Friday Face Off : Oracle by Thomas Olde Heuvelt
26 January 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Cover Comparisons, Friday Face off, Oracle, Thomas Olde Heuvelt
Today I’m returning to the Friday Face Off, originally created by Books by Proxy). I’ve missed these for the past few months and so would like to get back to comparing covers (and hopefully I will be updating this page with a new banner. This is an opportunity to look at a book of your choice and shine the spotlight on the covers. Of course this only works for those books that have alternative covers (although sometimes I use this to look at a series of books to choose a favourite). . So, if you have a book that has alternative covers, highlight them and choose your favourite. If you’re taking part it would be great if you leave a link so I can take a look at what you’ve chosen.
This week I’ve chosen a book that I will be reading soon Oracle by Thomas Olde Heuvelt. Only two covers. Take a look and see which is your favourite.
This week my favourite is:
Which is your favourite?
Join me next week in highlighting one of your reads with different covers.
The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins
25 January 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Audio, Book Review, Mystery, Rachel Hawkins, The Heiress, Thriller
My Five Word TL:DR Review : One inheritance, one dysfunctional family
Before I start this review I would mention that I listened to the audio version of this one and it was excellent.
Anyhow, The Heiress is my favourite book by Rachel Hawkins to date. It feels like she’s achieved this perfect combination of, almost cosy mystery but with sinister undertones together with a story telling voice that feels like its channelling Daphne Du Maurier – to be clear – gothic. So, the story is a winning mash up of different character motivations, secrets and lies and wonderful pacing all brought together by a lovely story telling style using past and present storylines and different methods such as letters and newspaper articles to relay the different events.
Firstly, to the characters. I’d like to say that the main characters are Jules and Camden, but, really, let’s be honest, the titular Heiress steals the show – even though she’s dead! Ruby McTavish Callahan was filthy rich. Heiress to her family’s fortune she also managed to accrue wealth in her own right during her crazy life. Ruby became famous as a child when she was kidnapped and returned to the family a year later. On top of that she had four husbands, who all died – I can practically hear you raising your eyebrows. She relates her story to the reader through a series of letters – to whom the letters are addressed is, of course, part of the mystery that eventually unfolds. I loved her dark humour.
Camden is Ruby’s adopted son and inherited the bulk of her estate. He chose instead to reject the wealth and leave the family home eventually settling down to a regular job and marrying the love of his life – Jules. Jules is a very interesting narrator, I can’t really say too much about her here other than the two clearly are in love, but, Jules has quite a few secrets of her own (well so does every character in the book to be fair, even Cam).
I’m not going to elaborate too much on the other characters, lets say that they are very bitter about Camden inheriting the bulk of what they consider to be their family’s estate and so when Cam decides to make the trip home and rebuild some bridges he and his wife don’t receive a warm welcome. I have mentioned that everyone here has secrets – I would add that nobody is completely innocent either.
Secondly, in terms of the plot. Well, we have all the family secrets to unravel and on top of that we have the past to catch up on and the true story of Ruby told in her own style. Again, I won’t say anything more.
Thirdly. I loved the atmosphere of this. It has this old style mystery feeling, the characters are almost exaggerated versions of themselves, totally over the top, apart from Jules and Cam who have the appearance of being the only down to earth characters of the story. There’s lots of backstabbing and furtive goings on. There’s a delicious gothic feel to the piece with Ashby House – an old and rambling mansion that has fallen into disrepair surrounded by thick forest and sheer cliffs. It almost feels as though you’re reading a conjured up plot from the board game Cluedo (It was Ruby, in the Lounge, using the candlestick – just joking – no spoilers here). It’s kind of hammed up but in a really infectious and unputdownable way and I think the reveals and secrets are perfectly blended. Hawkins manages to keep the tension throughout by revealing certain jaw droppers usually quickly followed by another teaser. She lets you off the hook, and then she puts you right back on it.
In conclusion, I don’t think I can lay a single criticism on this book. I loved it from start to finish. I consumed it in about two days and I enjoyed every minute. Lots of twists and turns and a totally satisfying ending. If you’re looking for something a bit more dark or brutal then this isn’t what you’ll find amongst these pages but I can’t recommend this enough if you’re looking for a compelling and addictive vipers den of secrets and lies.
I bought an audio version of The Heiress and thoroughly enjoyed the way the story was narrated. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 5 stars
Can’t Wait Wednesday : The Moonlight Market by Joanne Harris
24 January 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Can't Wait Wedesday, Joanne Harris, The Moonlight Market, Wishful Endings
“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that was originally created by Breaking the Spine. Unfortunately Breaking the Spine are no longer hosting so I’m now linking my posts up to Wishful Endings Can’t Wait Wednesday. Don’t forget to stop over, link up and check out what books everyone else is waiting for. If you want to take part, basically, every Wednesday, we highlight a book that we’re really looking forward to. This week my book is: The Moonlight Market by Joanne Harris. Here’s the cover and description:
From New York Times bestselling author Joanne Harris comes a richly imagined and captivating novel of two colliding worlds.
Deep in the heart of London, a photographer walks the streets and captures whatever catches his an old man drinking coffee; a beautiful woman sipping champagne in St. Pancras station; a cloud of moths, disturbed, taking flight across the sky.
But with each photo, he captures something unseen by the eye, and as each negative develops—revealing a person he hadn’t met, a danger he hadn’t noticed, and a world he hadn’t seen—he is drawn further into a hidden war. One which he has been drawn into many times before . . . and every time, had his memories of the truth, and of the woman he loves, stolen from him.
As Tom pieces fragments of the truth together, he realizes he must weave through the war and fight his own both for the woman he loves, and for himself.
Expected publication : June 2024
Top Ten Tuesday : Books I Meant to Read in 2023 but Didn’t Get To
23 January 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Alex North, Andrea Stewart, CE McGill, Genevieve Cogman, HG Parry, Joanne Harris, Juliet E McKenna, Katie Lumsden, Rowenna Miller, Stacey Thomas, That Artsy Reader Girl, Top Ten Tuesday
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme where every Tuesday we look at a particular topic for discussion and use various (or more to the point ten) bookish examples to demonstrate that particular topic. Top Ten Tuesday (created and hosted by The Broke and Bookish) is now being hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl and future week’s topics can be found here. This week’s topic:
Books I Meant to Read in 2023 but Didn’t Get To
Well the first half of last year was fairly dreadful for me and so I had a number of books for review that I didn’t pick up. Thankfully my reading is now back on track but I do have a number of books that I would like to try and catch up with. Here is a selection:
The Magician’s Daughter by HG Parry
The Fairy Bargains of Prospect Hill by Rowenna Miller
The Secrets of Hartwood Hall by Katie Lumsden
Our Hideous Progeny by CE McGill
Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman
The Revels by Stacey Thomas
Broken Light by Joanne Harris
The Bone Shard War by Andrea Stewart
The Half Burnt House by Alex North
The Cleaving by Juliet E McKenna
Have you read any of these – do you have a favourite that I should start first?
Relight my Fire (Stranger Times #4) by CK McDonnell
23 January 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Reviews, CK McDonnell, Love will tear us apart, Relight My Fire, Stranger Times #4), The Stranger Times, This Charming Man, Urban Fantasy
My Five Word TL:DR Review : Goes from strength to strength
I am loving this series. I really can’t get enough of it and every time a new book comes out I’m there to devour it in super quick time. So, so good.
To the plot. Well think of It’s Raining Men by the Weather Girls and you might have the first clue of how the story picks up. Literally, Stella is almost hit by a student who seems to have plummeted off one rather tall building – the thing is, shortly before his rapid descent it seemed like he was flying – and so we have the perfect mystery for the staff at the Stranger Times to focus on for their next edition. On top of this, there appears to be a mystery drug that seems to unlock latent magical ability, Banecroft has been set his very own personal mission by a mysterious Pilgrim – this is a mission that he is very keen to succeed in as the punishment for failure is too terrible to contemplate, and, the powers that be are taking a rather keen interest in Stella and her special abilities and beginning to wonder if she’s too dangerous to be allowed to roam freely.
It is possible that this review may contain spoilers for the previous books in the series, although I do strive to avoid these where possible. Also, I would suggest you read the other three books in the series. It might seem like a bit of catching up but it’s seriously worthwhile.
As with the other books in series there is plenty going on here, and as with those forerunners the story eventually pulls together in the most satisfactory way.
The staff at the Stranger Times continue to grow and the author is continuously building the world, steadily but surely placing layer upon layer as each book progresses.
What do I really love about this series.
Well, the author seems to pull a new and unusual mystery out of his hat with each story. There always seem to be other things going on around that central theme and with each read we discover just a little more of this strange world.
I love the writing. It’s witty, it makes me laugh out loud quite frequently, so many little bits and pieces tie together, we have people from previous books making repeat appearances and gradually this strange place is starting to firm up into something really special. On top of that the dialogue is excellent. There’s banter. There’s danger. Terrifying cats. Brass gnomes with a mission to ‘dig, dig, dig’, ghouls, a hotel for the supernatural and so much more.
The characters feel like a family. They care for each other. At least three of them now permanently reside at the Stranger Times office and frankly, it may be the safest place to be right now. Strange things are afoot. I really like Banecroft – he’s such a grump but his bark is worse than his bite. Then there’s Hannah who is still suffering embarrassment over the DI Sturgess ‘situation’ (Sturgess is now officially in charge of – and I quote – all the ‘weirdy bollocks’ that goes on in the City – frankly I think he’s going to need a bigger team). Stella is now a part time student doing her best to blend in (right up until the flying body incident) and the rest of the team – well, they’re mad as a box of spiders. I would also say that this instalment brings to us the most unexpected bunch of characters that you can ever hope to meet in a kind of ‘celebrity meets 28 days later’ type zombie thing.
Put simply. I can’t get enough of this series. I love the setting, the titles are all brilliant and fit so well, Manchester is such a great setting, the cast are wonderful. What can I say? Just read it (please) if you love a bit of clever urban fantasy with fantastic imaginings going on. I’ve found the perfect series for myself with this one and I love the way that it’s literally a mad mad mad mad world and yet all the mundanes are simply going about their regular lives without a care in the world and no idea that they’re surrounded by the strangest things imaginable.
I know I’ve probably missed out so much in this review but, I have to leave something for you to discover yourself and also you may hopefully glean from this just how much fun I’m having with each new instalment and be intrigued enough to go and grab a copy of the first in series.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 5 of 5 stars
