My apologies to Julia Stebbing for keeping her waiting so long for reviews of two of her children’s books whilst life has been quite challenging, and my enormous thanks to Julia for sending me When Moggie and Froggie Met Doggie illustrated by Stephen Stone and Rainbow Cat and the Big Tidy illustrated by Nivya Kuriakose in return for honest reviews.

Julia’s books last appeared on Linda’s Book Bag when I reviewed When Moggie Met Froggie here.

I also reviewed both The Lost Smile and Remarkable Women in Verse here.

Published by Sticky Bun, When Moggie and Froggie Met Doggy is available for purchase here and Rainbow Cat and the Big Tidy is available here.

When Moggie and Froggie Met Doggy

While out seeking mice to eat, Moggie comes across a grumpy Doggie clinging to a tree, and their relationship gets off to a rocky start. Little did either of them know they would soon become good friends. In this amusing tale, with cute illustrations, read how Moggie and Froggie, with new friend Doggie, learn how to have fun together. An adorable sequel to When Moggie Met Froggie.

My Review of When Moggie and Froggie Met Doggie

Doggie is in a spot of bother!

As I’ve come to expect with a Julia Stebbing children’s book, When Moggie and Froggie Met Doggy is a cornucopia of fun, rhyme, humour and friendship. There’s a really lovely story as Moggie discovers Doggie stuck up a tree having been frightened by Froggie and which resolves itself through kindness, friendship and playing together as children learn not to judge others on first appearances. I love the concept that a dog, cat and frog can be friends as it illustrates to young children how diversity doesn’t have to mean alienation.

The language is so well balanced that Julia Stebbing blends familiar words with new vocabulary that enhances children’s language acquisition even as they are enjoying a light-hearted and humorous story. The rhyme not only affords the opportunity for children to predict what is coming next to reinforce language skills, but it is so smooth that it makes reading the story aloud a real pleasure because it flows so effectively.

Alongside themes of friendship, being scared, and learning about others, there are fantastic illustrations by Stephen Stone that bring the story to vibrant life. The expressions on the animals’ faces are not only hilarious, but they help children learn how we use non vocal or verbal communication too.

When Moggie and Froggie Met Doggy is a smashing children’s book that I thoroughly recommend.

Rainbow Cat and the Big Tidy

When a colourful cat goes for a walk with a dog with one shoe and they come across a field strewn with rubbish – ‘The biggest mess that Cat has seen’– what can they do?

HOW will they tidy up the mess? WHO will help them?

This charming story, told in rhyming verse, helps a young child learn the importance of clearing up litter and of teamwork. A serious theme, with fun illustrations. For ages 3-7.

My Review of Rainbow Cat and the Big Tidy

Rainbow Cat finds too much litter.

Whilst Rainbow Cat and the Big Tidy is a book aimed at very young children, I think it is a highly important one for us all and it would fit perfectly into a home, school or other group involving young children because it illustrates the issues of the environment in a gentle and effective manner.

I especially liked the fact that Cat is indeed a rainbow coloured cat as I felt it helped promote all types of characters and countered stereotyped expectations so that children learn to accept others as a result of their actions and not their appearance. There’s a lovely message that working as a team makes life easier and fun too as Julia Stebbing includes a range of animals and birds who collaborate in clearing up litter and restoring nature.

The language used in Rainbow Cat and the Big Tidy is so well constructed, with an effortless rhyme scheme and an easy rhythm so that children can hear patterns of language. Alternate end rhyme and rhyming couplets, ellipsis and parenthesis all provide concrete examples that enhance children’s own independent writing so that Rainbow Cat and the Big Tidy is a brilliant educational tool as well as a fun and entertaining story.

I loved the illustrations by Nivya Kuriakose too. The animals have a style young children will love whilst I found the backgrounds almost ethereal at times, giving a sense of what might be if only we were more careful with our environments and took more care to take our rubbish home.

Filled with friendship, co-operation and playfulness, Rainbow Cat and the Big Tidy is a super children’s book.

About Julia Stebbing

Julia has always lived in north London and was brought up in Stanmore. Opposite her house were only fields and the local school was a mere 5-minute walk. The spinney nearby provided opportunities for jumping a stream, picking blackberries, and hiding in the woods. Switch to three children later, husband David, and seven grandchildren – 3 girls and 4 boys. She used to write song lyrics and now loves writing children’s stories, especially in rhyming verse. S

She has published two books, The Lost Smile, a picture book which is the first in a series of The Fabulous Five. Remarkable Women in Verse tells the story of Rosa Parks, Helen Keller and her governess Anne Sullivan, and also Florence Nightingale.

You can find out more on Sticky Bun’s website and on Facebook. You’ll occasionally find Julia on Twitter @stickybunpub and Instagram too.

I’m a product of the 1970s and 1980s, being eligible to vote for the first time in 1979 and at university studying for my first degree from 1979 to 1982. Consequently, when I heard about White Riot by Joe Thomas I simply HAD to feature it on Linda’s Book Bag. My enormous thanks to Corinna Zifko at Quercus for arranging for me to host a guest post from Joe Thomas in advance of next week’s White Riot publication day.

Published by Quercus imprint Arcadia on 19th January 2023, White Riot is available for pre-order here.

White Riot

1978: The National Front is gaining ground in Hackney. To counter their influence, anti-fascist groups launch the Carnival Against Racism in Victoria Park. Observing the event is Detective Constable Patrick Noble, charged with investigating racist attacks in the area and running Spycops in both far-right and left wing groups. As Noble’s superiors are drawn further into political meddling, he’s inveigled into a plot against the embattled Labour government.

1983: Under a disciplinary cloud after a Spycops op ended in tragedy, Noble is offered a reprieve by an old mentor. He is dispatched in the early hours to Stoke Newington police station, where a young black man has died in suspicious circumstances. This is Thatcher’s Britain now, a new world that Noble unwittingly helped to usher in, where racial tensions are weaponised by those in power.

Supercharged by the music and counterculture of the era, White Riot weaves fiction, fact and personal experience to record the radical tale of London’s most thrilling borough. Politics, music, police corruption, institutional racism and the power of protest all take centre stage in a novel that traces the roots of our current political moment.

Hackney

A Guest Post by Joe Thomas

I was born in Hackney in 1977 and for 25 years I wanted to leave. Now, it’s an aspirational address, gentrified and expensive. I was born in Hackney Mothers’ Hospital on Lower Clapton Road which was later to become known as ‘Murder Mile’. I lived on Mildenhall Road, just down from Clapton Pond. I wrote White Riot to try and better understand the Hackney I grew up in, the time and place, and how the borough, it seems to me, is something of a lightning rod for the political and social currents of the country.

White Riot is a historical, social crime novel about police corruption, institutional racism, the devastating effects of Thatcherism, and the counter-cultural movement of the late ‘70’s and ‘80’s. White Riot is a novel that reveals the dark heart of Hackney, shows the divisive roots of gentrification – and prefigures the political division of contemporary Britain. It is unashamedly political; I want to interrogate the discourses of power, of inequality, think about what and why and how it was as it was, as it is.

I remember the National Front graffiti on the canal towpaths, the sawdust on the floor of the public bar in the Prince of Wales (renamed the Princess in honour of Diana), the seafood stall where my brother and sister and I drowned our cockles and prawns in vinegar while mum and dad were inside fetching drinks.

I remember the day when we sat outside the Ship Aground pub just next door, and it started to rain. The landlord waving the families in, breaking the law to let us shelter. Except for an Asian family enjoying their crisps and their cokes; they weren’t allowed. We didn’t go back there again. I went past on the 55 bus the other day and saw the pub’s set for demolition.

I remember the Hackney Show on Hackney Downs, the Labour Club in Dalston, steel bands and heavy reggae, kids in I Love ILEA and GLC t-shirts, Granny’s takeaway and Chimes nightclub, where, for a period, serious violence was a regular occurrence.

Chimes nightclub is now the Clapton Hart, a hipster pub, all distressed wood and oversized board games, very nice it is, too. I popped in for a pint when on a visit to my cousins who still lived on Mildenhall Road. When I ordered, I asked the barman when the pub opened, when it changed, was no longer the notorious Chimes nightclub, told him I was born up the road. Oh, about a year ago, he said, I’m surprised you didn’t know. I nodded. Well, I said, for the last ten years or so, I’ve been away. What I mean was that I’d been living abroad. When I sat down with my drink it occurred to me that he’d given me a funny look. Local boy, been away, ten years. He served me pretty sharpish when I went back. I didn’t disabuse him, and it made me smile: Hackney’s come a long way if I look like a ten-stretch criminal.

****

I’m sure you look perfectly respectable Joe! Thanks so much for the insight into Hackney and how it has inspired White Riot. Fascinating!

About Joe Thomas

Joe Thomas was born in Hackney in 1977. He is the author of the critically acclaimed São Paulo quartet – Paradise City, Gringa, Playboy, and Brazilian Psycho – and Bent, which was a Guardian Best Book of 2020 and an Irish Times pick of the best crime fiction of 2020. His new novel, White Riot, will be followed by Red Menace and True Blue. Joe lives in London with his partner and son, and teaches at City University of London.

It was a real pleasure to be part of the cover reveal for The Garnett Girls by Georgina Moore in a post you’ll find here. I cannot thank the author enough for sending me a copy of The Garnett Girls in return for an honest review. I’m delighted to share my review today.

Published by Harper Collins’ imprint HQ on 16th February 2023, The Garnett Girls is available for purchase through the links here.

The Garnett Girls

‘Love makes you do things you never thought you were capable of.’

Forbidden, passionate and all-encompassing, Margo and Richard’s love affair was the stuff of legend– but, ultimately, doomed.

When Richard walked out, Margo locked herself away, leaving her three daughters, Rachel, Imogen and Sasha, to run wild.

Years later, charismatic Margo entertains lovers and friends in her cottage on the Isle of Wight, refusing to ever speak of Richard and her painful past. But her silence is keeping each of the Garnett girls from finding true happiness.

Rachel is desperate to return to London, but is held hostage by responsibility for Sandcove, their beloved but crumbling family home.

Dreamy Imogen feels the pressure to marry her kind, considerate fiancé, even when life is taking an unexpected turn.

And wild, passionate Sasha, trapped between her fractured family and controlling husband, is weighed down by a secret that could shake the family to its core…

The Garnett Girls, the captivating debut from Georgina Moore, asks whether children can ever be free of the mistakes of their parents.

My Review of The Garnett Girls

The Garnett family have secrets bubbling beneath the surface.

The Garnett Girls is an astonishing debut. The prose is achingly beautiful and enormously affecting, so that I found myself weeping on more than one occasion. It’s not just the stunning descriptions that capture the reader, but the thrum of life, of longing, and of emotion vibrating under the surface of every syllable. The Garnett Girls is not so much a book you read as one you feel. Georgina Moore has created a kind of emotional tuning fork in her narrative that the reader experiences viscerally. 

I loved the Isle of Wight setting because it created a claustrophobic atmosphere that suited the intensity of the narrative. It is as if The Garnett Girls could not have been set anywhere else. Similarly, I found the London settings added a sense of relief in me as a reader that echoed the increased freedom the characters felt when they were there, so skilled is the writing. 

The plot has its moments of high drama, but that isn’t the point of The Garnett Girls. Rather, it is a story of how and why Margo, Imogen, Rachel and Sasha are as they are. Their characters are so acutely observed that it feels as if Georgina Moore has peeled back their physical attributes to expose their very souls. She writes about family dynamics, marriage and relationships, shining a mature, incisive and totally understanding spotlight that shows the reader exactly who these people are and what makes them behave as they do, even whilst the characters themselves don’t have self-knowledge, or, when they do, they prefer to deceive themselves. Indeed, deception and lies form the bedrock of this story and hold the reader captivated.

I loved the way Imogen’s play echoes Margo’s life so that there are layers and depths to uncover as you read. Similarly, the powerful emotional pull between characters, particularly between Margo and her daughters, is akin to the relentless implacable pull of the tides around the Isle of Wight conveyed by Georgina Moore so effectively. She creates an atmosphere of brittle hedonism overlaying a murkier realism and vulnerability that I found incredibly affecting. 

The Garnett Girls is an intense, beautifully wrought portrait of family and the lies we tell, especially to ourselves. It’s fierce, passionate and affecting and I absolutely loved it. 

About Georgina Moore

Georgina Moore is an award-winning book publicist who has worked in the publishing industry for twenty years. She has worked with a huge variety of authors across all genres and at all stages of their careers – from debuts to household names.

The Garnett Girls is Georgina’s first novel and is set on the Isle of Wight where Georgina and her family have a holiday houseboat called Sturdy. Georgina’s main residence is a houseboat on Taggs Island in the River Thames, where she lives with her partner, two children and Bomber, the Border terrier.

For further information, follow Georgina on Twitter @PublicityBooks or find her on Instagram.

Staying in with Katy Regan

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Katy and thank you for staying in with me. Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it? 

I have brought in my latest book How to Find Your Way Home. It’s my sixth novel and out in paperback last week (Thursday 5^th January).  The reason I have brought it today however is because I think it’s the perfect uplifting read for these January days when Christmas is over and we’re yearning for spring!

We most certainly are! What can we expect from an evening in with How to Find Your Way Home?

Well, it’s set in spring for a start – it begins in February and ends in early summer, and is definitely the most descriptive of my six novels in terms of landscape.

My main character Stephen is a keen bird-watcher and huge nature-lover, so think lots of scenes of the wonder of migration, the coming of the spring light and the re-emerging of wildlife in the English countryside.

That sounds wonderful – especially as I’m married to a nature lover called Stephen! I’m delighted to have a copy of How to Find Your Way Home on my TBR!

I like to think this is a novel with a big plot too though! And there’s a big, I hope, satisfying twist. I just got a message from a reader yesterday in fact that said, “This book! I didn’t want it to end!! …and did not see that twist coming AT ALL!!” Messages like that are music to my ears, obviously, since that twist was really hard to come up with!  My challenge with this book was to write something more lyrical but which also had a really compelling storyline so I hope I pulled that off.

I’m sure you have! 

What else have you brought along and why have you brought it?

I’ve brought a photo of some artwork by the mural artist Simon Bates, which depicts Glasgow’s patron Saint Mungo in modern day clothes, holding a robin. This is a reference to the legend that says that St. Mungo’s prayed over this bird – that had actually died and belonged to his master St. Serf – and brought it back to life.

I didn’t know this though, when I saw it on a wall on a street corner of Glasgow. I’d gone there for a solo writing retreat to wrestle with the book that was to become How to Find Your Way Home back in 2019. I was really struggling and thinking of throwing in the towel if I’m honest.

I’m very glad you didn’t.

Then, on a walk around the city I came across this mural of a man (I just thought it was a picture of an ordinary man – perhaps a homeless man), with a bird in his hand and it obviously reminded me of Stephen, the main character in the book, who is a keen ornithologist and also homeless.

That’s quite spooky…

I took it as a huge sign from the universe that I should carry on with this novel! I am so glad I did.

I cannot wait to read How to Find Your Way Home. I have a feeling it will be exactly my kind of read Katy. Thank you so much for staying in with me and telling me all about it. Let me give readers a few more details:

How To Find Your Way Home

About Katy Regan

It’s almost a year since I stayed in with Tom Trott to chat all about the first book in his Cain thriller series, The Florentine in a post you’ll find here.

Today it’s my pleasure to reveal details of the second book in the series, The Nice Guy and the Devil which will be released on 5th May 2023 and is available for pre-order here.

Let me give you all the details:

The Nice Guy and the Devil

Nice, France — Retired CIA agent, Cain, is living a quiet life, trying to stay out of trouble.

But he can’t turn off his old instincts like a lightswitch.

When an unsuspecting American woman becomes the target of criminals, he can’t sit back and do nothing.

What starts as one good deed puts Cain in the sights of highly-trained mercenaries, brings him to the attention of INTERPOL, and puts him on a collision course with evil personified.

With no one he can trust, in a land of double-crosses, Cain must rely on his wits to survive.

Pre-order The Nice Guy and the Devil through the links here.

And if you’d like to catch up with the first book:

The Florentine

When Cain retired from the CIA, he moved to Florence, Italy to get away from his past.

He’s had nine years to enjoy fine wine, good food, and the Tuscan countryside.

But now his old boss has tracked him down, and he needs Cain to do one last job.

What starts as a simple trade entangles Cain in a web of secrets involving the mafia, an NSA whistleblower, and his own past.

With the Italian police and international assassins on his trail, he’ll have to survive the night to solve the mystery of who wants him dead.

Published on 6th May 2022, The Florentine is available for purchase here.

About Tom Trott

It’s a little over a year since I reviewed Holly Hepburn’s The Little Shop of Hidden Treasures for My Weekly in a post you’ll find here. Today I’m delighted to be part of the launch celebrations for her latest book Escape to Darling Cove. My huge thanks to Sara-Jade Virtue for inviting me to participate and for providing a copy of Escape to Darling Cove in return for an honest review.

Escape to Darling Cove was published yesterday, 5th January 2023, by Simon and Schuster and is available for purchase through the links here.

Escape to darling Cove

The brand new series from Holly Hepburn, perfect for fans of Cathy Bramley and Katie Fforde. Originally published as novellas, this paperback contains all fours parts of the story from irresistible beginning to heart-warming conclusion. 

Eve has always lived on Ennisfarne, an idyllic island just off the coast of Northumberland and only accessible when tides are low. There she runs a bar overlooking Darling Cove, a heavenly horseshoe-shaped beach named after her seafaring ancestors, whose links to the Farne Islands stretch back centuries.

Logan is a famous photographer desperate to evade the limelight after a difficult break-up. Renting a cottage from Eve, he chooses Ennisfarne in the hope of anonymity but is immediately spellbound by its natural beauty.

The pair don’t get off to the best start, butting heads over Eve’s adorable but boisterous Chocolate Labrador. But when Logan’s true identity is revealed, Eve realises her new tenant isn’t quite the man she thought he was. Is it too late to start again or will Logan’s island escape be over almost before it’s begun?

The brand new novel from Holly Hepburn, author of Coming Home to Brightwater Bay, will whisk you away to a sublime seaside retreat you’ll never want to leave.

My Review of Escape to Darling Cove

Logan needs a break from his hectic life.

Oh my goodness I loved Escape to Darling Cove. It is utterly gorgeous and transported me away from the cares of the world to its joyous setting. The descriptions of Ennisfarne Island are so convincingly beautiful it made me desperate to pack my bags and head there immediately. Holly Hepburn has a painterly style that creates such vivid and evocative images in the reader’s mind, truly bringing the landscape to life. The book is akin to a love letter to the Northumbrian coast. There’s a fabulous sense of community portrayed too which somehow seems to encompass the reader as well as Logan as he escapes from life. 

What also struck me about Holly Hepburn’s writing was the genuine warmth and humanity that permeates her story. Reading Escape to Darling Cove felt a bit like coming home. Initially published as four separate episodes, the narrative melds together without a hitch in a smooth, enticing story that I found enchanting. The plot romps along with a satisfying blend of glamour and the more ordinary aspects of life so that it feels balanced, credible and enticing.

The characters are equally wonderful. I loved Eve’s feisty independence even when it meant she was scuppering her own happiness. I loved, too, the fact that she is called Eve. Her name is befitting of someone who illustrates the full depth of a woman’s character. Logan is incredibly attractive – not because he is handsome and mixes with the rich and famous, but because he illustrates the true values in life as he learns to adjust to Ennisfarne‘s environment. Through Logan, Holly Hepburn gives her readers an insight into how they might simplify and improve their own lives, making them happier as a result. This is a powerful theme in the book. All the more minor characters are distinct, real and clearly drawn so that I could imagine Escape to Darling Cove translating brilliantly to a television series.

Other themes of trust, art, friendship, love, family, belonging and nature, for example, add texture and interest so that Escape to Darling Cove feels layered, authentic and absolutely absorbing. 

I absolutely adored Escape to Darling Cove. Certainly it is a love story, but it is so much more. Escape to Darling Cove is about finding meaningful value and contentment and Holly Hepburn’s skilful, mesmerising writing gives the reader those attributes in spades. Don’t miss this one! 

About Holly Hepburn

Holly Hepburn has wanted to write books for as long she can remember but she was too scared to try. One day she decided to be brave and dipped a toe into the bubble bath of romantic fiction with her first novella, Cupidity, and she’s never looked back. She often tries to be funny to be funny, except for when faced with traffic wardens and border control staff. Her favourite things are making people smile and Aidan Turner.

She’s tried many jobs over the years, from barmaid to market researcher and she even had a brief flirtation with modelling. These days she is mostly found writing.

You can follow Holly on Twitter @HollyH_Author and find her on Instagram.

The end of 2022 felt like enormously hard going so I needed a little light relief. My enormous thanks to Gavin at Luath Press for providing it by sending me a copy of Dinna Fash Yersel, Scotland! by Allan Morrison and illustrated by Bob Dewar.

Published by Luath on 21st December 2022, Dinna Fash Yersel, Scotland! is available for purchase here.

Dinna Fash Yersel, Scotland!

These are tough times.

Prices spiralling! Climate change! International tension! Pandemics! It’s not hard to find things to worry about.

But Scottish grannies can be an oasis of calm. Their wit and wisdom, their compassion and knowhow, their measured good sense and withering reproaches are exactly what is required.

Scottish grannies are reassuring. They are relevant. And they need to be heard.

My review of Dinna Fash Yersel, Scotland!

An anthology of Scottish grannies’ sayings for challenging times!

Dinna Fash Yersel, Scotland! is enormous fun. Filled with Bob Dewar’s cartoon style images, the pictures alone are enough to raise the spirits as grannies appear in all shapes and sizes and there are small, appropriate images in between each saying.

I found the vernacular spellings created exactly the right tone and I had great fun trying out my Scottish accent reading them aloud. I certainly needed the translations underneath many of them and found it fascinating to see if the translation provided matched what I would have put. Some of them seemed totally accurate and others felt a tongue-in-cheek English received pronunciation approximation of the Scottish. This added to the sense of fun. For example, I loved ‘It’s hangin’ fae ma bottom lip shoutin’ Tarzan’ translated as ‘Find the article yourself’. (And try saying that with a strong Scottish accent – just brilliant). When my Pilates class begins again I am going to use ‘Ah’m fair puckled’ when it all gets a bit too strenuous!

Divided into twelve sections covering everything from love, through health to international tensions, there really is something for every reader here. I read the book through in order but I think it would be even better dipped into at random. Humour aside, I think there’s an underlying pragmatism and appreciation of an older, often overlooked, generation that helps make Dinna Fash Yersel, Scotland! all the better.

I laughed aloud at Dinna Fash Yersel, Scotland!, had to think about some of the meanings and thoroughly the book. Great fun!

About Allan Morrison

Allan Morrison is a prolific author whose previous books include Goanae No Dae That, Last Tram Tae Auchenshuggle, Haud ma Chips Ah’ve Drapped the Wean, Naw First Minister, Haud that Bus and Should’ve Gone Tae Specsavers, Ref! His media appearances include The One Show, The Riverside Show, Out of Doors and Good Morning Scotland. He is involved in charity work and after-dinner speaking, and is a member of his local Rotary club. Allan enjoys hillwalking, sport and travel, and is a keen football supporter. He and his wife live in the west of Scotland, and he is the proud grandfather of four grandchildren.

About Bob Dewar

Bob Dewar was born in Edinburgh at an early age. 16 years later he was published nationally. He worked in D.C. Thomson’s studio where, among other things, he ghosted Dennis the Menace. After going freelance, he did political and social commentary for The Scotsman newspaper. He has illustrated books for the children’s and English Speaking Departments of Oxford University Press, Fife Educational Social Development, A&C Black and many Scottish publishers – Birlinn, Luath, Black & White and Itchy Coo. His work has also appeared in The Times, The Herald, Scottish Field and The Scotch Malt Whisky Society.

Having thoroughly enjoyed Death in Heels by Kitty Murphy I am delighted to be part of the blog tour today and able to give away a paperback copy to a luck UK reader. My huge thanks to Rhiannon at FmCM for inviting me to participate and for sending me a copy of Death in Heels that I previously reviewed here.

Death in Heels was published by Thomas & Mercer on 1st January 2023 and is available for purchase here.

Death in Heels

When Fi went to support her best friend’s drag debut, she didn’t imagine a killer would be going to watch it too. And they’re waiting for their grand finale…

Fi McKinnery is full of nerves as the gorgeous Mae B (aka her best friend Robyn) takes to the stage for her debut at drag club TRASH, but Mae B is dazzling…that is until local queen Eve lampoons her performance and ruins the show. So when Eve turns up dead later that night, face down in the gutter of a rain-soaked Dublin street, the timing seems awfully suspicious…

The police are quick to rule Eve’s death an accident, but Fi is convinced it was foul play. When her ‘Hagatha Christie’ amateur sleuthing backfires, it drives a wedge between Fi and Robyn. But when another friend is targeted in a hit-and-run, she’s determined to get this twisted killer caught, no matter what the consequences.

Even as the rest of the gang start to distance themselves, Fi is certain that they’re all in terrible danger. Something dark is lurking beneath the feathers, glitter and sequins of Dublin’s drag scene. And it’s not just the sticky floor and cracked mirrors. Someone is targeting the queens. When another member of the group is gunned down, it’s clear the danger is coming ever closer. Can Fi stop the killer before any more of her friends are hurt?

Giveaway: A paperback Copy of Death in Heels

For your chance to win a paperback copy of Death in Heels by Kitty Murphy, click here.

UK only. Entries close at 11.59PM on Sunday 8th January 2023. Please note that the winner must supply a UK postal address and that the prize will be sent from FMcM. Postal strikes may affect delivery times.

About Kitty Murphy

Kitty lives with her husband, Roger, on the very westerly edge of Co. Clare, Ireland. She adores drag in all its forms and crime fiction in all its chilling splendour. Kitty is bi/queer. From a well-spent youth divided equally between the library and the LGBTQ+ scene, it was only a matter of time until both worlds collided in a flurry of fictional sequins.

For more information, follow Kitty on Twitter @scribblingink1 or find her on Instagram.

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

My enormous thanks to Robert Bryndza for sending me a copy of his latest Kate Marshall thriller Devil’s Way in return for an honest review. I’m delighted to share that review today.

Devil’s Way will be published by Raven Street on 12th January 2023 and is available for purchase through the links here.

Devil’s Way

THE TRUTH HIDES IN THE DARK

Kate Marshall’s investigation into a young boy’s disappearance sends her down an unexpectedly twisted path in a riveting thriller by multi-million bestselling author, Robert Bryndza. 

When Private Investigator Kate Marshall is rushed to hospital after being pulled into a riptide current in the sea, the near-death experience leaves her shaken. During her recovery, she befriends Jean, an elderly lady on the same ward. Jean tells the harrowing story of how her three-year-old grandson, Charlie, went missing eleven years ago during a camping trip on Dartmoor.

By the time Kate is well enough to go home, she’s agreed to take on the case, but when Kate and her trusty sidekick Tristan start to look at the events of that fateful night, they discover that Jean has a dark past that could have put Charlie in jeopardy.

Was Charlie abducted? Or did he fall into Devil’s Way? A rushing river that vanishes into a gorge close to where they were camping.

When Kate and Tristan discover that a social worker who flagged concerns about Jean and her daughter was found brutally murdered shortly after Charlie vanished, it makes them question everything they thought they knew about the family…

Filled with twists and turns, Devil’s Way is the fourth Kate Marshall novel and the most gripping and satisfying yet!

My Review of Devil’s Way

Kate Marshall has a new case to solve.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Devil’s Way. There’s a vivacity to Robert Bryndza’s style that draws in the reader and propels them through the narrative from the dramatic opening pages to the very last word. I’m so annoyed with myself that it has taken me so long to discover his books. 

A really vivid sense of place in the area where Charlie disappeared adds a sensation of malevolence that heightens the reader’s sense of dread and tension. There’s an almost supernatural undercurrent that I found creepy and effective. I thought the plot was assured, credible and completely engaging because there are resonances of real cases so that this story feels authentic and believable even whilst it’s being entertaining. Devil’s Way is all the better for not being a standard police procedural, but having private investigators who give a fresh perspective to solving crimes. 

I thought Kate was an inspired character. A female protagonist heading for fifty feels such a treat and a change from the usual 30 somethings of so many stories. I loved the fact that she’s multi-faceted with a murky past and her own problems that make her feel real and genuine. It didn’t matter at all that this is the fourth book in the series and I haven’t read the others because Kate’s back story was woven in with subtlety and Devil’s Way could easily be enjoyed as a stand alone text. I also found Jean fascinating because Robert Bryndza writes with human understanding that gets beneath the surface of a character and explores the psychological and social elements that make them who they are. His weaving in of mental health, social services and the way we present public personas adds depth too, making for a really satisfying read. 

I found Devil’s Way fast paced, absorbing and fascinating. Although the story is resolved perfectly, Robert Bryndza leaves the reader pondering the outcome and thinking about the characters long after they’ve finished reading so that the book has a resonance that endures. I really appreciated this level of maturity and sensitivity. Devil’s Way may be my first Robert Bryndza read, but it most certainly won’t be the last. I really enjoyed it and can highly recommend it.

About Robert Bryndza

Robert Bryndza is an international bestselling author, best known for his page-turning crime and thriller novels, which have sold over five million copies.

His crime debut, The Girl in the Ice was released in February 2016, introducing Detective Chief Inspector Erika Foster. Within five months it sold one million copies, reaching number one in the Amazon UK, USA and Australian charts. To date, The Girl in the Ice has sold over 1.5 million copies in the English language and has been sold into translation in 29 countries. It was nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award for Mystery & Thriller (2016), the Grand prix des lectrices de Elle in France (2018), and it won two reader voted awards, The Thrillzone Awards best debut thriller in The Netherlands (2018) and The Dead Good Papercut Award for best page turner at the Harrogate Crime Festival (2016).

Robert has released a further five novels in the Erika Foster series, The Night Stalker, Dark Water, Last Breath, Cold Blood and Deadly Secrets, all of which have been global bestsellers, and in 2017 Last Breath was a Goodreads Choice Award nominee for Mystery and Thriller. Fatal Witness, the seventh Erika Foster novel, has recently been published.

Most recently, Robert created a new crime thriller series based around the central character Kate Marshall, a police officer turned private detective. The first book, Nine Elms, was an Amazon USA #1 bestseller and an Amazon UK top five bestseller, and the series has been sold into translation in 18 countries. The second book in the series is the global bestselling, Shadow Sands and the third book, Darkness Falls.

Robert was born in Lowestoft, on the east coast of England. He studied at Aberystwyth University, and the Guildford School of Acting, and was an actor for several years, but didn’t find success until he took a play he’d written to the Edinburgh Festival. This led to the decision to change career and start writing. He self-published a bestselling series of romantic comedy novels, before switching to writing crime. Robert lives with his husband in Slovakia, and is lucky enough to write full-time.

You can find out more about Robert and his books on his website. You can also find him on Facebook and Instagram.

I thought long and hard about sharing my favourite reads this year because I can imagine it’s dispiriting for those authors who don’t find themselves on the innumerable lists that pop up at this time. However, I also thought that life is tough for us all and any celebration must be worth sharing.

Those who know me, know that as soon as I’ve finished reading a book I allocate a gut reaction score out of 100 to my blogging spreadsheet . Books that score 95-100 automatically become my books of the year. That doesn’t mean that there haven’t been other 5* reads – far from it – as I allocate five stars to books that I score 85+/100. This means that I don’t have an annual top 20 or any other number. I might have 30 top books one year and only three the next! According to Goodreads I have read 148 books this year, but not all those I read appear there, I’ve read others that I’ll be reviewing in 2023 and some I simply didn’t like so didn’t review. In my view, there’s no point in being negative. I’m a blogger, not a critic!

So, in the order that I reviewed them, out of the 165 or so books I read in 2022, here are my absolute favourites including thrillers, historical fiction, flash fiction, poetry, short stories, romantic fiction, memoir, non-fiction, literary fiction, children’s books and (can you believe it?) one with a supernatural horror element:

The Library by Bella Osborne

Two lonely bookworms. An unexpected friendship. A library that needs their help

Teenager Tom has always blended into the background of life. After a row with his dad and facing an unhappy future at the dog food factory, he escapes to the library.

Pensioner Maggie has been happily alone with her beloved novels for ten years – at least, that’s what she tells herself.

When they meet, they recognise something in each other that will change both their lives for ever.

Then the library comes under threat of closure, and they must join forces to prove that it’s not just about books – it’s the heart of their community.

They are determined to save it – because some things are worth fighting for.

Published by Head of Zeus imprint Aria, you’ll find my review of The Library on the My Weekly website here.

Behind the Veil by E.J. Dawson

Can she keep the secrets of her past to rescue a girl tormented by a ghost?

In 1920s Los Angeles, Letitia Hawking reads the veil between life and death. A scrying bowl allows her to experience the final moments of the deceased. She brings closure to grief-stricken war widows and mourning families.

For Letitia, it is a penance. She knows no such peace.

For Alasdair Driscoll, it may be the only way to save his niece, Finola, from her growing night terrors. But when Letitia sees a shadowy figure attached to the household, it rouses old fears of her unspeakable past in England.

When a man comes to her about his missing daughter, the third girl to go missing in as many months, Letitia can’t help him when she can’t see who’s taken them.

As a darkness haunts Letitia’s vision, she may not be given a choice in helping the determined Mr Driscoll, or stop herself falling in love with him. But to do so risks a part of herself she locked away, and to release it may cost Letitia her sanity and her heart.

Way out of my usual comfort zone, I loved this one and you’ll find my review of Behind the Veil published by Literary Wanderlust here.

The Language of Food by Annabel Abbs

Eliza Acton, despite having never before boiled an egg, became one of the world’s most successful cookery writers, revolutionizing cooking and cookbooks around the world. Her story is fascinating, uplifting and truly inspiring.

Told in alternate voices by the award-winning author of The Joyce Girl, and with recipes that leap to life from the page, The Language of Food by Annabel Abbs is the most thought-provoking and page-turning historical novel you’ll read this year, exploring the enduring struggle for female freedom, the power of female friendship, the creativity and quiet joy of cooking and the poetry of food, all while bringing Eliza Action out of the archives and back into the public eye.

Published by Simon and Schuster, you’ll find my review of The Language of Food here.

Reputation by Sarah Vaughan

Emma Webster is a respectable MP.

Emma Webster is a devoted mother.

Emma Webster is innocent of the murder of a tabloid journalist.

Emma Webster is a liar.

#Reputation: The story you tell about yourself. And the lies others choose to believe…

Published by Simon and Schuster you’ll find my review of Reputation here.

100 Voices edited by Miranda Roszkowski

100 Voices is an anthology of writing by women across the country on what achievement means for them, and how they have come to find their own voice. Featuring poetry, fiction and memoir, the pieces range from notes on making lemon curd, to tales of marathon running and riding motorbikes, to accounts of a refugee eating English food for the first time, a newlywed learning her mother tongue and a woman rebuilding her life after an abusive relationship.

The poignant, funny and inspiring stories collected here are as varied and diverse as their authors, who include established names such as Louise Jensen, Sabrina Mahfouz, Yvonne Battle-Felton and Miranda Keeling alongside a host of exciting new writers. Taken together, they build a picture of what it’s really like to be a woman in the UK today.

Published by Unbound, you’ll find my review of 100 Voices here.

The Green Indian Problem by Jade Leaf Willetts

Set in the valleys of South Wales at the tail end of Thatcher’s Britain, The Green Indian Problem is the story of Green, a seven year-old with intelligence beyond his years – an ordinary boy with an extraordinary problem: everyone thinks he’s a girl.

Green sets out to try and solve the mystery of his identity, but other issues keep cropping up – God, Father Christmas, cancer – and one day his best friend goes missing, leaving a rift in the community and even more unanswered questions. Dealing with deep themes of friendship, identity, child abuse and grief, The Green Indian Problem is, at heart, an all-too-real story of a young boy trying to find out why he’s not like the other boys in his class.

Published by Renard Press, you’ll find my review of The Green Indian Problem here.

The Lost Whale by Hannah Gold

What if you could communicate with a whale?

Rio has been sent to live with a grandmother he barely knows in California, while his mum is in hospital back home. Alone and adrift, the only thing that makes him smile is joining his new friend Marina on her dad’s whale watching trips. That is until an incredible encounter with White Beak, a gentle giant of the sea changes everything. But when White Beak goes missing, Rio must set out on a desperate quest to find his whale and somehow save his mum.

Dive into this incredible story about the connection between a boy and a whale and the bond that sets them both free.

Perfect for readers of 8+, beautifully illustrated throughout by Levi Pinfold – winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal and illustrator of Harry Potter 20th anniversary edition covers.

Published by Harper Collins’ Children’s Books you’ll find my review of The Lost Whale here.

Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu

It is 1938 in China, and the Japanese are advancing. A young mother, Meilin, is forced to flee her burning city with here four-year-old son, Renshu, and embark on an epic journey across China. For comfort, they turn to their most treasured possession – a beautifully illustrated hand scroll. Its ancient fables offer solace and wisdom as they travel through their ravaged country, seeking refuge.

Years later, Renshu has settled in America as Henry Dao. His daughter is desperate to understand her heritage, but he refuses to talk about his childhood. How can he keep his family safe in this new land when the weight of his history threatens to drag them down?

Spanning continents and generations, Peach Blossom Spring is a bold and moving look at the history of modern China, told through the story of one family. It’s about the power of our past, the hope for a better future, and the search for a place to call home.

Published by Headline imprint Wildfire you’ll find my review of Peach Blossom Spring here.

The Clockwork Girl by Anna Mazzola

Paris, 1750.

In the midst of an icy winter, as birds fall frozen from the sky, chambermaid Madeleine Chastel arrives at the home of the city’s celebrated clockmaker and his clever, unworldly daughter.

Madeleine is hiding a dark past, and a dangerous purpose: to discover the truth of the clockmaker’s experiments and record his every move, in exchange for her own chance of freedom.

For as children quietly vanish from the Parisian streets, rumours are swirling that the clockmaker’s intricate mechanical creations, bejewelled birds and silver spiders, are more than they seem.

And soon Madeleine fears that she has stumbled upon an even greater conspiracy. One which might reach to the very heart of Versailles…

A intoxicating story of obsession, illusion and the price of freedom.

Published by Orion, you’ll find my review of The Clockwork Girl here.

A Little Hope by Ethan Joella

Set in an idyllic Connecticut town over the course of a year, A Little Hope follows the intertwining lives of a dozen neighbours as they confront everyday desires and fears: an illness, a road not taken, a broken heart, a betrayal.

Freddie and Greg Tyler seem to have it all: a comfortable home at the edge of the woods, a beautiful young daughter, a bond that feels unbreakable. But when Greg is diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of cancer, the sense of certainty they once knew evaporates overnight. Meanwhile, Darcy Crowley is still coming to terms with the loss of her husband as she worries over her struggling adult son, Luke. Elsewhere, Ginger Lord returns home longing for a lost relationship; Ahmed Ghannam wonders if he’ll ever find true love; and Greg’s boss, Alex Lionel, grapples with a secret of his own.

 Celebrating the grace in everyday life, this powerful debut immerses the reader in a community of friends, family, and neighbours and identifies the ways that love and forgiveness can help us survive even the most difficult of life’s challenges.

Published by Muswell Press you’ll find my review of A Little Hope here.

Only May by Carol Lovekin

Listen. The bee walks across my finger, slow as anything and I can see through the gauzy wing, to the detail of my skin. You aren’t looking in the right place.

If you look her in the eye and tell a lie, May Harper will see it. And if she doesn’t see it, the bees will hum it in her ear. Her kind mother and her free-spirited aunt have learned to choose their words with care. Her beloved invalid father lives in a world of his own, lost in another time, the war he cannot forget.

On May’s seventeenth birthday, a casual evasion from her employer hints at a secret hiding at the heart of the family. Determined to discover the truth, May starts listening at doors… She begins watching the faces of the people she loves best in all the world, those she suspects are hiding the biggest lie of all.

Published by Honno, you’ll find my review of Only May here.

A Golden Cornish Summer by Phillipa Ashley

Under the golden Cornish sun, buried treasure and family secrets will change Emma’s life forever…

Emma loved her life in the seaside village of Silver Cove. But when the discovery of sunken treasure ignited a feud between her family and that of Luke, her first love, everything fell apart. Heartbroken and betrayed, she fled.

Now, as she wades into the sparkling surf for the first time in fifteen years, she remembers everything she loved about this beautiful place. Then a huge wave knocks her off her feet. Wet and dripping, Emma is rescued by none other than Luke – who is, to her dismay, even more handsome than ever.

As their paths continue to cross, and Emma is reminded of everything she ran away from, she starts to wonder if returning home was a huge mistake.

Or could the real treasure have been waiting here for her all along?

A heart-warming read full of sun, sea, friendship and romance. Fans of Sarah Morgan and Trisha Ashley will be hooked from the very first page.

Published by Harper Collins’ imprint Avon, you’ll find my review of A Golden Cornish Summer on the My Weekly website here.

Stargazer by Laurie Petrou

IT’S A FINE LINE BETWEEN ADMIRATION AND ENVY.

Diana Martin has lived her life in the shadow of her sadistic older brother. She quietly watches the family next door, enthralled by celebrity fashion designer Marianne Taylor and her feted daughter, Aurelle.

She wishes she were a ‘Taylor girl’.

By the summer of 1995, the two girls are at university together, bonded by a mutual desire to escape their wealthy families and personal tragedies and forge new identities.

They are closer than lovers, intoxicated by their own bond, falling into the hedonistic seduction of the woods and the water at a remote university that is more summer camp than campus.

But when burgeoning artist Diana has a chance at fame, cracks start to appear in their friendship. To what lengths is Diana willing to go to secure her own stardom?

Published by Verve, you’ll find my review of Stargazer here.

Ginger and Me by Elissa Soave

Wendy is lonely but coping.

All nineteen-year-old Wendy wants is to drive the 255 bus around Uddingston with her regulars on board, remember to buy milk when it runs out and just to be okay. After her mum died, there’s nobody to remind her to eat and what to do each day.

And Wendy is ready to step out of her comfort zone.

Each week she shows her social worker the progress she’s made, like the coasters she bought to spruce up the place, even if she forgets to make tea. And she even joins a writers’ group to share the stories she writes, like the one about a bullied boy who goes to Mars.

But everything changes when Wendy meets Ginger.

A teenager with flaming orange hair, Ginger’s so brave she’s wearing a coat that isn’t even waterproof. For the first time, Wendy has a real best friend. But as they begin the summer of their lives, Wendy wonders if things were simpler before. And that’s before she realizes just how much trouble Ginger is about to get them in…

Published by Harper Collins’ imprint HQ, you’ll find my review of Ginger and Me on the My Weekly website here.

All I Said Was True by Imran Mahmood

When Amy Blahn was murdered on a London office rooftop, Layla Mahoney was there. She held Amy as she died. But all she can say when police arrest her is that ‘It was Michael. Find Michael and you’ll find out everything you need to know.’

The problem is, the police can’t find Michael – there is no evidence that he exists. And time is running out before they have to either charge Layla with Amy’s murder, or let her go.

As a lawyer, Layla knows that she has only forty-eight hours to convince police to investigate the man she knows only as ‘Michael’ instead of her.

But the more she attempts to control her interviews with police, the more the truth leaks out – and how much of that truth can Layla risk being exposed?

Published by Bloomsbury Raven, you’ll find my review of All I Said Was True here.

Letter From A Tea Garden by Abi Oliver

1965, an English country mansion.

Eleanora Byngh is not in a good state. Wedded to the whisky bottle and with her house crumbling round her ears, her days seem destined to follow a lonely (and grumpy) downhill path.

When the post brings an unexpected invitation to return to the Indian tea gardens of her childhood, Eleanora risks breaking open painful memories of her younger years, lived across a tumultuous century.

As relationships with her new-found family face their own challenges, she is offered fresh truths, the chance of love and unexpected new life – if she is prepared to take them.

You’ll find my review of Letter From A Tea Garden here.

The Lighthouse Bookshop by Sharon Gosling

At the heart of a tiny community in a remote village just inland from the Aberdeenshire coast stands an unexpected lighthouse. Built two centuries ago by an eccentric landowner, it has become home to the only bookshop for miles around.

Rachel is an incomer to the village. She arrived five years ago and found a place she could call home. So when the owner of the Lighthouse Bookshop dies suddenly, she steps in to take care of the place, trying to help it survive the next stage of its life.

But when she discovers a secret in the lighthouse, long kept hidden, she realises there is more to the history of the place than she could ever imagine. Can she uncover the truth about the lighthouse’s first owner? And can she protect the secret history of the place?

Published by Simon and Schuster, you’ll find my review of The Lighthouse Bookshop on the My Weekly website here.

The Lost Man of Bombay by Vaseem Khan

Bombay, 1950

When the body of a white man is found frozen in the Himalayan foothills near Dehra Dun, he is christened the Ice Man by the national media. Who is he? How long has he been there? Why was he killed?

As Inspector Persis Wadia and Metropolitan Police criminalist Archie Blackfinch investigate the case in Bombay, they uncover a trail left behind by the enigmatic Ice Man – a trail leading directly into the dark heart of conspiracy.

Meanwhile, two new murders grip the city. Is there a serial killer on the loose, targeting Europeans?

Rich in atmosphere, the thrilling third chapter in the CWA Historical Dagger-winning Malabar House series pits Persis against a mystery from beyond the grave, unfolding against the backdrop of a turbulent post-colonial India, a nation struggling to redefine itself in the shadow of the Raj.

Published by Hodder and Stoughton, you’ll find my review of The Lost Man of Bombay here.

I Am Ill With Hope: poems and sketches by Gommie

In 2019 poet-artist Gommie began walking the coastline of an England with nothing but a backpack, a tent and an unusually large collection of pens. His aim? Searching for hope during increasingly hard times.

From losing his way on the Dover Hills to bankruptcy in Rhyl and wild camping in Scarborough, Gommie’s extraordinary journey is still ongoing, and his findings, a deeply moving mixture of texture, illustration, poetry and verbatim conversations, are a gentle homage to the often-overlooked places we inhabit and the frequently forgotten voices we hear.

Published by Salamander Street, you’ll find my review of I Am Ill With Hope here.

The Manhattan Girls by Gill Paul

NEW YORK CITY, 1921

An impossible dream.

The war is over, the twenties are roaring, but in the depths of the city that never sleeps, Dorothy Parker is struggling to make her mark in a man’s world. A broken woman.

She’s penniless, she’s unemployed and her marriage is on the rocks when she starts a bridge group with three extraordinary women – but will they be able to save her from herself?

A fight for survival.

When tragedy strikes, and everything Dorothy holds dear is threatened, it’s up to Peggy, Winifred and Jane to help her confront the truth before it’s too late. Because the stakes may be life or death…

Published by Harper Collins’ Avon imprint, you’ll find my review of The Manhattan Girls here.

One Last Gift by Emily Stone

For as long as Cassie can remember, it had been the three of them: Cassie, her big brother Tom, and Tom’s annoying best friend Sam.

Now, Tom is sorted, Sam is flying high, and Cassie thinks she’s figured it all out. Then tragedy happens and three becomes two.

For Cassie picking herself up seems unimaginable. Until she finds an envelope addressed to her, asking her to follow the trail to one last gift…

And suddenly what seems like an ending leads Cassie to something unexpected, beautiful and new…

Published by Headline Review, you’ll find my review of One Last Gift here.

Skip to the End by Molly James

Three kisses. Two break ups. One happy ending…

Amy Daniels has a pretty nice life. Her career is on the up, she loves her friends, and she’s about to buy her very own flat. On a good day, Amy could be described as a catch – so why is she perpetually single?

The trouble is, Amy can see something no one else can: the end. As soon as she kisses someone, she knows, in intimate, vivid detail, how their relationship will end. A screaming argument in the middle of the supermarket over milk. An explicit email sent to the wrong address. A hasty escape through a bathroom window on the second date. At the altar – runaway-bride style. There seems to be no end to the unhappy endings.

After years of trying, and failing, to change a pre-written future, Amy has given up. But then she drunkenly kisses three men at her best friend’s wedding and sees three possible endings: two painful, one perfect. The problem is, Amy can’t really remember who she kissed, and worse, what ending belongs to which person – the only thing she knows for certain is that she’s determined to find out…

This novel will have you swirling with first date butterflies, crying with laughter and finally, brimming with joy. The perfect summer read for fans of Lindsey Kelk, Mhairi McFarlane and Sophie Cousens.

Published by Quercus, you’ll find my review of Skip to the End here.

Ravished by Anna Vaught

Ravished, subtitled A Series of Reflections on Age, Sex, Death, and Judgement, is the second collection from Anna Vaught. These are peculiar tales, weird fiction, gothic, unusual, full of literary allusion, threaded through with classical and Welsh reference, occasionally starring the author’s relatives and the Virgin Mary. Sometimes funny, morbid, potentially inspiring, Ravished is both revolting and pretty; both awful and yet optimistic in the stress it places on playful language and the abundance of the imagination. The stories explore revenge, angels, an encounter with faith, death and loss and are full of off-kilter experiences, such as a chat with the holy spirit on a bench, a love story in an embalming parlour, passing the time with the man who’s going to bury you and why you should never underestimate the power of the landscape or the weird outcast you underestimated.

Published by Reflex Press, you’ll find my review of Ravished here.

The Big Amazing Poetry Book edited by Gaby Morgan and illustrated by Chris Riddell

A brilliant introduction to 52 fantastic poets introduced by Roger McGough and illustrated by Chris Riddell. The Big Amazing Poetry Book is a warm, funny collection snd packed with different styles of poetry – ballads, riddles, tongue-twisters, shape poems, haikus, sonnets and raps – about seasons, festivals, animals, birds, love, war, food, fish and football and much more. There are 7 poems and a biography to showcase each poet and stunning line artwork on every page.

Published by Pan Macmillan Children’s Books, you’ll find my review of The Big Amazing Poetry Book here.

From Now by Amelia Henley

A heartbreaking tragedy.
Charlie left his hometown behind years ago and hasn’t looked back since. These days, with a successful career and a beautiful soon-to-be fiancée, he couldn’t be happier. But when he receives some unexpected news, his life is forever changed.

A life-changing choice.
Suddenly things are falling apart, and now Charlie has to care for his family. How is he supposed to look after a heartbroken little brother and a sullen teenage sister who want nothing to do with him? He’s completely at a loss and knows he can’t do it alone – not without the help of his oldest friend, Pippa.

The chance to start afresh.
As Charlie steps back into his old life, he soon realises it’s only his family who needs fixing, there’s also his relationship with Pippa too. But returning home is a painful reminder of all that he lost and tried so hard to forget. And if Charlie is to fight for what he wants, first he must face up to his own past and decide whether he is ready to let go…

Published by Harper Collins’ imprint HQ, you’ll find my Review of From Now On here.

Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson

1926, and in a country still recovering from the Great War, London has become the focus for a delirious new nightlife. In the clubs of Soho, peers of the realm rub shoulders with starlets, foreign dignitaries with gangsters, and girls sell dances for a shilling a time.

At the heart of this glittering world is notorious Nellie Coker, ruthless but also ambitious to advance her six children, including the enigmatic eldest, Niven whose character has been forged in the crucible of the Somme. But success breeds enemies, and Nellie’s empire faces threats from without and within. For beneath the dazzle of Soho’s gaiety, there is a dark underbelly, a world in which it is all too easy to become lost.

With her unique Dickensian flair, Kate Atkinson brings together a glittering cast of characters in a truly mesmeric novel that captures the uncertainty and mutability of life; of a world in which nothing is quite as it seems.

Published by Transworld, you’ll find my review of Shrines of Gaiety here.

Women Like Us by Amanda Prowse

I guess the first question to ask is, what kind of woman am I? Well, you know those women who saunter into a room, immaculately coiffed and primped from head to toe?

If you look behind her, you’ll see me.

From her childhood, where there was no blueprint for success, to building a career as a bestselling novelist against all odds, Amanda Prowse explores what it means to be a woman in a world where popularity, slimness, beauty and youth are currency―and how she overcame all of that to forge her own path to happiness.

Sometimes heartbreaking, often hilarious and always entirely relatable, Prowse details her early struggles with self-esteem and how she coped with the frustrating expectations others had of how she should live. Most poignantly, she delves into her toxic relationship with food, the hardest addiction she has ever known, and how she journeyed out the other side.

One of the most candid memoirs you’re ever likely to read, Women Like Us provides welcome insight into how it is possible―against the odds―to overcome insecurity, body consciousness and the ubiquitous imposter syndrome to find happiness and success, from a woman who’s done it all, and then some.

Published by Little A, you’ll find my review of Women Like Us here.

The Echoes of Love by Jenny Ashcroft

Under the Cretan sun, in the summer of 1936, two young people fall in love…

Eleni has been coming to Crete her entire life, swapping her English home for cherished sun-baked summers with her grandfather, in the shoreside villa her lost mama grew up in. When she arrives in 1936, she believes the long, hot weeks ahead will be no different to so many that have gone before. But someone else is visiting the island that year too: a young German man called Otto. The two of them meet, and – far from the Nazi’s Berlin Olympics, the brewing civil war in Spain – share the happiest time of their lives; a summer of innocence lost, and love discovered; one that is finite, but not the end.

When, in 1941, the island falls to a Nazi invasion, Eleni and Otto meet there once more. It is a different place to the one they knew. Secrets have become currency, traded for lives, and trust is a luxury few can indulge in. Eleni has returned to fight for her home, Otto to occupy it. They are enemies, and their love is not only treacherous, it is dangerous – but will it destroy them, or prove strong enough to overcome the ravages of war?

An epic tale of secrets, love, loyalty, family and how far you’d go to keep those you love safe, The Echoes of Love is an exquisite and deeply moving love letter to Crete – one that will move every reader to tears.

Published by Harper Collins’ imprint HQ, you’ll find my review on the My Weekly website here.

The Empire by Michael Ball

Welcome to The Empire theatre

1922. When Jack Treadwell arrives at The Empire, in the middle of a rehearsal, he is instantly mesmerised. But amid the glitz and glamour, he soon learns that the true magic of the theatre lies in its cast of characters – both on stage and behind the scenes.

There’s stunning starlet Stella Stanmore and Hollywood heartthrob Lancelot Drake; and Ruby Rowntree, who keeps the music playing, while Lady Lillian Lassiter, theatre owner and former showgirl, is determined to take on a bigger role. And then there’s cool, competent Grace Hawkins, without whom the show would never go on . . . could she be the leading lady Jack is looking for?

When long-held rivalries threaten The Empire’s future, tensions rise along with the curtain. There is treachery at the heart of the company and a shocking secret waiting in the wings. Can Jack discover the truth before it’s too late, and the theatre he loves goes dark?

Published by Zaffre, you’ll find my review of The Empire here.

Keeping A Christmas Promise by Jo Thomas

One Icelandic Christmas holiday. One snowstorm. An adventure they’ll never forget!

Twenty-five years ago, Freya and her three best friends created a bucket list. The future seemed bright and full of hope . . . But now they are travelling to Iceland in memory of the friend they’ve lost, determined to fulfil her dream of seeing the Northern Lights at Christmas.

They didn’t count on an avalanche leaving them stranded! Handsome local, Pétur, comes to the rescue, showing them how the community survives the hard winter. With Christmas approaching, Freya and her friends throw themselves into the festivities, decorating and cooking for the villagers using delicious local ingredients.

But will they manage to see the Northern Lights? And can Freya’s own dreams come true, this Christmas?

Published by Penguin, you’ll find my review of Keeping A Christmas Promise on the My Weekly website here.

The Cornish Cream Tea Bookshop by Cressida McLaughlin

Ollie Spencer has started a new life in the idyllic Cornish seaside town of Port Karadow. Throwing herself into her job at the town’s bookshop, A New Chapter, is one way to make friends. The shop is glitzing up for first Christmas and Ollie hopes her inspired ideas will give the shop the edge it needs to dazzle the town.

But far from being the Sugar Plum fairy the place needs, Ollie is fast becoming its Christmas pudding. With the bookshop’s success at stake, Ollie turns to twinkly-eyed café owner Max for help. Can he help Ollie to turn the page, and put the sparkle back into her Cornish dream?

Published by Harper Collins, you’ll find my review of The Cornish Cream Tea Bookshop on the My Weekly website here.

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My Favourite Read of 2022

You deserve a medal if you’re still with me after all that, but I just have one more thing to add and that’s my outright favourite book of 2022. I loved every single one of those listed above, but one book stood out above all else for me and that was The Echoes of Love by Jenny Ashcroft. The Echoes of Love certainly has romantic love, but it encompasses so many forms of love – and hatred – is authentic in time and place and has such relevance for what is happening in today’s world that I simply couldn’t fault it.

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I hope you’ve found a book that appeals amongst my favourite reads. Here’s to a 2023 filled with wonderful stories. Happy New Year!