Category: Recent Reads

Recent Reads: The Novice by Trudi Canavan (The Black Magician Trilogy 2)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Novice by Trudi Canavan continues to follow Sonea.  In the first book, she became a student at the Magician’s Guild, with Rothen as her mentor.  She’s made a friend of Dannyl, but he’s become an  Ambassador for the Guild, so is being sent off to Elyne.

Sonea is still trying to fit in with her classmates, whilst living a life so different to the one she knew before.  Sonea is a fish out of water, which readers can understand.  

I enjoyed this book, as it surprised me half way through, and gave more flesh to the world.  There is bullying in this book, just so you are warned.  

The Novice was published in 2002 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Trudi Canavan on Facebook, Instagram and her website.

You can read my reviews for other books in the Black Magician series:

The Magicians’ Guild (book 1)

 

Recent Reads: Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham by M.C. Beaton (Agatha Raisin 8)

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham by M.C. Beaton has Agatha going to a new hairdresser, Mr John, that she hears about.  He does a lovely job, is very charming, and asks her out.  Agatha is flattered, especially as she’s sad that James is still off on his travels, but when one of the other ladies of Carsley hears she’s been to him, she’s warned to avoid him.

When he drops down dead, Agatha knows she needs to investigate, and Sir Charles is on board!  

This is another cosy crime, with fun characters and unfortunate scrapes that Agatha gets herself into!

Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham was published in April 1999, and is available on 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)

Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener (book 3)

Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley (book 4)

Agatha Raisin and the Murderous Marriage (book 5)

Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist (book 6)

Agatha Raisin and the Wellspring of Death (book 7)

Recent Reads: Adults by Emma Jane Unsworth

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

Adults by Emma Jane Unsworth is about Jenny McLaine hitting rock bottom – she has a social media addiction, a home that she can’t afford on her own, a famous ex-boyfriend, and she can’t get out of her own head.  

It’s a hard book to read in places when Jenny’s having so many issues, I did enjoy the story as a whole!

Adults was published on 30th January 2020, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Emma Jane Unsworth on Twitter and Instagram.

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

Recent Reads: Foul is Fair by Hannah Capin

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

Foul is Fair by Hannah Capin is a modern re-telling of MacBeth, told from the point of view of Jade, in the role of Lady MacBeth.  

16 year old Jade is date raped at a party by four teenagers, and the next day she is out for revenge, along with her three friends, whom she calls her coven.

This is a bloody tale, set in present day LA, with rich families involved, not all of whom are involved in legal activities.  I enjoyed the version, with overtones of magic, but this isn’t a fantasy novel.

It’s a YA book, but there is drugs, sex, drinking and murder, so just be warned!

Foul is Fair was published on 16th January 2020, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Hannah Capin on her website.

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

Recent Reads: The Secret Chapter by Genevieve Cogman (The Invisible Library 6)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Secret Chapter by Genevieve Cogman (The Invisible Library 6) is about a heist!  Irene and Kai, now representatives of the truce between the fae, dragons and librarians, are being sent off to get a book to stabilise a world that Irene is fond of.

They’re going to join forces for this heist, and the job is being put together by someone who wouldn’t look out of place in a Bond film as a villain!

This is fast paced, with lots of surprises and secrets! And with the change of relationship between Irene and Kai, there’s added challenges to any situation!

I’ve been really enjoying every book in this series so far, and this book did not disappoint!

The Secret Chapter was published 12th November 2019, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Genevieve Cogman on Twitter, Facebook and her website.

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

My reviews for the other books in the series are below:

The Invisible Library (book 1)

The Masked City (book 2)

The Burning Page (book 3)

The Lost Plot (book 4)

The Mortal World (book 5)

Recent Reads: Ghost Story by Jim Butcher (Dresden Files 13)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

Ghost Story by Jim Butcher (Dresden Files 13) follows on from the dramatic ending of Changes, the previous book.  Harry learned he had a child, who had been kidnapped by the Red Court vampires, and so he went to war.  He sacrificed everything he could, including killing Susan, his ex-lover, mother of his child, and half vampire.  He agreed to become the Winter Knight.  He did everything he could, and he brought his daughter home.  And then he was shot, and presumed killed.

So, Harry being a ghost isn’t a huge surprise, but now he has to see the aftermath of all of his decisions, and he’s told that three of his friends are in grave danger if he doesn’t investigate his murder.

This was a really enjoyable continuation of the story.  It had me hooked from the beginning, and I was fascinated with what would happen!  I’m looking forward to the next book in the series!

Ghost Story was published on 26th July 2011, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Jim Butcher on his website, Twitter and Facebook.

My reviews for previous Dresden Files books are below:

Storm Front (book 1)

Fool Moon (book 2)

Grave Peril (book 3)

Summer Knight (book 4)

Death Masks (book 5)

Blood Rites (book 6)

Dead Beat (book 7)

Proven Guilty (book 8)

White Night (book 9)

Small Favor (book 10)

Turn Coat (book 11)

Changes (book 12)

Recent Reads: 17th Suspect by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Women’s Murder Club 17)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

17th Suspect by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Women’s Murder Club 17) has Yuki prosecuting a case where a man is accusing his ex girlfriend and boss of rape, and he has video proof.  

Lindsay, on the other hand, gets involved in shootings of homeless people, after a homeless woman approaches her, and tells her that the police are doing nothing.

There is a lot going on in this book!  As always, the characters are very busy in their personal lives as well!  This is a light read, by which I mean the story is fast paced, and you won’t need to do much soul searching whilst reading it.

17th Suspect was published on 22nd February 2018, 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

The 8th Confession – book 8;

The 9th Judgement – book 9

10th Anniversary – book 10

11th Hour – book 11

12th of Never – book 12

Unlucky 13 – book 13

14th Deadly Sin – book 14

15th Affair – book 15

16th Seduction – book 16

Recent Reads: The Museum of Broken Promises by Elizabeth Buchan

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

The Museum of Broken Promises by Elizabeth Buchan is a heart wrenching story set in 1985 in Prague, mid 1990s in Berlin and modern day Paris.  You see Prague whilst the Communists are in power, Berlin when post the different sides are making peace after the Berlin Wall coming down.

Laure is the central character whom we follow to each of these places.  It is in Prague that she falls in love, and in Paris that she is the chief curator of the Museum of Broken Promises, with different things that have been donated, such as a baby’s shoe, and a train ticket.

This is a look at a dark period of history, behind the Iron Curtain, and shows how dangerous life was.  The story is well told, leading through revelations, and moments of clarity, whilst showing so much emotion. 

The Museum of Broken Promises was published on 5th September 2019, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Elizabeth Buchan on Twitter, Facebook and her website.

I have also read Two Women in Rome by Elizabeth Buchan, and you can read my review here.

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

 

Recent Reads: The Mortal World by Genevieve Cogman (The Invisible Library 5)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Mortal World by Genevieve Cogman (The Invisible Library 5) has Irene without an apprentice now, as Kai resigned in the last book in order to maintain peace between the Library and the dragons, after the fallout of that book!  But that doesn’t mean that Kai has been returned home!

Vale is asked to go and investigate a murder which has happened at the peace talks between the fae, dragons and librarians.  These are top secret, and so Irene and Kai knew nothing about them, but Irene has been chosen as the librarians representative in the investigation.  There will also be a dragon and fae representatives!

If you thought one side was hard on the politics front, all three is even harder, along with a dragon being the murder victim, talk of the Blood Countess being there, and elderly librarians being outside of the Library!  Irene has her job cut out for her!

I enjoyed this evolution of the story, and seeing the different sides interacting!  The story is well told, and I just wanted to keep reading!

The Mortal World was published 29th November 2018 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Genevieve Cogman on Twitter, Facebook and her website.

My reviews for the other books in the series are below:

The Invisible Library (book 1)

The Masked City (book 2)

The Burning Page (book 3)

The Lost Plot (book 4)

Recent Reads: The Magicians’ Guild by Trudi Canavan (The Black Magician Trilogy 1)

Posted on by Pam

My review:????

The Magicians’ Guild by Trudi Canavan (The Black Magician Trilogy 1) is about Sonea, a teenager who lives in the slums of the city, and is friends with Cery, who has contacts in the underworld.  On a day when the mages are purging the city of the poor, Sonea is made so angry by the mages that she manages to throw a rock through their shields with magic.

Sonea is sought by the mages as those who have magic but aren’t trained are viewed as dangerous, to themselves and others.  

This is the beginning of a series, with a school of magic, people in power who know what is best, and secrets that can bring down the kingdom.  I really enjoyed the book, and I’m going to be reading more in this series!

The Magicians’ Guild was published on 31st October 2004, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Trudi Canavan on Facebook, Instagram and her website.