📖 Blog Tour ~ The Fascination by Essie Fox

 

Orenda Books
22 June 2023

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book
and to Random Things Tours for the invitation to the blog tour

Twin sisters Keziah and Tilly Lovell are identical in every way, except that Tilly hasn't grown a single inch since she was five. Coerced into promoting their father's quack elixir as they tour the country fairgrounds, at the age of fifteen the girls are sold to a mysterious Italian known as ‘Captain’. 

Theo is an orphan, raised by his grandfather, Lord Seabrook, a man who has a dark interest in anatomical freaks and other curiosities … particularly the human kind. Resenting his grandson for his mother’s death in childbirth, when Seabrook remarries and a new heir is produced, Theo is forced to leave home without a penny to his name. 

Theo finds employment in Dr Summerwell’s Museum of Anatomy in London, and here he meets Captain and his theatrical ‘family’ of performers, freaks and outcasts. But it is Theo’s fascination with Tilly and Keziah that will lead all of them into a dark web of deceits, exposing unthinkable secrets and threatening everything they know...

📖 My Review..

The Fascination takes us into the dark underbelly of Victorian England to places which creep into your imagination with sinister intent and yet the story is so imaginatively written that you can’t help but be inextricably drawn into a fascinating world of obsession and deeply troubled secrets.

Twins, Tilly and Keziah Lovell tour the country fairs with their father selling a noxious cure-all which provides a living of sorts however, life isn’t easy for the Lovell’s and there is exploitation along with cruelty. On the surface the twins shouldn’t have anything in common with Theo Seabrook whose sad and lonely childhood marks him out as another misfit and yet their lives entwine in a suspenseful story which captures the imagination right from the very first page.

The sinister and morally corrupt world of Victorian England is brought vividly to life, from the simple pleasure of a country fair, to the macabre exhibits in Dr Summerwell’s Museum of Anatomy in London, there is never a moment when the story-telling falters or fails to plunge you deep into a Victorian world of freaks, misfits and the downright macabre. The rich assortment of shady characters who are such an integral part of the story give us a fascinating glimpse into the shadowy world of Victorian obsession.

Beautifully written, and meticulously researched, The Fascination is Essie Fox writing at her Gothic best, it's definitely one for my Best Books of the Year list.

About the Author

Essie Fox was born and raised in rural Herefordshire, which inspires much of her writing. After studying English Literature at Sheffield University, she moved to London where she worked for the Telegraph Sunday Magazine, and then book publishers George Allen & Unwin, before becoming self-employed in the world of art and design. Essie now spends her time writing historical gothic novels. Her debut, The Somnambulist, was shortlisted for the National Book Awards, and featured on Channel 4’s TV Book Club. The Last Days of Leda Grey, set in the early years of silent film, was selected as The Times Historical Book of the Month. Essie is also the creator of the popular blog: The Virtual Victorian. She has lectured on this era at the V&A, and the National Gallery in London.

Twitter @essiefox #TheFascination

Website

@OrendaBooks

@randomttours

📖 Blog Tour ~ Nothing Else by Louise Beech

 

Orenda
23 June 2022

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book
and to Random Things Tours for the invitation to the blog tour

Heather Harris is a piano teacher and professional musician, whose quiet life revolves around music, whose memories centre on a single song that haunts her. A song she longs to perform again. A song she wrote as a child, to drown out the violence in their home. A song she played with her little sister, Harriet. But Harriet is gone ... she disappeared when their parents died, and Heather never saw her again. When Heather is offered an opportunity to play piano on a cruise ship, she leaps at the chance. She’ll read her recently released childhood care records by day – searching for clues to her sister’s disappearance – and play piano by night ... coming to terms with the truth about a past she’s done everything to forget.

📖 My Review...

There a few authors whose work I will read without even looking at the blurb and who I have in my literary armoury of 'books I know I will love'. Louise Beech is one of those authors who takes you by the hand and doesn't let go until the story is told. 

Heather Harris takes a job on board the cruise ship Queen of the Seas where she is booked as the resident pianist for the duration of the voyage. Immersing herself in music has always been of great comfort to Heather especially as her childhood was filled with trauma so deep it has left a lasting scar. Now in her late forties, and at something of a crossroads in her life, Heather needs to face the demons of her troubled past, but as painful memories of Harriet, the little sister she once shared piano lessons with starts to emerge so Heather must begin to peel back the layers of hurt which she has carried within her for so long.

The power of music in all its different genres is very evident and there is a definite soundtrack running throughout the narrative, which is helped enormously by listening to the Spotify soundtrack mentioned at the start of the novel but even without this it is very easy to become immersed in the way Heather uses her connection to music in order to tell us a powerful story. Childhood trauma is never an easy subject and all credit to this talented writer for giving us Heather and Harriet's story in such a sensitive but very powerful way.

Nothing Else is one of those wonderful stories which just absolutely fits the moment. Beautifully written, and sensitively described, I was carried along on every step of Heather's journey, from the quiet times on board the Queen of the Seas when she is lost in her music, to the utter joy when life finally gives her, and the one person she loves most in the world, something to celebrate.

🍷Best Read with...a glass of chilled wine and the Nothing Else playlist gently playing 

I'm delighted to have Nothing Else as my Featured Book of the Month in July

About the Author

All six of Louise Beech’s books have been digital bestsellers. Her novels have been a Guardian Readers’ Choice, shortlisted for Not the Booker Prize, and shortlisted for the RNA Most Popular Romantic Novel Award. Her short fiction has won the Glass Woman Prize, the Eric Hoffer Award for Prose, and the Aesthetica Creative Works competition, as well as shortlisting for the Bridport Prize twice. Louise lives with her husband on the outskirts of Hull.

Twitter @louisewriter #NothingElse

@OrendaBooks #BlogTour #JubiliantJune

@RandomTTours

📖 Blog Tour ~ Tasting Sunlight by Ewald Arenz (Translated by Rachel Ward)

Orenda Books
23 June 2022

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book
and to Random Things Tours for the invitation to be part of the blog tour

Teenager Sally has just run away from a clinic where she is to be treated for anorexia. She’s furious with everything and everyone, and wants to be left in peace. Liss is in her forties, living alone on a large farm that she runs single handedly. She has little contact with the outside world, and no need for other people. From their first meeting, Sally realises that Liss isn’t like other adults; she expects nothing of Sally and simply accepts who she is, offering her a bed for the night with no questions asked. The first night lengthens into weeks as Sally starts to find pleasure in working with the bees, feeding the chickens, and harvesting potatoes. Eventually an unlikely friendship develops and these two damaged women slowly open up – connecting to each other, reconnecting with themselves, and facing the darkness in their pasts through their shared work on the land.

A gorgeous, much needed story of friendship across generations, of love and acceptance, of the power of nature to heal and transform, and the goodness that surrounds us, if only we take time to see it… Tasting Sunlight is an achingly beautiful, profound and uplifting novel that will slow you down, and draw your view on the essential and most important things about life. 'A triumph' Nurnberger Zeitung

📖 My Review...

On the surface, Sally and Liss are unlikely companions. Teenager, Sally has recently run away from a clinic where she is being treated for anorexia, whilst forty-something Liss lives and works on her farm, quietly going about her days, with no need for any intrusion from the outside world. Liss is entirely comfortable with the beauty, and adaptability of nature, whilst Sally is all spikes and ridges and yet seeking shelter, and with no questions asked by Liss, Sally is given refuge and solace, finding her own rhythms in the daily activities on the farm, learning about nature, the importance of friendship and the comfort of finding your place in the world.

With well crafted skill, we are emotionally drawn into the relationship between Liss and Sally, we start to learn of their individual backgrounds, the sadness they each conceal from other people and the journey they must both make to discover what's truly important. Filled with the scents, sights and sensations of rural life I felt immersed in the natural world, learning how to harvest, and mash, sugar, sweet pears, how to remove sticky mites from bees, and alongside Sally, I gathered potatoes until my back ached. 

Beautifully translated from German by Rachel Ward, Ewald Arenz's unique story-telling skills are revealed in this wonderfully, descriptive story, which warms the heart and brings this rural backdrop to life in all its uncomplicated glory.

🍵Best Read with ...a cup of tea, sweetened with summer honey

About the Author

Ewald Arenz was born in Nurnberg in 1965, where he now teaches. He has won various national and regional awards for literature; among them the Bavarian State Prize for Literature and the great Nuremberg Prize for Literature. One of seven children, he enjoys nature, woodturning, biking, swimming, and drinking tea. He lives with his family in Germany.

Twitter @EwaldArenz #TastingSunlight #JubilantJune 

@OrendaBooks

@FwdTranslations

@RandomTTours

📖 Blog Tour ~ Fall by West Camel

 

Thrilled to host a stop on this blog tour today

Orenda Books
9 December 2021

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book
and to Random Things Tours for the invitation to the blog tour

Twins Aaron and Clive have been estranged for forty years. Aaron still lives in the empty, crumbling tower block on the riverside in Deptford where they grew up. Clive is a successful property developer, determined to turn the tower into luxury flats. But Aaron is blocking the plan and their petty squabble becomes something much greater when two ghosts from the past – twins Annette and Christine – appear in the tower. At once, the desolate estate becomes a stage on which the events of one scorching summer are relived – a summer that changed their lives forever. Evocative, thought-provoking and exquisitely written, Fall is an unforgettable story of friendship and family – of perception, fear and prejudice, the events that punctuate our journeys into adulthood, and the indelible scars they leave.

📖 My Thoughts..

The flagship estate which Aaron and Clive's mother designed has gone the way of so many seventies tower blocks and is now more than ready to be updated. Now fifty years since its creation Clive is the architect who has the dream of redesigning the estate into luxury apartments, but he faces determined opposition from Aaron, the one person who knows just how much this estate is ingrained into the marrow of their bones.  Dreams and disillusions linger in the shadows, bringing back memories of 1976 when the twins, Aaron and Clive, called the Deptford estate home and of the time when they met another set of twins, Annette and Christine, and unleashed a set of circumstances which changed all their lives forever.

There's something quietly introspective about reading Fall and as we slowly get to know Aaron and Clive so we begin to feel the pull of why they are now estranged and about what happened in that fateful summer so long ago. With an intriguing sparsity to the narrative, the author seems particularly adept at creating atmosphere and mood. Anyone who is old enough to remember that long hot summer of '76 will remember that unreal sense of being suspended in a time when the heat haze shimmered forever and tempers were frayed to breaking point. 

Fall is an accomplished multi-layered family drama which looks at the bonds of sibling loyalty and division, of racial tensions both internally, and externally, and of the ghosts of the past which threaten the peace of an uneasy future.

About the Author

Born and bred in south London – and not the Somerset village with which he shares a name – West Camel worked as an editor in higher education and business before turning his attention to the arts and publishing. He has worked as a book and arts journalist, and was editor at Dalkey Archive Press, where he edited the Best European Fiction 2015 anthology, before moving to new press Orenda Books just after its launch. He currently combines his work as editorial director at Orenda with editing The Riveter magazine and #RivetingReviews for the European Literature Network. He has also written several short scripts, which have been produced in London’s fringe theatres, and was longlisted for the Old Vic’s 12 playwrights project. His debut novel, Attend was published in 2018, and was shortlisted for the Polari First Book Prize and longlisted for the Waverton Good Read Award. His second novel, Fall is published in December by Orenda Books.

Twitter @west_camel #Fall #BlogTour

#WhatDoYouRemember #Deptford

 Website 

@OrendaBooks

@RandomTTours

📖 Blog Tour ~ Psychopaths Anonymous by Will Carver

 

Exited to join in with the penultimate day of this blog tour

Orenda
25 November 2021

My thanks to the publisher and to Random Things Tours for my copy of the book
and the invitation to the blog tour

When AA meetings make her want to drink more, alcoholic murderess Maeve sets up a group for psychopaths. Maeve has everything. A high-powered job, a beautiful home, a string of uncomplicated one-night encounters. She’s also an addict: a functioning alcoholic with a dependence on sex and an insatiable appetite for killing men. 

When she can’t find a support group to share her obsession, she creates her own. And Psychopaths Anonymous is born. Friends of Maeve. Now in a serious relationship, Maeve wants to keep the group a secret. But not everyone in the group adheres to the rules, and when a reckless member raises suspicions with the police, Maeve’s drinking spirals out of control. She needs to stop killing. She needs to close the group. But Maeve can’t seem to quit the things that are bad for her, including her new man...

📖 My thoughts..

I don't often start my reviews with a disclaimer but reading this book can seriously affect your time as once you start reading you won't be able to stop.

Maeve is addicted to alcohol, sex and killing, usually in that order, and whilst she attends as many self-help groups as she can find, it's not as you would imagine because she needs assistance in any shape or form but that she rather enjoys seeing people at their lowest ebb and rejoices in their misery. Bored with the idea of yet another sitting around in a circle group, and whilst under the guise of needing help for her addiction Maeve selects her next victim target by carefully plotting their demise in the most heinous of ways. And then, she has the germ of an idea to form her own self help group, and et voilà, Psychopaths Anonymous, is born.

As addictive as its lead protagonist, Psychopaths Anonymous is a difficult book to appraise without giving things away which would be almighty spoilers but what I will say is that, it shouldn't be possible to 'enjoy' a story about a woman who has no moral compass, but enjoy it I did, and as much as I tried to dislike Maeve, I found that I rather admired her skill in removing those who she perceived to have done her, and others, great harm.

There is no doubt that Will Carver is a very talented writer of dark tales as this is definitely not a story for the faint hearted, so don't read if you are offended by sexual or religious references, and by a woman who kills people just because she can, however, if you are looking for something which is as highly addictive as it is highly original then Psychopaths Anonymous is worth a try.

Just to add that whilst Psychopaths Anonymous is part of a series and features some characters who appeared in Good Samaritans it is perfectly possible to read it as a standalone story. I haven't read the previous books and managed just fine although there are, I guess, some subtle references which I missed but which are there for the taking should you know what to look for...

About the Author

Will Carver is the international bestselling author of the January David series. He spent his early years in Germany, but returned to the UK at age eleven, when his sporting career took off. He turned down a professional rugby contract to study theatre and television at King Alfred’s, Winchester, where he set up a successful theatre company. He currently runs his own fitness and nutrition company, and lives in Reading with his two children. Will’s latest title published by Orenda Books, The Beresford was published in July. His previous title Hinton Hollow Death Trip was longlisted for the Not the Booker Prize, while Nothing Important Happened Today was long-listed for the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. Good Samaritans was book of the year in Guardian, Telegraph and Daily Express, and hit number one on the ebook charts.

Twitter @Will_Carver #PsychopathsAnonymous #WelcomeToTheClub

@OrendaBooks

@RandomTTours

📖 Book Tour ~ The Quiet People by Paul Cleave

 

Orenda Books
25 November 2021

My thanks to the publisher and Random Things Tours for my copy of this book
and the invitation to the blog tour

Cameron and Lisa Murdoch are successful New Zealand crime writers, happily married and topping bestseller lists worldwide. They have been on the promotional circuit for years, joking that no one knows how to get away with crime like they do. After all, they write about it for a living. So when their challenging seven-year-old son Zach disappears, the police and the public naturally wonder if they have finally decided to prove what they have been saying all this time… Are they trying to show how they can commit the perfect crime? Multi-award winning bestseller Paul Cleave returns with an electrifying and chilling thriller about family, public outrage and what a person might be capable of under pressure, that will keep you guessing until the final page...

 

📖 My thoughts..

They do say, apparently, that if anyone can plot a perfect crime it's a crime writer, and for husband and wife writing duo, this nightmare is about to come true when their seven year old son, Zach, disappears from their family home. With the finger of blame very firmly pointing in the direction of Cameron and Lisa Murdoch what evolves is an exceptionally clever crime thriller which has the added bonus of allowing the reader a particular insight into the story with a prologue which, quite literary, had me jumping out of my skin.

The Quiet People is one of those quickly immersive stories which you say to yourself I'll just read one more chapter and before you know it you are flashing through the story at the speed of light reeling in disbelief as the story throws up so many twists and turns that you need your wits about you to keep up with what's unfolding on the page in front of you. I do love a story where you never quite know who is telling the truth, first, I was on the side of Cameron and Lisa whose ordered life is thrown into absolute chaos, only to then feel quite sorry for the police investigation team, who,  it must be said, don't exactly do themselves any favours by their incompetent handling of this sensitive case.

Very cleverly put together, thrillingly sophisticated, and with a definite twist in the tale, which I didn't see coming, The Quiet People, is a roller coaster of a crime thriller. It grabs your imagination from the start and doesn't let go of your emotions until this absolutely chilling story is finished.

About the Author

Paul is an award-winning author who divides his time between his home city of Christchurch, New Zealand, where most of his novels are set, and Europe. He has won the New Zealand Ngaio Marsh Award three times, the Saint-Maur book festival’s crime novel of the year award in France, and has been shortlisted for the Edgar and the Barry in the US and the Ned Kelly in Australia. His books have been translated into over twenty languages. He’s thrown his frisbee in over forty countries, plays tennis badly, golf even worse, and has two cats – which is often two too many.

Twitter@paulcleave #TheQuietPeople #PerfectCrimeClub #YeahNoir

@OrendaBooks

@RandomTTours

📖 Blog Tour ~ This is How We Are Human by Louise Beech

 

Delighted to host one of today's stops on this blog tour

Orenda Books
10 June 2021

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book
and to Random Things Tours for the opportunity to be part of the blog tour

Sebastian James Murphy is twenty years, six months and two days old. He loves swimming, fried eggs and Billy Ocean. Sebastian is autistic. And lonely. Veronica wants her son Sebastian to be happy, and she wants the world to accept him for who he is. She is also thinking about paying a professional to give him what he desperately wants. Violetta is a high-class escort, who steps out into the night thinking only of money. Of her nursing degree. Paying for her dad’s care. Getting through the dark. When these three lives collide, and intertwine in unexpected ways, everything changes. For everyone.

“Though This is How We Are Human is fiction, the premise was inspired by my friends, 20-year-old Sean, who is autistic, and his mum Fiona. Fiona had spoken to me about how much Sean longed to meet a girl and have sex. No one talks about this, she said - the difficulties navigating romance often faced by those on the spectrum. It ’s an issue that I wanted to explore. Fiona and Sean encouraged me and guided me through the book; Sean regularly consulted on dialogue, rightly insisting that his voice was heard, was strong, and was accurate. I cannot thank my extraordinary friends enough for their help and support.”

 Louise Beech

📖 My Thoughts..

I’ve now read every book that Louise Beech has written and each time I finish I am lost for the words which will do justice to the emotion she brings to every single story, and This is How We Are Human is no exception. I read it during a time when I was so sad that the slightest thing sent me plunging down an emotional rabbit hole, and I’m afraid that I mainly read Veronica, Sebastian and Violetta’s story with ugly tears streaming down my face, and yet, it’s not so much a sad story, it’s more of a life affirming, hopeful story and whilst there are moments which brought me to tears, there are definitely gloriously funny bits which made me laugh out loud, and wise and profound sayings which had me nodding my head in sage acknowledgement.

My heart reached out to Veronica, who only wanted what would make her autistic son happy and if that meant hiring a high class escort to teach Sebastian the delights of a sexual experience he so desperately craved, well, who are we to judge if this was morally right or wrong. Sebastian is both gloriously uncomplicated and incredibly complex but seeing the world from his perspective gave me much food for thought about some important issues I hadn't ever considered. Violetta is living a double life, her work as an escort is merely a way to pay for something which means the world to her and putting up with demanding clients is just a means to an end but when offered a chance to earn enough money for what she needs and to do so in a much safer environment is a chance worth taking. 

Blending the stories of these three very different characters together is a triumph as not only do they take us right into the maelstrom of an emotional whirlpool but their combined experiences chases away those prejudices and misconceptions which are incredibly damaging if left unacknowledged.

I really do think that Louise Beech is a magician, she sprinkles her stories with a kaleidoscope of colours, blending and turning so that all the complex pieces twirl and dance and then with a flick of a literary wand she delivers a story, which before your eyes, turns into something precious and beautiful and it is that very magic which turns This is How We Are Human into such a compelling and thought-provoking read.

About the Author

Louise Beech is an exceptional literary talent, whose debut novel How To Be Brave was a Guardian Readers’ Choice for 2015. The follow-up, The Mountain in My Shoe was shortlisted for Not the Booker Prize. Both of her previous books Maria in the Moon and The Lion Tamer Who Lost were widely reviewed, critically acclaimed and number-one bestsellers on Kindle. The Lion Tamer Who Lost was shortlisted for the RNA Most Popular Romantic Novel Award in 2019. Her 2019 novel Call Me Star Girl won Best magazine Book of the Year, and was followed by I Am Dust.

Twitter@louisewriter #ThisIsHowWeAreHuman #BlogTour

@OrendaBooks #JubilantJune

@RandomTTours

🌠

Blog Tour ~ The Home by Sarah Stovell

Thrilled to host today's stop on this Blog Tour

Orenda Books
10 January 2020

Thanks to the publishers and to Random Things Tours for my ecopy of this book
and the invitation to be part of the blog tour

When the body of pregnant, fifteen-year-old Hope Lacey is discovered in a churchyard on Christmas morning, the community is shocked, but unsurprised. For Hope lived in The Home, the residence of three young girls, whose violent and disturbing pasts have seen them cloistered away… As a police investigation gets underway, the lives of Hope, Lara and Annie are examined, and the staff who work at the home are interviewed, leading to shocking and distressing revelations … and clear evidence that someone is seeking revenge. 

A gritty, dark and devastating psychological thriller, The Home is also an emotive drama and a piercing look at the underbelly of society, where children learn what they live … if they are allowed to live at all.

What did I think about it..

Like the horror that continually engulfs them, Annie, Hope and Lara are lost and abandoned young souls caught up in a care system which offers neither hope, nor salvation, and which has continually let them down throughout the whole of their young and shattered lives.

Bound together in a bleak, cost cutting environment on the edges of the majestic scrutiny of the English Lake District, the three girls hide their secrets and keep their mouths shut but when the body of 15 year old Hope is found it opens up the residential care home, and its inhabitants, to a scrutiny which is as vicious as it is necessary.

Once you start reading The Home it suffuses your every waking thought, not just because the reasons for Hope’s untimely death are heartbreakingly tragic, but also because the story scrutinises the lives of these three very damaged young girls, and exposes all the horrific circumstances which have led them to live out their fragile lives amongst people who used, abused, and then tossed them aside.

The Home is by no means an easy read, in fact parts of it are really quite harrowing and I had to sometimes stop and take a moment or two to consider the emotional effect the words had on me, often trying to rationalise the horror by reminding myself that this was fiction, but, of course, at the same time acknowledging that some young lives in our social care system really are as harrowing as those of Annie, Hope and Lara's. And yet, for all the joylessness of their individual stories, they were all compelling characters, particularly Hope, whose tough exterior belies her vulnerability, her story, amongst the three, is the one that will stay with me for a very, long time.

I remember reading this author’s previous book, Exquisite, and being incredibly aware of her amazing and undeniable talent. Her impeccable ability in creating beautiful, and memorable, characters from the ashes of tragedy, is outstanding.

These broken girls, on the cusp of adulthood, filled with the scars of their past will break your heart into a million pieces, and in this third week of my new reading year I have found another thought-provoking, and all-consuming story to add to my Reads of 2020 list.

About the Author

Sarah Stovell was born in 1977 and spent most of her life in the Home Counties before a season working in a remote North Yorkshire youth hostel made her realise she was a northerner at heart. She now lives in Northumberland with her partner and two children and is a lecturer in Creative Writing at Lincoln University. Her debut psychological thriller, Exquisite, was called ‘the book of the summer’ by Sunday Times.

Twitter @SarahLovescrime #TheHome

@OrendaBooks

#RandomThingsTours

Blog Tour ~ Call Me Star Girl by Louise Beech

Jaffareadstoo is thrilled to be part of the blog tour for Call Me Star Girl

Orenda
18 April 2019

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of the book and to Anne at Random Things Tours
for my invitation to be part of this tour

Tonight is the night for secrets…

Pregnant Victoria Valbon was brutally murdered in an alley three weeks ago – and her killer hasn’t been caught.

Tonight is Stella McKeever’s final radio show. The theme is secrets. You tell her yours, and she’ll share some of hers.

Stella might tell you about Tom, a boyfriend who likes to play games, about the mother who abandoned her, now back after twelve years. She might tell you about the perfume bottle with the star-shaped stopper, or about her father …

What Stella really wants to know is more about the mysterious man calling the station … who says he knows who killed Victoria, and has proof.

Tonight is the night for secrets, and Stella wants to know everything…

With echoes of the chilling Play Misty for Me, Call Me Star Girl is a taut, emotive and all-consuming psychological thriller that plays on our deepest fears, providing a stark reminder that stirring up dark secrets from the past can be deadly..

My thoughts..

Stella McKeever is the presenter of a late night local radio show and like all live radio it’s often the people who phone in who make the show special. Tonight, on Stella’s final radio show, she makes an appeal to her listeners to share their deepest, darkest secrets with her, because, as we discover, there’s no one better at keeping secrets than Stella.

Call Me Star Girl grabbed my attention from the very beginning and even though each of her books have, so far, been quite different, what shines through is the author’s unique, and very special talent for skilled storytelling. Beautifully observed, Call Me Star Girl is this author's first venture into the psychological crime genre, and boy, oh boy, has she got the genre absolutely sussed!

The story, which flits between the present and the past, is decidedly edgy, it’s also deliciously dark and ever so creepy that even though I read the book in bright sunlight, I still found that I jumped at sudden noises, and became so reluctant to put the story down for even a minute that I only left my comfy chair in the garden to get up for refreshments to stop myself dehydrating!

Call Me Star Girl is one of those special stories which hooks you in from the opening chapter and as the story progresses and we start to learn more about Stella's traumatic past, her tense relationship with her boyfriend, Tom and her tortured love for her mother, a picture is revealed of a life which has been made all the more complicated by so much unfinished business. And even when the story ends, the strength of the characters remain with you, as close as friends, and as deep as enemies.

What I enjoy most about this author’s exceptional writing is her ability to absolutely reach out to her target audience. Her stories always feel totally relevant, genuinely reflecting real life, with all its faults and failings, giving us memorable characters who are often at their most vulnerable. 

There is no doubt that Louise Beech is an extremely talented writer, a magical weaver of tales, whose genuine love for story telling shines through with every well written word. And regardless of whatever genre she chooses to work in, I truly can’t wait to see what she comes up with next...

About the Author

Louise Beech is an exceptional literary talent, whose debut novel How To Be Brave was a Guardian Readers’ Choice for 2015. The follow-up, The Mountain in My Shoe was shortlisted for Not the Booker Prize. Both of her previous books Maria in the Moon and The Lion Tamer Who Lost were widely reviewed, critically acclaimed and number-one bestsellers on Kindle. The Lion Tamer Who Lost was shortlisted for the RNA Most Popular Romantic Novel Award in 2019. Her short fiction has won the Glass Woman Prize, the Eric Hoffer Award for Prose, and the Aesthetica Creative Works competition, as well as shortlisting for the Bridport Prize twice. Louise lives with her husband on the outskirts of Hull, and loves her job as a Front of House Usher at Hull Truck Theatre, where her first play was performed in 2012.

Website

Twitter @LouiseWriter @CallMeStarGirl

@OrendaBooks

#RandomThingsTours

Blog Tour ~ After He Died by Michael J Malone

📖 Jaffareadstoo is thrilled to host today's stop on the Blog Tour for After He Died 📖

Orenda Books
30 September 2018

My thanks to the publishers and Random Things tours for the copy of the book
and also the kind invitation to be part of this blog tour

What's it all about...

When Paula Gadd’s husband of almost thirty years dies, just days away from the seventh anniversary of their son Christopher’s death, her world falls apart. Grieving and bereft, she is stunned when a young woman approaches her at the funeral service, and slips something into her pocket. A note suggesting that Paula’s husband was not all that he seemed… When the two women eventually meet, a series of revelations challenges everything Paula thought she knew, and it becomes immediately clear that both women’s lives are in very real danger. Both a dark, twisty slice of domestic noir and taut, explosive psychological thriller, After He Died is also a chilling reminder that the people we trust the most can harbour the deadliest secrets…

What did I think about it...

We never truly know just what is going on in someone's life and that certainly rings true for Paula Gadd, for even as she greets mourners at her husband's funeral, and with little time to come to terms with his untimely death, she finds that she into thrust into a maelstrom of deceit and buried secrets.

The mystery at the heart of the novel is complex with lots of twists and turns which, most certainly, had me guessing. I enjoyed how the action fairly bounces along so that you are never really sure of what Paula is going to find out next and that there is much for her to discover is obvious from the start. It's interesting to observe just how Paula deals with the fact that her husband of thirty years is someone that she truly didn't know and, as the story moves along, it becomes obvious that she has more questions about his life than there are clear answers. 

After He Died isn't just dark domestic noir, it is also a sympathetic portrayal of grief and how it affects judgement and I think that the author captures this really well in the way that Paula's behaviour is often a little unpredictable. The other characters who flit into and out of the story are equally unreliable, and there were definitely some that I liked more than others, but there is no doubt that, collectively, they add the necessary light and shade to what is, after all, quite a dark thriller.

Beautifully written with a distinct eye for detail, After He Died is a fascinating character driven novel by a skilful author who really knows how to keep the tension alive until the very last page.

About the Author

Michael Malone is a prize-winning poet and author who was born and brought up in the heart of Burns’ country. He has published over 200 poems in literary magazines throughout the UK, including New Writing Scotland, Poetry Scotland and Markings. Blood Tears, his bestselling debut novel won the Pitlochry Prize from the Scottish Association of Writers. Other published work includes: Carnegie’s Call; A Taste for Malice; The Guillotine Choice; Beyond the Rage; The Bad Samaritan and Dog Fight. His psychological thriller, A Suitable Lie, was a number-one bestseller, and the critically acclaimed House of Spines soon followed suit. A former Regional Sales Manager (Faber & Faber) he has also worked as an IFA and a bookseller.

Twitter @MichaelJMalone1 #AfterHeDied


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Blog Tour ~ The Lion Tamer Who Lost by Louise Beech

Jaffareadstoo is really excited to be part of The Lion Tamer Who Lost Blog Tour

Orenda
30 September 2018

My thanks to the publishers and Random Things Tours for my invitation to be part of this blog tour
 and for my copy of the book

What's it all about...

Be careful what you wish for… 

Long ago, Andrew made a childhood wish, and kept it in a silver box. When it finally comes true, he wishes it hadn't...

Long ago, Ben made a promise and he had a dream: to travel to Africa to volunteer at a lion reserve. 

When he finally makes it, it isn’t for the reasons he imagined…

Ben and Andrew keep meeting in unexpected places, and the intense relationship that develops seems to be guided by fate. Or is it? 

What if the very thing that draws them together is tainted by past secrets that threaten everything?

Here's what I thought about it...

I don't know where to start with this one because no matter how hard I try I won't do justice to this poignant, beautiful, heart-breaking story, which by the last few words had me a blubbering wreck, and not with those tears which roll, ladylike, down your cheeks, but with those big, ugly tears which run like a torrent, and which leave you wrung out like a wet cloth.

I came to the book knowing nothing of its content, and when I first saw the title, I naively thought it was going to be, mainly, a story about taming lions, and whilst lions, and two very special ones in particular, do feature in the story, it's about so much more than animal conservation. At its core, The Lion Tamer Who Lost is a story about friendship and family, it's about feeling lost and alone, bewildered and frightened, and it's also a rather beautiful love story between Ben and Andrew and of their close relationship which society still doesn’t fully understand. 

The story is beautifully written, by an author who, with perfect precision, has the ability to take you from the absolute solitude of a wild African dawn, with its lingering scent of heat and dust, to the pungent aroma of stale booze and cigarettes in a tiny northern kitchen. And as you travel in your mind, the writing never falters or fails to reach out both physically and emotionally. It will make you stop, think, consider, rant, laugh, and, ultimately, when you read those last two lines of the story, unless you have a heart made of granite, will make you weep those big, ugly tears. 

Books come and books go, and some may even linger in the memory a little while longer before they fade. The difference between those stories and this one is that the beautiful complexity of The Lion Tamer Who Lost will stay with you forever. 

My Reading Table

About the Author

Louise Beech is an exceptional literary talent, whose debut novel How To Be Brave was a Guardian Readers’ Choice for 2015. The sequel, The Mountain in My Shoe was shortlisted for Not the Booker Prize. Her third book, Maria in the Moon, was widely reviewed and critically acclaimed. Her short fiction has won the Glass Woman Prize, the Eric Hoffer Award for Prose, and the Aesthetica Creative Works competition, as well as shortlisting for the Bridport Prize twice. Louise lives with her husband and children on the outskirts of Hull, and loves her job as a Front of House Usher at Hull Truck Theatre, where her first play was performed in 2012.

Website

Twitter @LouiseWriter #LionTamerWhoLost

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Blog Tour ~ The Old You by Louise Voss

Jaffareadstoo is thrilled to be part of the blog tour for The Old You

Orenda Books
15 May 2018

My thanks to the publishers and Random Things Tours for the invitation to be a part of this tour and for my copy of the book

What's it about..

Lynn Waites gave up the job she loved when she married Ed, the love of her life, but it was worth it for the happy years they enjoyed together. Now, ten years on, Ed has been diagnosed with early-onset dementia, and things start to happen; things more sinister than missing keys and lost words. As some memories are forgotten, other, long buried, begin to surface… and Lynn’s perfect world begins to crumble. 

But is it Ed’s mind playing tricks, or hers…?

My thoughts about it..

The question I have to ask myself is why I haven’t read any of this author’s work before, because if this is the standard of her writing, well, it would seem that I’ve been missing out on a few treasures.

The Old You is a very good domestic noir thriller, the premise of which drew me in from the offset, especially as it seems, from the poignant start, that Lynn Naismith, and her husband, Ed, are facing a huge challenge when Ed is diagnosed with a rare form of early onset dementia. And as the story progresses, and Lynn and Ed’s lives get more and more complicated, so the slow burn of the thriller starts to kick in, and it does so in such a subtle and believable way, that I was constantly surprised by what I saw unfolding on the page before me.

I loved the way that the author brought both of these two complex characters alive in such a realistic way, stretching the reader’s perception so that I found my allegiances swapped and changed as their individual stories emerged. And as past and present start to converge, so the element of doubt starts to set in, until you are never really sure who is giving us the truth. There are so many facets to Lynn and Ed’s individual idea of honesty, that unpicking each of their stories becomes a real challenge. I really enjoyed trying to second guess where the story was leading, but all too often I had to rethink, back track and read again,  just to make sure I was still on the right track and that I hadn't missed anything in my excitement at turning the pages quickly.

The Old You is a dark and daring story with a subtle, and totally, believable edginess. It’s about the ambiguity of lives which are shrouded in secrets and lies, and credit to the skill of the author, who really does hold the reader in the palm of her hand, that when the dreadful jaw dropping truth finally emerges, it is as every bit as dramatic as I hoped it would be.

About the Author

Over her eighteen-year writing career, Louise has had books out via pretty much every publishing model there is, from deals with major traditional publishing houses (Transworld and Harper Collins), to digital-only (the Amazon-owned Thomas & Mercer) and self-publishing – she and co-author Mark Edwards were the first UK indie-published authors to hit the No. 1spot on Amazon back in 2011. She has had eleven novels published in total, five solo and six co-written, a combination of psychological thrillers, police procedurals and contemporary fiction. Louise has an MA(Dist) in Creative Writing and also works as a literary consultant and mentor for writers at www.thewritingcoach.co.uk. She lives in South-West London and is a proud member of two female crime-writing collectives, The Slice Girls and Killer Women.

Twitter @LouiseVoss1 #TheOldYou

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