3* The Trouble with Goats and Sheep - Joanna Cannon.
Having read, and hugely enjoyed, all of the authors other books, this one has been sitting on my T3* The Trouble with Goats and Sheep - Joanna Cannon.
Having read, and hugely enjoyed, all of the authors other books, this one has been sitting on my TBR pile for a long time. I jumped in full of hope and it started with great promise. The period details from the late 1970s were a great memory and the character of Grace, a young girl and our main narrator was charming (I was amused to see someone describing Grace as a young Alan Bennett in another review). The story is anchored in the disappearance of a woman from Grace's estate. Grace and her sidekick Tilly decide to solve the mystery but unbeknownst to them almost everyone on the street is harbouring a secret.
After a little while the charm of Grace and Tilly wore off. The book would have been saved by the plot but it felt overly complex (partially because there were so many characters) and the pacing was a bit off. There are laugh out loud moments but it was a bit of a trudge to the end.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Paula Wilcox and she was brilliant bringing the characters to life....more
Slim has dropped off the grid and away from her former employers MI5 since an undercover mission went wrong. Brough3.5* The Enigma Girl - Henry Porter
Slim has dropped off the grid and away from her former employers MI5 since an undercover mission went wrong. Brought back into the fold, she is asked to undertake another deep undercover mission to understand how an online news site is printing material thought to be held secretly at the heart of Government. As Slim struggles with family issues and the pressure leads to her being increasingly cavalier with her own safety, potential corruption at the heart of Government is bubbling to the surface.
This is an enjoyable book but comes with caveats. Like others, it took some time to get into and, even once I was in, there were still periods when the plot and prose dragged. The author says in the acknowledgements that his editor advised him to reduce the words - I suspect it would be a sharper book for the reader if he had gone a lot further with his edits.
The characters, esp Slim, are fun but there are a lot of people and issues to get to grips with, given the number of plotlines. Some are also a stretch on the imagination, such as the nurse looking after Slim's mother and Slim's friend Bridie. As part of the editing, I suspect some of the side-issues could be removed, which would help the pacing of the plot. I also felt that the initial promise of links to Bletchley Park didn't get the spotlight that it might have.
Overall an enjoyable read but it has taken me longer than usual to get to the end.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC....more
Ben Mcintyre never fails to deliver and The Siege reads like a taut thriller from beginning to end. Full of rich details and the backstories of many cBen Mcintyre never fails to deliver and The Siege reads like a taut thriller from beginning to end. Full of rich details and the backstories of many caught up in the 1980 siege of the Iranian Embassy in London, this book is a timely reminder of cultural interplay and politics.
I listened to the audiobook, narrated by the author and it was excellent....more
4.5* Circus of Mirrors - a stunner of a book told across 3 timelines which impeccably intertwine to create an incredible page turner.
Berlin 1926 - Le4.5* Circus of Mirrors - a stunner of a book told across 3 timelines which impeccably intertwine to create an incredible page turner.
Berlin 1926 - Leni gets a job at the Circus of Mirrors, desperate to earn money to put a roof over the head of her and her young sister Nette. Among the many characters in the cabaret club, Leni’s head is turned by Paul the pianist but the relationship is underpinned by untruths. As we follow the sisters we revisit them post-war and then again in the 1960s but always there is a draw back to the Circus of Mirrors.
This is an immersive read. The first third sets the scene (and perhaps is a little slow), but as we get under the skin of the characters and we hop around the timelines, the intricacy and deft-weaving of the plot is something to behold. The characters are well drawn, with a balanced mix of those to love and loathe in equal measure. From the half way point it is unputdownable.
Berlin makes for an incredible backdrop, a city of historical significance through each of the periods in the book. It reminded me of the excellent The Silence Inbetween by Josie Ferguson, a Waterstones shortlisted debut novel for 2024.
Thanks to Michael Joseph, PRH and Netgalley for an ARC. ...more
4* The Birdwatcher by William Shaw. An intricate, well crafted and hugely enjoyable police procedural.
William Shaw likes a quiet life. He is content b4* The Birdwatcher by William Shaw. An intricate, well crafted and hugely enjoyable police procedural.
William Shaw likes a quiet life. He is content being a community policeman, not least at the time of year that the migrating birds make for prime 'birding season'. But when William's neighbour, friend and fellow birder is found murdered, William gets drawn into the investigation.
Told across 2 timelines, we meet young William growing up in Belfast at a time when dark secrets are common-place. In the present day, William has to work alongside a new colleague Alex Cupidi, who doesn't share William's instincts that a number of incidents may be linked.
This is a fabulous read. It's well written, the characters are all very believable and engaging (whether for good or for bad) and there are plenty of twists, turns and red-herrings. I have heard great things about the author's Alex Cupidi series and this is the prequel to those books, so I thought I would start here. I am glad I did and I have already bought the next one in the series....more
3.5* The Bullet That Missed - the 3rd outing for the Thursday Murder Club is entertaining and great fun.
More preposterous fun from the residents of Co3.5* The Bullet That Missed - the 3rd outing for the Thursday Murder Club is entertaining and great fun.
More preposterous fun from the residents of Coopers Chase Retirement Village as they pick up the cold case of the disappearance and potential murder of a local news presenter, while Elizabeth is blackmailed into killing a former head of the KGB. The story is bonkers and the plotting is good but overall the ‘crime fiction’ is a bit too cosy and plodding for me. However, based on the earlier books, it's the characters and the whip smart dialogue that brought me back. It never fails to raise a smile (I do wonder how much of it goes over the head of non-UK readers).
I listened to the audiobook and Fiona Shaw does a brilliant job of the narration....more
4* Precipice by Robert Harris. The master of weaving historical fact into page-turning fiction is on top form in this incredible book.
HH Asquith is t4* Precipice by Robert Harris. The master of weaving historical fact into page-turning fiction is on top form in this incredible book.
HH Asquith is the Liberal Prime Minister, husband, father and a man who will shortly be steering the country in a monumental war across Europe. However, Asquith only has one thing on his mind, his obsession with Venetia Stanley, a woman who is part of his ‘set’ (more accurately his son’s ‘set’) and is less than half his age.
As war goes from a possibility to a reality, Asquith’s correspondence to Venetia not only amounts to several letters a day but regales secrets only available to the highest levels of his Cabinet. Robert Harris takes the contents of those incredible letters and imagines the beginning of WWI told through this misjudged relationship.
Precipice is a page-turning, jaw-dropping story, made all the more impressive as the reader can trust Harris to have grounded his work in fact (at one point Asquith travels to Newcastle to speak to munition workers … as it’s my home town, I was intrigued to see that the talk was in a theatre I had never heard of. A quick Google showed that it was the preeminent theatre in the city at the time but was demolished in the 1960s). The ability to weave a story of intrigue, espionage and secrets from letters which in many respects are wearing and repetitive, is an absolute skill. Although the reader knows that the country will go to war and that war will brutally last for years, watching this unfold so close to the decisions being made is chilling and Asquith prioritising his affair over leading the country into war in an informed manner is infuriating. I would thoroughly recommend this book.
Thanks to Penguin Random House, Cornerstone and Netgalley for an advance copy....more
3.5* What A Way to Go - Bella Mackie. When this book gets going, it twists and turns and it’s impossible to leave it alone.
Anthony Wistern is dead. H3.5* What A Way to Go - Bella Mackie. When this book gets going, it twists and turns and it’s impossible to leave it alone.
Anthony Wistern is dead. He leaves behind his wife, 4 children and two huge houses (the country pile and the London mansion). With no exception, every member of the family has a motive for murder but so do many of the other guests at the birthday bash where Anthony met his end. The Police consider there has been a tragic accident but a true crime blogger thinks otherwise and is determined to make a name for herself.
Bella Mackie has written a cast of characters who are brilliantly awful. There’s a (sometimes slightly misfiring) satire of the mega rich as the Wistern clan vie to be top dog. If the blogger is supposed to offer relief, I can’t say I liked her anymore than the others but as an overall list of protagonists, they are fabulous.
While I found the first half of the book a little bit over-conceived and trying too hard to be clever, as the plot and the twists kick in in the second half, I couldn’t put it down. I adored the plot device of those who had died finding themselves in a beige administrative purgatory within which they couldn’t move on unless they could accurately surmise their own death. The twists were plentiful and clever and the latter part of the book made up for a slow beginning. And like Mackie’s previous book, What A Way to Go is peppered with brilliant one liners.
Overall, this is a book which is throughly with sticking with until the final word.
Thanks to Harper Collins and Netgalley for an ARC....more
The Bee Sting has won a lot of plaudits and a lot of awards. I can see why. But I am not entirely sold.
Dicki3.5* The Bee Sting. A vast family drama.
The Bee Sting has won a lot of plaudits and a lot of awards. I can see why. But I am not entirely sold.
Dickie is the second generation responsible for the family business. However, no one wants to buy a car as the financial crisis hits. His wife Imelda is frustrated that Morris, her father-in-law who started the business spends his time golfing in Portugal and Dickie won’t ask him for help. Their children Cass and PJ each have their own growing pains. Across a complex web of family memories and events, we unspool a complex web which will eventually all weave together.
This is a long book and it felt too much. There were parts that I hugely enjoyed but others which felt indulgent to the extent that they added little to the book (soothsaying and prepping spring to mind). The totality of the parts was enjoyable and was beautifully written, with clever plot development and immersion into the lives of the main characters.
I listened on audio, with numerous excellent narrators, and I suspect listening added to my enjoyment of the book. ...more
4* The Ghosts of Rome (Rome Escape Line #2) by Joseph Connor. The 2nd book in this superb trilogy with a fictional telling of those who, hunkered in t4* The Ghosts of Rome (Rome Escape Line #2) by Joseph Connor. The 2nd book in this superb trilogy with a fictional telling of those who, hunkered in the Vatican, supported allied soldiers and airmen to shelter and escape Rome in the latter years of WWII, as the allies made their way North.
In the preceding book, My Father's House, we met Fr Hugh O'Flaherty a Catholic priest who had found his calling in The Choir, a group who assembled by happenchance to create an 'escape line'. In The Ghost's of Rome, the focus shifts to the rest of the group and in particular Countess Jo Landini who has had to flee the palace which was the ancestral home of her late husband. The Choir continue their work despite the ever closing net of the Nazis led by Gestapo boss Paul Hauptmann. When a Polish airman is shot down, saving his life becomes one of the trickiest missions the group will undertake.
This is a superb book, entwining true characters with fictionalised missions and back stories. It was very special to be back with this group of characters as they become increasingly daring in a bid to thwart Hauptmann, who is himself under great pressure from Berlin. The plot zips along and there were half a dozen times I was entranced and had to keep reading to see if they could get themselves out of danger. It would work well as a standalone, not least because we are introduced to each character in turn, but reading My Father's House will give the reader more depth and understanding of what has gone before.
Thanks to Random House, Harvill Secker and Netgalley for an ARC....more
The 6th outing for one of my favourite crime fiction duos - National Crime Agency Detective Sergeant Washington Poe an3* The Mercy Chair - MW Craven.
The 6th outing for one of my favourite crime fiction duos - National Crime Agency Detective Sergeant Washington Poe and analyst Tilly Bradshaw. When a man is found stoned to death at a beauty spot, Washington Poe finds himself in one of his twistiest and tricky cases to date. Bound up in a religious sect and families who have endured historical tragedies, there are codes to crack and concerns about who to trust.
As much as I enjoyed this book, I thought a couple of the twists in the latter third were a step too far and unnecessarily outlandish. The Poe/Tilly relationship continues to be fun but wasn't as prominent in this book, nor were other characters such as DC Flynn. The dialogue in parts felt a little clunky (perhaps because I listened to the audio) and some of the jokes wore thin when told several times over.
This is a great series, with characters that I enjoy going back to but I didn't think that this was their strongest outing. ...more
4.5* Remain Silent by Susie Steiner #Manon Bradshaw 3. Brilliant.
When a Lithuanian man is found hanging from a tree in a Cambridgeshire park, it does4.5* Remain Silent by Susie Steiner #Manon Bradshaw 3. Brilliant.
When a Lithuanian man is found hanging from a tree in a Cambridgeshire park, it doesn’t appear to be a suicide but no one can work out how it could be a murder. As police officers Manon and Davy take on the case, they find themselves in the murky world of those who are brought to the UK on a promise of work, only to find themselves bound into debt and living in squalor.
This third (and very sadly final) book from Susie Steiner is another fantastic read. As with all the others, the characters and their development zing off the page. The plot is intricate and smart but only takes up enough of the book to allow the reader a more substantial reading experience.
While this could be read as a stand alone, I would, as ever, urge starting the series from the start (Missing Presumed) as the backstory of each character adds so much to the enjoyment. ...more
5* City in Ruins by Don Winslow #Danny Ryan 3. Amazing.
Danny Ryan is a rich man trying to lead a clean life. With a hotel on the Vegas strip, he deci5* City in Ruins by Don Winslow #Danny Ryan 3. Amazing.
Danny Ryan is a rich man trying to lead a clean life. With a hotel on the Vegas strip, he decides to try and expand his empire to the only lot that is ripe for redevelopment. One problem. Someone else has already had an offer accepted and by playing in the grey area outside the rules, Danny sets off a chain of events that requires all his street smarts and background to get him out of.
This book is incredible. The action is fast paced. The plot lines are clever and intricate. And the characters we’ve got to know over 3 books return for a final outing. It could be a standalone but is so much more when you are rejoining old friends. Thoroughly recommended.
I listened to the audiobook and the narration by Ari Fliakos was fabulous....more
Salt Lane is the the first in William Shaw's DS Alex Cupidi series, although 'completer finishers' would be well advised to start with the BirdwatcherSalt Lane is the the first in William Shaw's DS Alex Cupidi series, although 'completer finishers' would be well advised to start with the Birdwatcher, a prequel where Cupidi and her daughter are more minor characters.
A woman shows up dead in a marsh ditch and the coroner cannot fathom how she might have died. The same night another woman shows up at the home of a man, claiming to be his long estranged mother. Both women appear to be one and the same.
Therein starts a superb police procedural. The characters and setting follow on from the Birdwatcher and are a very welcome return. the plot is complex and hugely satisfying.
I'm hugely enjoying this series and have already bought the next book....more
4.5* Frankie by Graham Norton. Spellbinding. A beautiful book from Graham Norton which will pull you into the life of each and every one of the main c4.5* Frankie by Graham Norton. Spellbinding. A beautiful book from Graham Norton which will pull you into the life of each and every one of the main characters.
Damian, a young guy from Ireland, has been in London for 8 years and is working as an overnight carer. When he is sent to look after Frankie, whose ankle is in plaster, her initial reservation gives way to a warm bond and she tells Damian her life story. From a tragic start in rural Ireland to living the high life in NYC, Frankie has lived more lives than most could dream of.
Utterly absorbing, Frankie introduces a cast of people who will undoubtedly be with the reader for long after they have finished the book. The plot zips along but is full of rich detail and dialogue. There were a couple of times in the first half that were a little slow but I soon forgot those when the action moved to NYC.
I have read most of Graham’s fiction and loved them all. Frankie is a standout. Wholeheartedly recommended.
Thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for an ARC....more
