom Gaisford
An intriguing and amusing book about a refugee lawyer who wants to make a difference. He tries to highlight the problems in the system by claiming asylum in his own country.

✨The Sisters by Helen Matthews
Helen Matthews has become a favourite of mine. I really enjoyed this story of Imogen and Rachel and a lifetime of rivalry and jealousy.

✨The Homemade God by Rachel Joyce
A character study of four siblings and their rose-tinted view of their artist father. I enjoyed this intricate examination of a dysfunctional family which demonstrated that all is not always as it seems.

✨The Black Pearl by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
Book five of what has quickly become my favourite series of books. We see all that happens in Yorkshire at Morland Place along with following Annunciata to the court of King Charles II.

✨The Long Shadow by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
Book six of this brilliant series. Annunciata, again takes centre stage amidst political and royal intrigue and family drama at home with the Morlands. The Long Shadow is set towards the end of the reign of Charles II and the beginning of the reign of James II.
📚
What was your favourite read in April?
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#April2025Reads #AprilReads #AprilReads2025 #monthlyroundup #monthlywrapup #booksread #reviewbooks #reviewer #bookblogger #reader #fortheloveofbooks #booklover #bookishphotography #ilovebooks #historicalfiction #contemporaryfiction #legalfiction #psychologicalfiction #TheDeathOfUs #ClosestKept #Sanctuary #TheBlackPearl #TheLongShadow #TheHomemadeGod #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: Sanctuary by @tom_gaisf

Ad/PR product. New review: Sanctuary by @tom_gaisford_writer. Published by @cintopress and out now.
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What an intriguing read Sanctuary is. Alex Donovan is a refugee lawyer, one of the types of lawyers who really want to make a difference, to help people. He's bogged down by his six minute segmented chargeable hours and by the fact that he isn't making as much of a difference to those seeking asylum as he hoped. Add to that his feelings for Amy, one of the barristers that he instructs, who constantly blows hot and cold towards him, and Alex is struggling a bit. After being signed off work, he comes up with a plan to claim asylum in his own country, a daring and potentially dangerous plan which serves to highlight the way asylum seekers are treated and might just also attract the attention of Amy.
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Sanctuary wasn't really like any other book I've read. Alex is funny and sharp-witted, and his interactions, particularly with other legal folk, for whom he has a certain amount of disdain, made me laugh out loud. It's also a stark portrayal of life in an immigration centre, viewing it from the perspectives of those detained, those running it, and a lawyer who just wants to help.
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The narrative is told in punchy short bursts which made it really easy to read and the pace is kept up throughout, right up until the triumphant conclusion. It's a very good debut novel.
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Thank you @wearereadmaxwell for the review copy.
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#bookreview #Sanctuary #legalfiction #fortheloveofbooks #bookish #booklover #ilovebooks #reader #reviewer #bookblogger #booksread #reviewbooks #bookreader #booksofinstagram #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: Closest Kept by @kittyj

Ad/PR product. New review: Closest Kept by @kittyjohnsonbooks. To be published by Lake Union on 6th May.
🖌️
In Closest Kept, Lily narrates the story of her friendship with Inga, how they pair off with best friends, Alex and Matt, and how her own childhood demons affect her life and her relationships with those around her, including her younger sister, Violet. As the story progresses, so does Lily's life with Alex, and as is often the case, there are many ups and downs for her in her love life, her family and friendships, and her work as an artist.
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I thought this was a lovely book. It's an easy read overall but it has plenty of depth to it too. Lily can be a bit of a doormat, particularly with Violet because of the sisters' difficult childhood, but she's so kind and considerate and a really likeable main character. In fact, I was rooting for her all the way through, hoping that she would ditch those who brought her down and choose to make a life with those who made her feel good about herself. No spoilers, but I was pleased with the outcome.
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Closest Kept is an appealing novel about growing up, dealing with childhood trauma and trying to move on. It's a cliché but Lily genuinely does go on a journey and she reaches the end with more acceptance, love and friendship. I closed this emotional and ultimately uplifting book feeling very satisfied.
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Thank you to the author for sending me a proof copy.
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#bookreview #ClosestKept #contemporaryfiction #familynovels #fortheloveofbooks #bookreader #booklover #reader #reviewer #reviewbooks #booksread #bookblogger #ilovereading #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: The Homemade God by Rac $Ad/PR product. New review: The Homemade God by Rachel Joyce. Published by @doubledayukbooks and out now. 🎨 The Homemade God is a character study of four siblings and their rose-tinted view of their father. Three sisters, Netta, Susan and Iris and their brother Goose have a sometimes complicated relationship with Vic Kemp, the famous artist, but they all utterly adore him. Things change when he meets a much younger woman, Bella-Mae, and he marries her, sweeping her off to the family villa on the shores of Lake Orta in Italy to paint the biggest and most important piece of his life. But then Vic dies and fractures appear in the siblings' relationships with each other and with Bella-Mae. 🎨 The story is beautifully portrayed by Rachel Joyce who manages with great subtlety to steer the reader from one viewpoint to another until gradually the penny drops and the blinkers covering the characters' eyes are removed and they all see the situation for what it really is. To say more would be to spoil but as the late Queen once said: "recollections may vary" and each sibling realises that all they believed is not necessarily either correct or the same as each other. 🎨 This is a complex story of family ties, of a sometimes difficult but always memorable childhood, of what it is to be the eldest, the youngest and the ones in the middle, of living in the shadow of the most capable, or being the one who has to hold it all together. In the centre of it all is a larger than life figure around whom their lives always revolved; without him, they are cast adrift. 🎨 The descriptions of the lake are vivid and I was transported to the villa. The characters are not always likeable but are truly fascinating. Whilst character-driven, the plot drew me in and placed me at the heart of the Kemp family. A different book from Joyce's previous but the high quality of the writing is just the same. I enjoyed this intricate examination of a dysfunctional family which demonstrated that all is not always as it seems. 🎨 Thank you to the publishers for the proof. * * * * * * #bookreview #TheHomemadeGod #literaryfiction #reader #reviewbooks #booksread #reviewer #bookphotography #shortbookandscribes$

Ad/PR product. New review: The Sisters by @helen.m

Ad/PR product. New review: The Sisters by @helen.matthews7. Published by @bloodhound.books and out now.
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Two sisters, Imogen and Rachel, and a lifetime of rivalry and jealousy, made The Sisters compelling reading. Rachel is the stable and reliable sister with her partner and teenage daughter and her property business, and she's the one who spends more time with their parents, looking after them and propping them up financially. Imogen has always been out for herself and now she's unexpectedly returning home to England from her life in Ibiza.
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The author describes this book as family noir which is a perfect description. Imogen being back on the scene is not only discomfiting for Rachel but it also throws up memories of the past, not to mention Imogen's clear desire to make Rachel's life a misery.
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I've enjoyed all of Helen Matthews' other books and The Sisters (previously published under the name Façade) is another great read. I really enjoyed the family dynamics and the well-developed characterisations. Imogen is very much a character to hate which makes her utterly fascinating, and I was on edge waiting to see what she would get up to next.
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The Sisters gripped me throughout as lies and secrets came to the fore. The presence of some clever twists in the plot were welcome but I enjoyed the story as just a family drama in its own right too. This is a slice of life story with the reader witnessing the slice where Imogen comes back and tries to ruin Rachel's life, and I felt there was probably some unfinished business between the sisters taking place beyond the book somehow.
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As I've now read all four books by Helen Matthews I'm hoping a new one is in the pipeline, but I'd most definitely recommend all of the ones that are available now. She writes domestic suspense so well.
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Thank you to the author for the review copy.
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#bookreview #TheSisters #psychologicalfiction #domesticnoir #familynoir #familydramabooks #fortheloveofbooks #reader #reviewer #reviewbooks #booksread #bookblogger #ilovebooks #bookish #bookphotography #5starreads #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: The Death of Us by Abig

Ad/PR product. New review: The Death of Us by Abigail Dean. To be published by Hemlock Press on 10th April.
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The Death of Us is a literary thriller but it's also the anatomy of a relationship. Isabel and Edward's love story is blown apart by a shocking and terrible attack. This book takes us from their first meeting and their life together before the events of that horrific night, through the aftermath and beyond to the current day.
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This is not a fast-paced read and, notwithstanding the fact that I'm particularly slow at the moment, it took me quite a while to read it. I was dreading the moment when the night of the attack occurred but by then I was somewhat desensitised to it because I knew it was going to happen right from the beginning. It didn't make it any the less appalling and I still avoided reading that section before bed but it highlighted to me that this is not a book about an act of extreme violence and degradation, rather it's one of love, survival and what happens to a couple when they must deal with the long-lasting consequences of that act.
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Abigail Dean's writing is emotive and full of depth. This is a disturbing and devastating character-driven read with two protagonists that I found relatable and well-drawn. The Death of Us is intelligent, thought-provoking and hard-hitting.
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Thank you to the publishers for the proof copy.
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#bookreview #TheDeathOfUs #literarythriller #fortheloveofbooks #booksread #reviewbooks #reader #reviewer #bookblogger #bookish #ilovereading #booksofinstagram #HemlockPress #shortbookandscribes

The Other People by @martynwaites4847 - out this T

The Other People by @martynwaites4847 - out this Thursday (10th April) in hardback.

🔹

And Then There Were None meets The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle.

Ten strangers.
An old dark house.
A killer picking them off one by one.
And a missing girl who's running out of time. . .

Ten strangers wake up inside an old, locked house. They have no recollection of how they got there.
In order to escape, they have to solve the disappearance of a young woman.
But a killer also stalks the halls of the house, and soon the body count starts to rise.
Who are these strangers? Why were they chosen? Why would someone want to kill them?
And who – or what – is the Beast in the Cellar?

Forget what you think you know.

Because while you can trust yourself, can you really trust THE OTHER PEOPLE?

@likely_suspects
#TheOtherPeople

Ad/PR product. New review: The Eights by @joannami

Ad/PR product. New review: The Eights by @joannamillerauthor. To be published tomorrow by @penguinfigtree.
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The Eights is one of the books I have most been looking forward to reading in 2025 because of its fascinating subject matter. Set in 1920, the story follows four women who are amongst the first women students at Oxford University.
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Dora, Marianne, Otto and Beatrice all have their crosses to bear. It's challenging enough being a woman in what is very firmly a man's world, but the spectre of World War I, and all they experienced and lost during the conflict, is still lingering over them.
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It is quite clear that Joanna Miller has done extensive research about the lives these women would have led, not only as students but as potential surplus women. The book is rich with detail of day to day life at Oxford, being chaperoned and the endless rules that women were forced to live by. I felt as though I was there alongside them, witnessing their highs and lows. There is a back story too for each of the four main characters. Dora's and Marianne's in particular emphasised the immediacy of war during which rash decisions were made and the consequences felt later.
🎓
This is a beautifully written and observed debut novel about female friendship, solidarity and emancipation that made me root for the characters who emerged from the horror of the war years to forge new horizons for womankind. It's inspiring, engrossing and incredibly moving.
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#bookreview #TheEights #historicalfiction
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March 2025 Reads 📚 Happy April! I feel like thi

March 2025 Reads
📚
Happy April! I feel like this may be a short wrap up post as my reading has taken a bit of a hit this month. I started and abandoned three review books that I just couldn't get along with but my Morland Dynasty reading has continued apace (I am obsessed!). So this month I've only read six books but I've enjoyed them all.

👶The Wartime Nursery by Lizzie Page
I love anything this author writes. This book is the second in a loose trilogy and follows a mother and daughter as they are evacuated separately during WWII. Emmeline, the mother, decides to set up a much-needed wartime nursery.

👸The Princeling by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
Brilliant third instalment which picks up not too long after book two and follows the fortunes of the Morlands through the second half of the sixteenth century. This era was less turbulent politically than in the previous two books but the reign of Elizabeth I still had its ups and downs.

✈️Scenes from a Tragedy by Carole Hailey
A plane flies into a mountain in the Lake District, killing both pilots. Was it an accident or deliberate? Great structure and a gripping story.

🍏The Oak Apple by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
Book four in the Morland Dynasty series is quite harrowing in places. Some of the action takes place during the English Civil War and the effects are felt back at Morland Place.

🚔For Reasons Unknown by Michael Wood
The first in the DCI Matilda Darke series set in Sheffield. Matilda returns to work after some traumatic events in her home and work life and is tasked with solving a cold case. I enjoyed this one.

🎓The Eights by Joanna Miller
The story of four women who become some of Oxford University’s first women students in 1920. Beautifully written and very emotive, being set so soon after WWI.
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#MarchReads #March2025Reads #MarchReads2025 #monthlyroundup #monthlywrapup #booksread #reviewbooks #historicalfiction #crimebooks #psychologicalfiction #psychologicalthriller #fortheloveofbooks #ilovereading #reader #bookblogger #reviewer #booklover #shortbookandscribes

New review: For Reasons Unknown by Michael Wood.
🔹
I've been meaning to re-start Michael Wood's Matilda Darke series for a while now, mainly because it's set very firmly in my home city of Sheffield. I read For Reasons Unknown around ten years ago on my Kindle but then never progressed to book two and, as is often the case, I couldn't remember the detail of the story so decided to read it again (a very rare re-read in my case).
🔹
DCI Matilda Darke is returning to South Yorkshire Police after traumatic events in her home and work life led to a leave of absence. Rather than throwing her straight back in to her old role, she is tasked with solving a cold case, that of the murder of Miranda and Stefan Harkness. This is stuff of Sheffield lore and Matilda starts her investigation with Jonathan Harkness, the couple's son and the only witness to what happened.
🔹
Some links with what's going on with Matilda's old team arise and bring the story together nicely. There are also some clever twists towards the end and an overbearing Acting DCI that I loved to hate. I think I'd have liked to see the team be a bit more fleshed out but that might happen as the series progresses and this first book has whetted my appetite for more Matilda Darke cases. It certainly kept me interested and is a really good start to the series. This is one for those who enjoy police procedurals and cold cases (that's me!).
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#bookreview #ForReasonsUnknown #crimeseries
#crimebooks #policeprocedural #Sheffield #sheffieldbooks #fortheloveofbooks #booklover #bookloversofinstagram #ilovebooks #reader #booksread #bookblogger #reviewer #shortbookandscribes

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