Month: May 2021

Recent Reads: Roar by Cecelia Ahern

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

Roar by Cecelia Ahern is made up of 30 short stories, and are all stories about different women, one per story, who each have something to discover.  They are enjoyable stories, and feel like fables, as each story has a message. 

I enjoyed the surprise of the moment of revelation in each story, and trying to guess where we were going to be led. These are very much told from the point of view of these women do not value themselves sufficiently but are uplifting.

Roar was published on 1st November 2018 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Cecelia Ahern on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and her website.

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to HarperCollins.

Recent Reads: The 8th Confession by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Women’s Murder Club 8)

Posted on by Pam

My review:???

8th Confession has someone killing the rich and famous, which means Lindsay, Cindy, Claire and Yuki need to work together to find out who the killer really is.

I mostly enjoy this series except for the below. It’s got multiple story lines that weave together, there’s lots of different behind the scenes, be that at the newspaper or the law courts, and the friendship between the main characters is heart warming.

But, I found I was uncomfortable with the storyline about Doc in this book, .  Spoilers ahead for this as I think it needs to be talked about.  Doc was born with ambiguous genitalia, and so his parents made a choice and raised him as a girl, but Doc identifies as male.  This feels like great representation in a popular series, but they used the word ‘repulsed’ for how Yuki could feel about him, and that feels like such a strong word for not wanting to have sex with someone.

8th Confession was published on 27th April 2009 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow James Patterson on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and his website.

I’m afraid I couldn’t find any links for Maxine Paetro for you to follow.

Women’s Murder Club books:

1st to Die   – book 1 

2nd Chance – book 2

3rd Degree – book 3

4th of July – book 4

The 5th Horseman – book 5

The 6th Target – book 6

7th Heaven – book 7

Recent Reads: Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo is the winner of the Booker Prize in 2019, so you will already have expectations of this book.

It tells the story of 12 Black women, whose lives are interconnected in different ways.  We move around in place and you see the women from their perspective, and then from others.  Some of them experience trauma, and others don’t, and all of them have stories to tell you.

This is an emotional journey as you go through some of the trauma with them and other times, so you see their grief and their joy.  

Girl, Woman, Other was published on 2 May 2019 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Bernardine Evaristo on Twitter, Instagram and her website.

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Penguin Books.

Recent Reads: Naturally Tan A Memoir by Tan France

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

Naturally Tan; A Memoir by Tan France is the autobiography of Tan France and goes up to the early days of Queer Eye, and shows us Tan’s childhood, his work background, how he met his husband, moved to America and then auditioned for Queer Eye!  And of course the French tuck!

I didn’t know much about Tan France before this book, and really enjoyed learning more and seeing the photos in his book.  I also enjoyed hearing about meeting the other stars of Queer Eye at audition!  If you enjoy Queer Eye, then this is a great book for you!

Naturally Tan was published on 6th June 2019 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Tan France on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok!

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, and so my thanks to NetGalley and to Penguin Random House.

Recent Reads: Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener by M.C Beaton (Agatha Raisin 3)

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener by M.C Beaton (Agatha Raisin 3) has the village of Carsely opening their gardens to one another, and as James Lacey has taken up with newcomer, Mary Fortune, who is amazing at gardening, this is the thing that Agatha has decided she has to beat her at.

Not that she’s jealous.  Our green-eyed monster of an amateur detective decides that she’s going to cheat, and of course, hi-jinx ensues.  Then Mary Fortune is found murdered in her garden.  Agatha will just have to help find the murderer, and spend some more time with James!

I do enjoy Agatha being forthright, but do find her pining after James Lacey to be a little sad.  But, every person has their flaws, and will love/ lust after people they can’t always have.  I do like these as light, entertaining cosy crimes.

Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener was published in 1994, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

My review of the previous book in the Agatha Raisin series are below:

Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death (book 1)

Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet (book 2)

Recent Reads: American Sherlock; Murder, forensics, and the birth of crime scene investigation by Kate Winkler Dawson

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

American Sherlock by Kate Winkler Dawson is about Edward Oscar Heinrich, who was one for the first forensic scientists, and so is one of the first to go before a jury to explain how something happened.  This is a really interesting book about how things like blood splatter started to be used, and then how it was shown to a jury.

This is a non fiction book, and explores Heinrich’s life, his family, and his work.  We learn about crimes that happened, and then how Heinrich solved them.  It is very evocative, and well written, and I enjoyed learning more about this time in forensics.

American Sherlock was published on 13th May 2021 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Kate Winkler Dawson on Twitter, Instagram and her website.

Kate Winkler Dawson also has 2 podcasts – Tenfold More Wicked which looks into true crime stories, and Wicked Words, which interviews journalists and writers about their favourite true crime stories.  

I was given this book in exchange of an unbiased review, and so my thanks to NetGalley and to Icon Books. 

Recent Reads: The Cancer Ladies Running Club by Josie Lloyd

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

The Cancer Ladies Running Club by Josie Lloyd has Keira discovering that she has cancer, which makes her head spin – she has children, a husband, and a business to run!  And running isn’t something that she expects to get into, but a chance offer sees her life change.

There’s also issues at her business – it’s an independent high street shop, which she runs with her friend, whose husband has recently joined the company.  Keira doesn’t know how she feels about that, and then things start going wrong.

This is a heart warming book, with lovely friendships, hidden talents and love.  There are high and low points throughout the book, and it is trying to show us the reality of cancer.

The Cancer Ladies Running Club was published on 13th May 2021 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Josie Lloyd on Twitter and her website.

I was given this book in exchange of an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and HQ.

Recent Reads: Protector by Conn Iggulden (Athenian 2)

Posted on by Pam

My review:???

Protector by Conn Iggulden is the second book in the Athenian series.  You can read my review of The Gates of Athens here.

Protector is set after the Persians have taken Athens, and it’s burning.  Themistocles is ready to go to war with the Persians again to reclaim Athens.

This is an action packed book, with lots of fighting, and descriptions of men fighting with swords, but there are also fights of words. 

I found this book to be very battle heavy, and have realised that this isn’t something that I always want in my books, but I enjoyed the classical Greek history that inspired this book. 

Protector was published on 13th May 2021, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Conn Iggulden on the official fan facebook page, run by his publishers.

I was given this book in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Penguin Michael Joseph.

Recent Reads: The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon (The Bone Season 3)

Posted on by Pam

 My review:????

The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon (The Bone Season 3) has Paige newly crowned Underqueen, is changing the way things are done, but there’s a new threat.  Scion is bringing in a new technology that can detect voyants of the first 3 levels as defined by Jaxom, and people keep disappearing.

There’s rumour that Sheol II is going to be opened in France, and another that this technology is small enough that someone could hold it, and so Paige has to investigate.  Paige and Warden are still wanting to be together, but can’t because of the other Rephaim.

There’s lots of energy in these books, and you are taken on adventures. I enjoyed the story, and seeing what would happen next.  

The Song Rising was published on 7th March 2017, and is available on Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Samantha Shannon on Twitter and her blog.

You can read my review of the other books in the series below:

The Bone Season (book 1)

The Pale Dreamer (novella 0.5)

The Mime Order (book 2)

Recent Reads: The Transylvania Twist by Angie Fox (Monster M*A*S*H 2)

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

The Transylvania Twist by Angie Fox (Monster M*A*S*H 2) has Petra still on the front  lines, but with the truce between the old gods and the new gods, they have less urgent things to do, and can start doing the day to day care that people need.  Like Medusa, who finds out she’s pregnant!

Galen tells Petra that he has to go, and breaks up with her. She’s left heart broken, and then events happen so that she finds her ex from the old days.

This is a fun, fast paced read, with fantastical creatures, oracular declarations, and friends who collect odd things.  

I classify these books as cosy fantasy, as it has lots of events that happen, but you know your heroine is going to be safe at the end of the book.

The Transylvania Twist was published on 26th January 2021, and is available from Amazon and Waterstones.

You can follow Angie Fox on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and her website.

You can read my review for Monster M*A*S*H 1 here.

I’ve read a number of Angie Fox’s books, from the Southern Spirits series

Southern Spirits, A Ghostly Gift and The Skeleton in the Closet – book 1, 1.5 and 2

Pecan Pies and Dead Guys – book 7 

The Mint Julep Murders – book 8

The Ghost of Christmas Past – book 8.5

Southern Bred and Dead – book 9

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Author Collective 20.