Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone - Blog Tour and Review

Hello! I am so happy to welcome you today to my blog for the tour for Mirrorland. If you haven't been here before, please click around and read some of my other reviews! 

I was intrigued by the premise of the book, which is an adult book and somewhat of a thriller. I found it utterly compelling and read it really quickly. It flips between the past and the present, and between fantasy and reality, leaving the reader quite confused but utterly immersed in the story.

At the beginning of the book, Catriona, known as Cat, is returning from California, where she's been leaving for twelve years, to Edinburgh, where she grew up. She is returning because her twin sister Ellice, known as El, has disappeared and is feared dead. Cat is certain she isn't dead - because she would know, wouldn't she? She would feel it. She's certain.

She returns to 36 Westeryk Road, which is the house she and El grew up in, alongside their mother and their grandpa. He was an ex Navy man and was often violent and unpredictable. This is obvious from the start of the book but the true extent of it isn't revelead until the end. 

El now lives in the house with her husband Ross, who, it turns out, was also a childhood friend of the twins and with whom Cat had a prior relationship. Ross has an alibi for El's disappearance but suspicion falls on him anyway. Cat isn't sure whether to trust him or not. She also meets two friends of El's, both of whom want news about her sister. 

El had a boat and was a proficient sailor, but no trace of her boat has been found. The police explain what tracking equipment has gone wrong on the boat, and also that the search will be scaled back. Cat starts to receive threatening cards, hand delivered to the house, and learns that El had received the same too. She learns that Ross and El's marriage was rocky, but she still isn't sure if Ross is a killer.

Then there's the house itself. The twins' mum told them fairy stories and fantasy stories, as well as reading them stories about escape, like Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption. The girls also built up a rich fantasy world in their minds. Each bedroom is a whole world, including Bedroom 3 which they were never to go in. The girls were terrified of Bluebeard, and of the Tooth Fairy, who was scared of clowns. The house also has an under passage, which the girls imagined as their very own ship, with their very own crew, including Mouse. I was a little confused about the geography of the passage, so I hope I've got it right. It is accessed via a back staircase into the garden. 

Back in the present day, Cat begins to receive emails that could be from El, or could be from someone else, or... she's not sure. The emails give clues to Cat which unearth pages from El's diary from when the girls were small, when something happened when they were twelve which ended their first life. Cat is alternately in anguish for and angry with her sister. 

I liked Cat and wanted her to be okay. She's lived through a lot of trauma and has estranged herself from her sister for over a decade. I really wanted to know what had happened and liked the resolution of the book. I'm giving this four out of five. It's so creepy in parts and the house is a true gothic horror complete with ringing bells! 

What You Want to See by Kristen Lepionka - Review

 

I read the first book in this series back in February, and liked it enough that I wanted to read the next two, too. But I didn't want to buy them, so I requested them from the library. I've actually had them since late March and have renewed them twice, but I finally got round to this in mid May. 

So the series concentrates on a private investigator called Roxane Weary. Her dad was a cop and he's recently died, and Roxane is in touch with his ex partner, Tom. She is basically an alcoholic and her family is a little bit messy. She lives alone and she's very independent and absolutely scared of nothing.

At the beginning of this book, she's spent her time surveilling a woman called Marin Strasser. Her fiance Arthur has hired Roxane because he thinks she's cheating on him. Roxane has mostly followed her doing shopping, but nothing else. Then Arthur's check bounces, and Roxane figures she'll just cut her losses. But THEN Marin gets shot dead, and Tom and another officer turn up at Roxane's door to check her alibi. She then visits Arthur, who tells her that Marin has cleaned him out of $75,000. He pays her in cash, but while she's at his print shop, there's a drive by shooting that leaves a young woman dead and Arthur injured. He's still very much in the frame for Marin's death, but Roxane is certain he's not guilty. 

She then follows several leads and finds out about Marin's previous life, uncovering quite a lot of fraud and quite a lot of leads over her death. I liked the mystery in this book and I liked how Roxane seemed to be getting herself together a bit. I'm giving this four out of five. I'll have to read the next one soon! 

Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid - Review

I had seen a lot of hype around this book, so when I was in Waterstones the other day (which was lovely, although being in Meadowhall when so much was shut was kind of sad) I bought it. It was on buy one get one half price which I always end up buying! 

So, at the beginning of this book, 25 year old Emira is out celebrating the birthday of one of her friends, when her employer, Alix Chamberlain, calls her. Emira is a sitter for Alix's eldest daughter, Briar. There's been some emergency at the Chamberlain house, and the police are on their way, and Alix doesn't want Briar to see them. So she asks Emira to take Briar quickly. Emira agrees, mostly needing the promise of double pay, and goes over, even though she's in her party dress and has had a couple of drinks (both she and Alix agree this is fine by the way, it's not a judgement!) Emira takes Briar to a local supermarket, where a security guard then stops her and asks if she - a black woman - has kidnapped the white child. Emira explains who she is, and eventually calls Briar's dad, Peter, to come and explain the situation. 

While all this is happening, a white man, Kelley, is filming the whole exchange between Emira and the security guard. He and Emira keep in touch, and Kelley wants her to take the video viral to point out how she was racially profiled while just doing her job. Emira refuses to do that, wanting to just move on with her life, but the two start dating. Kelley is a few years older than Emira, and has a lot of black friends. He lives a privileged life, which does cause friction between the two of them. 

Meanwhile, Alix is mortified by what happened to Emira and, suddenly aware of her white privilege, determines to make friends with Emira. Emira babysits three days a week so that Alix can go and do writing, which is her job. She is a blogger/influencer, who got famous writing letters in New York. She then had two babies in quick succession (Catherine is a few months old) and the family moved to Philadelphia. Alix feels out of the loop and past it, even though she's only in her early 30s. She has three friends back in New York that she relies on. She starts stalking Emira's phone, working out where she'll be and who with. She is just generally like a pushy white lady, but she comes off as a lot older than thirty three and a lot older than Emira. 

Emira's three friends all seem to be doing better than her, and she's got no idea what she wants to do for a living. She doesn't have much money, unlike her rich friend Shaunie. She feels pressure from her friends to get a 'real' job, and she needs better benefits than she currently has, but she adores Briar. Briar is painted as a bit of a weird kid, but she definitely really loves Emira. She strongly feels that she's not her mother's favourite, and that Catherine is, which does make Emira and the reader feel sorry for her. I actually think Briar is coded autistic, but that could just be me. 

Anyway, it turns out that Alix and Kelley used to date, in high school, and that they broke up in a very public way. Each of them has their own idea about what exactly happened between them, and honestly.... There's some grey area there. Neither of them is a particularly nice person, they both deserve bad things to happen to them on some level... and I wasn't very sympathetic to either of them in their break up. Alix has a lot of monetary privilege - although it's never explained what actually happened to her parents - and Kelley does fetishise black people and black culture. 

I like Emira. I wanted her to succeed. I thought the book was a bit protracted towards the end. I'm giving this a three and a half out of five. 

The Better Sister by Alafair Burke - Review

 

I got this book in my second box from A Box of Stories. I got a subscription that comes every 3 months, which is a good amount of time by me, and I got the mixed fiction box I think. Three of my four books this time had a bit of a crime vibe to them, but that's fine by me as I've been reading quite a lot of crime thrillers so far this year. I haven't heard of this book or author, but I was intrigued by the premise so I picked it up. 

Chloe is the prestigious editor of a women's magazine. She lives in New York with her husband Adam and son Ethan, and they have a second home out in the Hamptons. Adam is a lawyer, but he's fairly recently moved from being a state prosecutor to private practice. Chloe has done many feminist acts in her writing, and receives an award at the beginning of the book. However, the day after, Adam is found murdered in the East Hampton house, and there's evidence of a break in. Suspicion falls first on Chloe - who it turns out is having an affair with one of Adam's colleagues - and then Ethan.

However, the relationships aren't all that they appear. Chloe is Ethan's stepmother, and his biological mother is her own sister, Nicky. Nicky had a somewhat turbulent childhood and early adulthood, but seemed to settle down when Ethan was born. However, after one night when she endangered Ethan's life, Adam took Ethan and moved to NYC where he and Chloe started a relationship a few months later. Nicky has no contact with Ethan, and althought he calls Chloe Mom he does not she's not his biological mother. 

Chloe's parents are both dead and Nicky still lives in their house. But when she hears Adam has been murdered she quickly flies out to support both Chloe and Ethan. Chloe isn't thrilled about this, but feels she has no choice in the matter. 

I didn't mind the first galf of the book, but the second half got stupid and confusing. I didn't like the ending and the motive the person had for murdering Adam, and I thought there were way too many red herrings along the way. I sympathised with almost no one throughout the book, except maybe Ethan, and am giving this three out of five. 

Date Me Bryson Keller by Kevin Van Whye - Review

Where did I get it? I'd heard good things about it, and I saw on Twitter last November that it was 99p on Kindle, so I bought it then. I actually didn't realise it was so long ago until I just went to look at the order! 

What's it about? Kai Sheridan is 17 and a senior at a private high school in a town near LA in California. He lives with his parents and his sister Yazz, and the family is quite religious and somewhat conservative. Kai is gay, but he's not out to anyone in his life. 

He's at a New Year's Eve party with his best friends Priya and Donny, who are a couple, when top jock Bryson Keller gets dared to date a different person every week - whoever asks him out first thing at school on Monday morning. If he forfeits, he'll have to ride the school bus every day after spring break instead of driving his beloved Jeep. 

So for like eight weeks, this is what happens. Bryson gets asked out, he fake dates the girl all week, and then on Friday afternoon, they break up. Kai doesn't really pay too much attention because he's not in the popular circles, and because he has a crush on Isaac, who's in his drama class.

But then, one Monday, a whole load of things go wrong for Kai and Bryson, and they end up paired together for a drama project. Kai, frustrated, says "Date me, Bryson Keller!" There's nothing in the rules that says it has to be a girl to ask Bryson out, but because Kai is closeted still, they'll have to keep it secret. Bryson agrees. 

Then, by Wednesday, it seems like maybe Kai has feelings for Bryson - and that they are reciprocated. Bryson doesn't think he's gay, but he is figuring a few things out about himself - and he does like Kai. 

But what will happen when the week is over? And why are there some kids at school who just can't seem to leave them alone?

I liked this book and there's some really cute romantic bits. If I was fifteen I'd be swooning all over it! 

I will say there's some homophobic activity and language, and some violence, which I think need noting. 

What age range is it for? Thirteen plus 

Are any main characters LGBTQ+? Yep! Kai is, obviously, and I really loved how Bryson was working out his sexuality. 

Are any main characters people of colour? Yes, Kai is mixed race - his dad is Black and South African and his mum is White. 

Are any main characters disabled either mentally or physically? No I don't think so 

Is there any sex stuff? No 

Are drugs mentioned or used? No 

Is there any talk of death? No 

Are there swear words? No I don't think so 

 

What criticisms do I have? For me as an adult I wanted something MORE from it, but I think I'm not being fair because I'm an adult. I know I'd have loved this book if I was a teenager. I'd probably be writing fic about it! 

Would I recommend the book? Yes absolutely 

Why did I choose to read it at this point in life? I had just heard good things about it and wanted to read it! 

What do I think of the cover? It's cute! 

What other books is it like? I can't think of any specifically, but I like the fake dating trope 

How many stars? Four out of five.

Haven't They Grown by Sophie Hannah - Review

I finished this book while sitting in A&E one Wednesday morning in late April, waiting to be seen. I've had some ongoing health issues and I was waiting for surgery but the pain had got so much in the last week of April that I phoned an ambulance. The paramedic agreed I probably did need one, but there was an hour wait, so Lee drove me to the hospital instead. He obviously couldn't come in with me, so had to come home, and I first had to sit and wait and then lie on a bed and wait. I was in too much pain to read to begin with, but they gave me some codeine which really helped, and then I felt okay to read. I had good care from all the doctors I saw; I'm so grateful for our NHS. Anyway, on to the book...

I saw someone reading this online I think, or I saw a review, and I was intrigued by the premise, so I placed a hold on it at my library, and it quickly arrived. I've read some of Sophie's books before and have liked them, so I had high hopes for this. 

So, Beth Leeson is in her early forties and is married to Dom. They have two children, Zannah and Ben, and live a comfortable middle class life near Cambridge. Beth seems to be mostly occupied with how much screen time her children have and the fact Zannah is doing no GCSE revision. One Saturday morning Ben has a football match in nearby St Ives (who knew there was a St Ives in Cambridgeshire?!) and Beth is reminded of the address of an ex friend of hers, Flora, who moved to just after the friendship ended twelve years ago. So she decides to visit the address. She goes with Ben, but can't see much, so after dropping him off at the football match, she goes back. 

Flora was married to Lewis Braid, and had two small children a similar age to Zannah and Ben, called Thomas and Emily. Lewis inherited a lot of money and Dom thinks that's what put a barrier between the two families, but Beth knows the truth. Flora had a third child, Georgina, and there were several things that happened around the birth of Georgina that put a barrier between Beth and Flora. 

Flora now lives in a big gated house on a private road. While Beth is there, she comes home in her Range Rover, and lets two children out of the car. She calls them Thomas and Emily, but they are still the tiny children Beth remembers. They are still five and three. But how can that be? She overhears a strange conversation Flora has on the phone, in which Flora says "I'm lucky. I'm very lucky." 

Beth tells her husband and Zannah, and the three of them look the family up online. Lewis is living in Florida, and his instagram is full of photos of himself, and a seventeen and fifteen year old Thomas and Emily. He responds enthusiastically to a message Beth sends, but then she realises there are no photos of Flora or Georgina online. She speaks to Lewis, and then also Flora. She hears Flora's voice say "I'm very lucky", but she's convinced that all is not right in Florida, and that the woman she saw in Cambridgeshire WAS Flora. 

She goes to try to learn more, but is put off by one of Flora's neighbour. However, she's then in Huntingdon when she sees Flora coming towards her. Flora scuttles off, and Beth then meets a woman who says she lives in Flora's house, and that her children are called Toby and Emma, NOT Thomas and Emily. 

Beth won't let it go, though, even though Dom would really like her to. She remembers Lewis as a boorish, overbearing man, who often made a fuss and left Flora embarrassed, and she's convinced something is really rotten within the family. Of course she has to pursue it, because otherwise there wouldn't be a book. 

I liked the first half, I liked the mystery of what was happening. I didn't quite like the ending; I thought there was too much telling and not enough showing. I thought it was a bit ridiculous actually. I also didn't like how Beth paid little to no attention to her second child, Ben. He's barely there, in fact. But I'm giving this four out of five because I found it compelling. 

You Should See Me In A Crown by Leah Johnson - Review

Where did I get it? It was a Christmas present from my friend Lucinda. She read it and loved it and wanted me to read it too. 

What's it about? Liz Lighty is a senior in high school in a small town called Campbell, in Indiana. She wants to go to Pennington University and become a haematologist, but to do that she needs a scholarship for college. She applies for a musical scholarship, but right at the beginning, she learns she didn't get it. She doesn't want to tell her grandparents - who are raising Liz and her brother Robbie after the death of their mother from Sickle Cell Disease - so she and her friends come up with a plan. 

Prom is a Big Deal in Campbell, and each year, whoever gets crowned prom queen wins a $10,000 scholarship. Liz has never been on the inside at school - she's too poor, and she's black, in a town that is mostly rich and mostly white - so she's convinced she can't win, but she thinks she has to try. Her friends - Gabi, Britt and Stone - become her campaign managers. They take control of her look, her social media, and more. Gabi in particular takes this very seriously, and eventually she and Liz argue over what she's doing. But in the meantime, Liz is avoiding Rachel Collins, a shoe in for prom queen, and trying to work out her friendship with Jordan Jennings. She and Jordan used to be friends, but after a falling out at the beginning of high school, they've barely spoken since. But now they're thrown together and Liz finds herself wanting to be friends.

And then there's Mack. She's new at school and joins the school band, where Liz plays clarinet. She's also running for prom queen. Liz likes girls and is out to her friends and family, but it's in a very low key way. She doesn't think it's safe enough to be out at school, and she's sure that if she was, she would have no chance of becoming prom queen. But she and Mack have real chemistry, and start dating. 

I liked the book and I loved the romance with Mack. I liked Liz's rejuvenated friendship with Jordan, who was a sweetheart. I liked some of the rivalry stuff, and I liked how awful (and racist and homophobic) Rachel was. I thought that the end could have gone either way - either Liz won or she didn't - which I think is good writing.

I'd definitely read something else by Leah! 

What age range is it for? 14+ 

Are any main characters LGBTQ+? Yes, obviously! I don't think Liz explicitly labels her sexuality as lesbian or gay or bisexual, but she definitely likes girls and is under the queer umbrella. Mack is similar. 

Are any main characters people of colour? Yes, Liz and her brother Robbie - who also has Sickle Cell Disease, which affects mostly people of colour - are black. Jordan is too, but as I say it's a majority white town which affects how Liz fits in. 

Are any main characters disabled either mentally or physically? Liz has anxiety and she sometimes has panic attacks. She has methods to help herself cope with them, which I thought were put across really well, and which would probably help a reader if they were suffering from panic too! It's very well written 

Is there any sex stuff? No 

Are drugs mentioned or used? No 

Is there any talk of death? Yes, there's some mentions of the death of Liz's mother, and a little bit about Robbie's sickness too. It's not graphic. 

Are there swear words? A couple 

 

What criticisms do I have? I would have liked to see more about Liz's friendships with Gabi, Britt and Stone. They remain quite unknown, and when Gabi and Liz do fall out, I thought they should have hashed it out a bit more. I would have liked just a bit more expansion here. 

I've seen other reviews that said they thought the book was a bit too much of a fairy tale. I disagree. I think there are proper hard bits in it, and I also truly believe that queer girls deserve all the fairy tale endings in the world. 

Would I recommend the book? Yes, one hundred percent. 

Why did I choose to read it at this point in life? I've been wanting to get to it since Christmas! 

 

What do I think of the cover? It's cute. Liz ends up using the crown as a motif for her campaign, which I really liked. 

 

What other books is it like? It reminded me of With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo. 

How many stars? Four out of five. 

 

Where is the book going now? I'll definitely keep it!