Out of Bounds by Val McDermid - Review

After I read the first Karen Pirie book recently I realised I actually really liked her - I don't like some of Val's other series - so when I came across three more of the Karen Pirie books while on an afternoon out in Holmfirth I bought them. They were only a couple of quid each so I did well! This is the fourth one in the series and there's a massive spoiler for something that must have happened in book two or three, but I don't really care about that and I'll get around to them eventually. I made my mum read the first one and she really enjoyed it, but she says she needs to read them in order! So I will lend this to her at some point. 

Karen is DCI of the Historic Crimes Unit, which looks at cold cases, and in this book the unit has been moved to Edinburgh. She is going through something - which I won't spoil - and she's taken to walking around late at night, where she meets some Syrian asylum seekers. This is one small strand of the book which I actually really liked. 

But the main case she is looking at is the rape and murder of Tina Macdonald twenty years ago. No one was ever caught for her murder. But then some lads get into a joyride and the driver ends up in a coma. When his DNA is matched against the database, it turns out that Tina's murderer must have been a close male relative of his. Problem is: Ross Garvie was adopted and he doesn't know about it, and his records are sealed. Karen has to go to court for the right to access the records. I found that really interesting actually. 

She also meets a friend of hers who is a social worker, and while she's there, a detective is looking into the death of a man called Gabriel. At first it was considered suicide, and then a murder, but then Karen's colleague has decided it is a suicide after all and is basically ready to shut the case. But Karen's interest is piqued. It turns out that Gabriel's mother, Caroline, was killed in a place explosion over Scotland twenty five years ago. Flying the plane was an MP who had been outspoken about the IRA, so the death was thought to be terrorist activity. But no one was ever caught and no one ever took responsibility. Karen doesn't like coincidences so she starts looking into the old case as well as Gabriel's death too. 

Her colleague in the unit, Jamie Murray, is nice enough but a bit dim. Karen needs to train him. She also struggles with her superiors because she is just such a maverick which yes is a huge cliche in crime novels but I like her so I just can't be cross about it. 

In all I really liked this and I found it really compelling so I will probably pick the others up soon. I'm giving this four out of five. 

A Terrible Kindness by Jo Browning Wroe - Review

This book was my choice for book club this year. I saw it while browsing in WH Smith or something last year, but didn't pick it up. But I thought it would be good for book club so chose it. I am writing this review before the book club meeting so I am intrigued as the what people will think. This is partly because the book didn't go how I thought it would at all. It wasn't that I disliked it, but the blurb doesn't quite match up to the actual narrative.

The main character is called Will. At the very beginning of the book he is nineteen and he has just qualified as an embalmer. He is at a fancy dinner with his girlfriend, Gloria, when the whole room - all embalmers celebrating - get the news that the Aberfan disaster has happened. Some volunteer embalmers are required to go to south Wales and help with the clean up of the bodies. Will volunteers and sets off from his home. He will be the closest he has been to his mother in five years, as she lives in Swansea. It's not clear why he is estranged from her for quite a while, but it becomes clear. 

The book splits off into different narratives in different time periods. It isn't confusing to follow but I'm not quite sure it was the right decision to make as the author, but I will take each strand separately.

First of all there's Aberfan itself. If you're not familiar, the disaster was that a coal spoil tip slid - after three weeks of rain - down the hillside into the school and into some houses. About 150 people died, including something like 116 children. It happened at about 9.15am so the kids had just arrived for the day. Hundreds of people - mostly miners - turned up to help pull bodies from the slurry, which solidified as it stopped moving, and their bodies were taken to two local chapels nearby. There really were embalmers who came over to help, including some from Ireland who also brought dozens of tiny coffins for the children. Will is a fictional version of these men and the story here is absolutely harrowing. I hadn't ever really thought about the trauma that the bodies must have gone through before being found. It took days for them to find all the bodies, and no survivors were found after 11am on the day of the disaster. It's something that I am interested in so I picked the book on this basis.

It is clear that Will suffers PTSD after his work in Aberfan, and really that's what the book is about. He marries Gloria but tells her that he doesn't want children because of what he saw small bodies go through. He suffers from nightmares and flashbacks. Reading this from a modern perspective is really interesting, actually.

But he also has PTSD from other events in his life, if you want my opinion. His dad and his dad's twein brother, Robert, were funeral directors, along with Robert's partner - in the business and sexual sense - Howard. Will's dad wants him to follow in the family business but his mother, Evelyn, is against it. She's quite jealous of the relationship that Will has with his uncle and Howard. Will's dad dies when he about eight years old. A couple of years later, Will is off to chorister school in Cambridge. He has a beautiful voice although later, as an adult, he rarely sings anymore because of his traumas. At the school he meets Martin, but it's clear he has become estranged from Martin, too. His uncle and Howard love him like their own, but they don't know what he went through in Aberfan.

I feel like Aberfan was just kind of a useful tool to show someone's trauma, which kind of annoyed me. I wonder what other people in my book club will think. I did like the book, though, and I'm giving it four out of five. 

Paper Girls Vol I by Brian K Vaughan and Cliff Chiang - Review

A friend of mine lent this to me ages ago and I picked it up one day in late August and read it really quickly. I liked it so much that I've got the rest in the series to read too. It's a really fun graphic novel and I would really recommend it whether you like graphic novels or not.

The comic is set in 1988 and all the action takes places in one day on the first of November. Erin is twelve years old and has recently got a job delivering newspapers. She is out delivering when she meets KJ, Mac, and Tiffany. A group of teenagers attacks them and steals a walkie talkie from them. The girls chase them and find some kind of strange machine in the basement of a house - it's sort of like a UFO. The girls then try to protect themselves from the strange groups of people who are fighting - the teenagers and some weird dinosaur-like creatures. 

I really liked the colours used in the comic, and the fashions of the girls which showed that the setting was the late eighties. I am so intrigued to read more and will probably do that soon. I'm giving this four out of five. 

One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid - Review

When I had listened to a couple of short audio books recently I was sort of back in the groove, and when scrolling I noticed this. I've enjoyed previous books by Taylor Jenkins Reid so thought I would probably like this one. It is eight hours long and it probably took me six weeks to listen to it while driving places, but I managed to keep the thread of the narrative pretty well. That's partly because it's quite a simple story, I think. But I did really like the narrator, too. She was interesting and kept me going with listening. I enjoyed doing so, so I might start another audio book soon!

The main character of the book is Emma. She is from small town New England and she grew up with her parents and her sister. She and her sister didn't really get along as teenagers. Their parents owned a book shop - Blair Books - and Emma and Marie were expected to work there. Marie wanted to grow up and run the store; Emma wanted to get as far away as possible. Sam Kemper worked in the shop too and one time, he asks Emma out. But she says no and he leaves for college and that's the end of that. 

Emma then meets Jesse at a party. He is captain of the swim team and a total jock. They're quite opposites but they get together. They go to university in California and make a life out there. Jesse becomes a camera man and Emma is a travel writer. They get married at Jesse's family cabin in Maine and have a happy first year of marriage. But then, on their first wedding anniversary, the helicopter that Jesse is travelling to a job in goes down. Jesse is presumed dead. 

But right from the beginning of the book, the reader (listener...) knows that Emma is engaged again - to Sam - but that Jesse is alive. It is three years after his 'death' and he is back - but what does this mean for Emma? The narrative flips backwards and forwards in time, showing how Emma went mad with grief when Jesse disappeared and how she managed to put herself back together and fall in love with Sam and get engaged to him. 

At all points it's obvious that she loves both men. She deeply loves them, but for different reasons. And she's different people when she's with each of them, which I think is one of the main points of the book - how people who love you bring out the best in you, but different sides. I really liked how the whole thing was portrayed. I felt nothing but sympathy for Emma, and for Sam, and mostly for Jesse. There's a lot of it where he's just quite dense, but it's hard to not feel sorry for him. 

I've just seen there's a film of that so I will definitely put that on my list of things to watch. I'm giving this four out of five. 

The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley - Review

I've previously read other books by Lucy Foley and generally found them intriguing and interesting, so I requested this at the library. But I didn't find this as interesting as her previous books. It seemed over complicated and needlessly long. A bit like writing for the sake of writing. I lost interest but by that point I needed to finish it just for completeness!

So, the main characters are Bella, Francesca, Owen, and Eddie. In the current time, around 2020, Francesca is opening a wellness retreat in the mansion that belonged to Francesca's grandparents. It is by the beach in Devon somewhere. She has ploughed an awful lot of money into it and there is going to be a grand opening. Francesca is mostly insufferable, relying on deep breaths and yoga to stop herself getting angry. Bella has managed to get herself a booking at the opening event, and she will be staying in one of the cabins in the woods on the edge of the property. It becomes clear that she has a grudge against Francesca and that she is here to exact revenge. Owen is Francesca's boyfriend, and the architect of much of the retreat. He's got a lot of secrets, though.

And Eddie is working behind the bar. He's local to the area, unlike most of the staff. The development of the retreat has not been popular in the area and Eddie is kind of caught in the middle of that. He's young and his past is linked to what happened when Francesca and Bella were young...

Because it turns out that one summer, Bella was visiting the area with her parents and staying at the local caravan park, when she meets Francesca - known then as Frankie - and becomes friends with her. Bella is wowed by the family and the house and just how rich they are. Frankie has two older brothers who are very good looking but also just rich and posh and arrogant. A lot of crap happens to explain why Bella is here on Francesca's opening weekend. 

The reader also knows that the main house has gone up in flames and that a body was found on the beach - but it's not obvious until later who the body is and what exactly happened.

I think my main problem is that I just really couldn't stand any of the characters. I liked Eddie best, I guess, but that's a low bar. I felt for Bella but I felt like the book was just a bit hackneyed. I'm giving it three out of five. 

The Light Between Us by Elaine Chiew - Spotlight and Blog Tour

Hello and welcome to my blog for my stop on the tour for The Light Between Us by Elaine Chiew! I had meant to read this book before I went away on holiday but I didn't get round to it. As I write it is the 8th of September and I have started it, so my review will come when I'm back. But I'm enjoying it so far - about 10% in - so I do definitely want to read it! 

But for now, please do read the blurb: 

The Light Between Us is a Southeast Asian historical romance that defies time and space as an archivist explores Singapore’s tumultuous past through a supernatural connection.

At work one night, photography archivist Charlie Sze-Toh receives a misdirected letter from Wang Tian Wei, a 1920s colonial era Chinese photographer. Through a mysterious digital folder and photographic plates, a conversation is sparked, leading to a romance that spans lifetimes.

In his time, Tian Wei scours a turbulent Singapore for his missing friend, Aiko, leading him to the perfumed chambers of a Japanese brothel. Meanwhile, in the modern day, Charlie struggles against a family dynamic dominated by her stepmother, a manipulative matriarch who uses family secrets as bargaining chips. Communication starts to become difficult and Tian Wei’s letters are tinged by the increasing threat of Japanese Occupation. Will one last fate-defying letter from Charlie allow Tian Wei to keep their love alive?

Inspired by her research into Singaporean historical archives, Elaine Chiew weaves Chinese mythology and early 20th century colonial Singapore into this speculative epic.

The Suspect by Rob Rinder - Review

After I previously read The Trial by Rob Rinder, I was intrigued when I heard about his next book, which stars the same barrister, Adam Green. I requested this at the library and although I had to wait a few weeks for it to arrive, it did, and I picked it up soon afterwards. I knew I wasn't able to renew it because it had other holds on it - clearly other people were keen to get to it too!

So yes, we're back in chambers with Adam Green. He's been off his probation period for a year now and he's doing well. He's doing a lot of boring, repeat offender cases. Georgina, who he did his probationary year with, is on the up and up thanks to her mentor. She will be on the side of the prosecution for what is a sensational case. The murder of Jessica, a presenter on a huge morning show. Think This Morning and you'll be close.

She died on national TV. She had an allergy to soy, and everyone on set was aware of it, including celebrity chef Sebastian. He served up a beef ragu to her which turned out to have a soy dressing on it, and she died live on air. It seems like an open and shut case, especially when it is revealed that Sebastian and Jessica had, until recently, been having an affair. 

Adam is put on the defence side. Sebastian won't say anything in defence of himself, so Adam sort of tries to investigate. It turns out Sebastian's wife Rachel was also on set that day, and there are a number of other intriguing lines to follow. Adam does, of course, because he's just like that. 

He is also on the case of a young lad whose brother is involved in gangs, and who takes the rap for his brother when guns are found in their flat. I think this case will come back in further books and may bite Adam on the bum, but he is very principled and I like that about him. 

I liked the main mystery too, it's a good one and seemed all too real. I liked the way it unravelled and I think that the pacing in this book was much better. Rob is a good writer and it's obvious he knows the setting intimately. I liked Adam's friendship with Lydia, who is the probationer this year under the same mentor that Adam had. I would like this friendship to continue. 

I can't wait for the next one! I'm giving this four out of five. 

The Secret Sunshine Project by Benjamin Dean - Review

I got this book earlier in the year, having previously enjoyed three books by Benjamin Dean. I can't remember where, but it has been on the piles of new books in my bedroom for a few months at least. Yes, they are terrible piles of books. No, I will not stop adding to them any time soon. I'm trying to keep getting to them... and I have made a bit of headway on that! Hence why I picked this up!

I will say that while I think some of Benjamin's other books are firmly Young Adult, this skews a little bit younger. It's older middle grade or young YA, I think. The main character is twelve, I think, but her sister is sixteen. It's more like Me, My Dad, and the End of the Rainbow in that regard, which I also loved. 

So, prior to the events of the book, Bea's family has been happy. The year before, her sister Riley had come out, and her parents decided to take her and Bea to Pride in London. The family had a great day, celebrating Riley and all being happy themselves. Riley is eager to go again, but a year later everything is different. Their dad has died, meaning the girls and Mum are struggling financially in London. At the end of the school year, Mum announces that they are moving to live with Gran for the summer, until she gets something sorted. 

Riley is fuming. She doesn't want to miss Pride and she doesn't want to be away from her friends. Bea has plans too with her friends, but she's slightly less annoyed about it. Gran is a lovely person and they love her, but the small town she lives in is really boring. Isn't it?

Bea starts to make friends, and ends up being admitted to their den. Riley makes a couple of friends, too, including someone who is queer like her. But a woman called Rita basically runs the place. She makes everyone take part in her summer fete. Gran has come up against her a few times before, because she knows her own mind. But Bea has a crackers idea to hold her own Pride parade in the hope of cheering up her sister... but that means going up against Rita. Can she and her new friends do it?

This is a cute book and perfect for the age group I think. I felt like it lost something in the middle a bit, so I'm giving it three and a half out of five. 

The Hurricane Blonde by Halley Sutton - Review

I'm really not sure where I heard of this book, but I added it to my wishlist, and when I did a book swap recently, the person sending to me chose this off my wishlist to send. I had totally forgotten about it, but when I read the blurb it did sound like something I would like, so I was happy to receive it. I picked it up only a couple of weeks later because I wanted to get to it soon!

The heroine of the book is Salma Lowe. She is in her early thirties and she is the daughter of Hollywood royalty - her parents met on a film and became super famous. Her dad is now dead but her mother is still alive, although the two have a difficult relationship. When Salma was fifteen, her sister Tawney - older by several years - was found dead in the swimming pool of her Hollywood home. She had been murdered. The killer was never found, but Salma always suspected Tawney's ex fiance, Cal. She went off the rails and ended up in rehab, a disgraced almost made it, pure tabloid fodder. 

She now does tours for tourists, driving a minibus around some of the most notorious spots in Hollywood, such as where the Black Dahlia died. The last stop on her tour is Tawney's house. She's there one afternoon when she spots another body in the swimming pool. She jumps in to save the girl, but she's already dead. It turns out that the girl was supposed to be playing Tawney in a new film about her life, which Cal is directing. Salma clearly suspects him for this death, as well, but in order to find out the truth, she has to get close to him again. 

The book flashes between the present day and when Tawney died and how Salma experienced a lot of trauma at that time. She and her mother were never close and she's now a complete disappointment to her. There's a family friend, Jack, who her mother might now be seeing, and who knows far too much about family matters. Salma is an addict and a wholly unreliable narrator, but it's easy to like her and want her to succeed. The book verges on kind of Charles Manson territory, as well as Harvey Weinstein type actions and just the scuzziness of Hollywood in general. 

I liked it and I would definitely read something else by the same author. I'm giving this four out of five. 

 

Confessions of a Forty Something F##k Up by Alexandra Potter - Review

I got this book recently in a book swap I hosted. The person who sent to me definitely felt the pressure of sending to me because I'm known for loving books, but she chose two books I was really intrigued to read. I don't think I would have picked either of them myself, but I love it when that happens and then I end up really enjoying a book. I saw that there's a sequel to this one which I will definitely pick up. This is kind of 'chick lit' which isn't a term that I like to use, but it seems to fit here. As I turned forty this year a lot of it resonated with me, which was funny. Life really doesn't turn out like you think it will!

So, Nell is the eponymous forty something fuck up, and she's just moved back to London after living in America for a few years with her fiance. She's left her fiance but definitely doesn't want to talk about it. She rents a room off a guy called Edward, who is very fastidious and particular. He's only there for four nights during the week, though, because the rest of the time he's at home with his wife and children. Nell has to look after his dog, though, a being that she begins to love after a while. Nell is from Cumbria and her parents worry about her, but also her brother is sort of the black sheep of the family. Near the beginning of the book, he introduces his new girlfriend. 

Nell has several close friends from uni, all of whom are married with kids. She does feel left out - something I can relate to - and she's just grieving that she's having to start over again. She gets a job writing obituaries for a paper, and that's where she meets Cricket. She is a widow whose husband was a brilliant playwright. She is eighty odd years old and she and Nell hit it off. 

Nell also starts a podcast. She doesn't tell anyone about it, though. But things among her friend group aren't perfect - there's a new top mum in town who seems to really dislike Nell, and the marriages of her friends aren't as perfect as they might seem. 

The book is fun and funny, but perhaps a little too long. I did like it, but it's not quite four stars for me. More a three and a half.