The Betrayals by Bridget Collins
My Five Word TL:DR Review : Didn’t Quite Work for Me
The Betrayals is a book that I part read and part listened to and I will say before starting this review that I do love the way that Bridget Collins writes. She has a way of instilling her works with so much atmosphere that even though the story wasn’t quite my ‘thing’ I still wanted to continue reading.
This is a novel with a historic feel although I’m not entirely sure the year in which this takes place. We begin by making the acquaintance of Léo Martin, a disgraced politician. Basically Léo had the temerity to disagree with one of the party lines and as a result finds himself demoted to a backsticks position that actually involves a return to his old school. Montverre is an old school academy where bright young things pitch their wits against each other in an old fashioned game known as the Grand Jeu. Léo left the school after a tragedy and his return now sets in train a strange unwinding of the past and some startling revelations along the way.
This is a story with a few POVs. Obviously Léo. Léo has become complacent over the years, used to his own importance and lulled, in fact, into thinking that his opinions matter much more than they do. He’s forgotten to keep his head down and is now facing the outcome of his own overblown self importance. In fairness to Léo he is actually making a stand against a party line that is very harsh and his removal from office gives him time to stand back and see just how extreme things have become. The politics here are not particularly named but there is an almost fascist feel to the place as though things are on the brink of change, tolerance is low and there’s an underlying current of fear and suspicion. We also have Léo’s pov from his days as a student told through the pages of a journal that he wrote at the time and so from this you would be right in thinking that the story does jump back and forth in order for us to discover what happened way back when. The third pov is Magister Ludi – this is the highest office that can be held at Montverre and is currently held by a woman called Claire Dryden. As the story unfolds it becomes apparent that this shocking admission of a female into a very male centred world and a much sought after position came about through some sleight of hand and it would be an understatement to say that not all the old bastions within the Academy are happy with the ways things have panned out. Finally, a character known as the Rat – a very unusual perspective and one that I won’t elaborate on here for fear of spoilers.
So, what I liked about this first. I loved the writing. As I mentioned above Collins is really amazing at setting the tone and The Betrayals is brimming over with atmosphere. On top of that I am a little bit of a sucker for any story that’s set within the walls of a school or other learning establishment and the one here is a grand old building with plenty of dusty corridors, dark spaces and secret histories. There is also a lovely slow reveal of past secrets that went in a direction that was surprisingly and happily unexpected.
What didn’t work too well for me was a combination of wanting more clarity on the grand jeu and what the school was actually about and an overall feeling of not only missing something fundamental along the way but also that the plot didn’t really live up to it’s promise somehow. I’m not really phrasing that very well but for me it felt like there was going to be a lot more substance to this than the actual outcome left me feeling. Again, I think this is probably down to me not picking up an underlying message or perhaps expecting there to be more to this than was actually intended.
Overall, although this one didn’t totally win me over I would still not hesitate to pick up more books by this author. She has a style of writing that really works for me and so even though the content for this one didn’t work it’s magic I remain only too happy to read more books by her in the future.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publishers, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
Mr Rating 3 of 5 stars
Can’t Wait Wednesday : The Shadow of the Gods (The Bloodsworn Saga #1) by John Gwynne
13 January 2021
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Can't wait Wednesday, In the Shadow of the Gods, John Gwynne, The Bloodsworn Saga #1, 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 Shadow of the Gods (The Bloodsworn Saga #1) by John Gwynne. I have been waiting for a description and book cover so that I could display this book. I am so excited for this book. Literally, I want this book. I really do. Anyway, here goes:
Set in a brand-new, Norse-inspired world, and packed with myth, magic and bloody vengeance, The Shadow of the Gods begins an epic new fantasy saga from bestselling author John Gwynne.
After the gods warred and drove themselves to extinction, the cataclysm of their fall shattered the land of Vigrið.
Now a new world is rising, where power-hungry jarls feud and monsters stalk the woods and mountains. A world where the bones of the dead gods still hold great power for those brave – or desperate – enough to seek them out.
Now, as whispers of war echo across the mountains and fjords, fate follows in the footsteps of three people: a huntress on a dangerous quest, a noblewoman who has rejected privilege in pursuit of battle fame, and a thrall who seeks vengeance among the famed mercenaries known as the Bloodsworn.
All three will shape the fate of the world as it once more falls under the shadow of the gods . . .
Expected publication : May 2021
Top Ten Tuesday : Hopes for 2021
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 :
Hopes for 2021
In keeping with the nature of this blog and my much loved hobby of reading I’m going to keep this centred on all things bookish (so, please take it for granted that I would also dearly love for a cure for the current pandemic, for everyone to have a fantastic year, for all our friends and families to remain safe and healthy and for 2021 to be a most excellent year), that being said, here are my ten ‘bookish-themed’ hopes:
- I would like all my book wishes to come true. I know this is greedy and ridiculous and I also realise that I can’t possibly read ALL THE BOOKS, but, at the same time it really doesn’t help me from wanting them all. I can’t help but hoping to have them all in my little grabby hands. There.
- To become more organised. I frequently see author interviews in which the question – ‘are you a planner or a pantser’ is asked. I may not be a writer, and for the avoidance of doubt I will just confirm that I have no hopes or intentions whatsoever in that direction – I’m very much a reader. But, writer or not, I am definitely a pantser.
- My blog needs updating. I’ve become very lazy over the past few years and pay little regard to the set up or style. I know that changing the style is probably more trouble than it’s worth but I would like to get on top of things like my A-Z of books (which is probably about 3 years out of date atm).
- I would very much like to catch up with some older outstanding review requests, this includes both traditionally and self published books. I always take these things on board with the best intentions but sometimes I overwhelm myself. Eyes too big for the belly as we like to say in the UK. To all the authors or publishers who have gifted me books that I have not yet read my most sincere apologies. I will try to do better. Know this though, my biggest victim is probably myself, I can’t resist buying new books all the time and yet my own ‘bought’ books very rarely get read.
- It would be really good if I could get back into the habit of writing reviews as soon as I’ve finished a book. This is how I used to operate. I liked to put my thoughts down whilst the emotions were still rampaging around. Once I leave things a few days it really affects me and I don’t feel I can quite capture those ‘just finished’ feelings. I think the main reason my writing review habits changed is that quite often I will stay up late to finish a book and usually then just want to sleep. What’s a girl to do? Do I stay up and finish the book or leave it to the next day, finish it early and write the review? Who am I kidding.
- To organise my kindle better. This includes removing the books that are complete so that I can really see the wood for the trees. That’s a downfall of the kindle – no stacks of books all over the house to make you feel guilty. Once that book goes onto your e-reader it can’t make you feel bad any more.
- Completion. I would seriously like to finish off some of my outstanding series before I start new ones. I guess the real issue here is that when I see a new book that looks really awesome I fall into the trap of wanting it immediately (probably because nothing is more daunting than falling behind with a series). I think I need to go back through my lists and lists and lists and maybe make yet one more list – it can’t hurt now – in which I make a note of my unfinished series and really try to tick some of those off.
- I would also like to be a bit more sociable and get back to chatting with everyone on a daily basis rather than leaving things for a few days and then commenting on a week’s worth of posts all at once. I’ve definitely got into bad habits last year (what with one thing and another *waves arms around crazily*) and it would be good if I could shake those habits this year.
- To reinstate my ‘weekly wrap up’ post or something of a similar nature – maybe to join in with the ‘What’s on my Plate’ meme. I need something that I can check in with to keep me on track. I mean, I don’t want to remove all the spontaneity or fun of picking up an unscheduled book and it would definitely be good to start reading some books on a whim – but the weekly wrap ups were very good for keeping me a bit more focused.
- Finally, I hope that 2021 treats us all well.
The Stranger Times by CK McDonnell
My Five Word TL:DR Review : Please, I would like more
I had a ridiculously good time reading this book, it made me laugh out loud on more than one occasion, I just really enjoyed the humour and was hooked. In fact, I can admit that I turned into that annoying reader who keeps reading snippets out to the other half – even though it’s completely out of context and they’re not amused at your incessant ramblings.
So, in fairness, I’m not going to try and say that The Stranger Times brings anything particularly new to the urban fantasy genre, but, regardless of that it won me over with ease, it had characters that I enjoyed, I really liked the setting with the small office dynamic and the slightly eccentric style of news reporting. Also, I can’t deny that a book being set in Manchester, where I worked for a few years, also appealed greatly and I thought really lent itself to the nature of the story.
As the book begins we meet Hannah Willis. Hannah has recently split from her husband and is slowly discovering that the rich lifestyle she had become accustomed to is now a thing of the past and standing on her own two feet, having spent a number of years honing absolutely no skills whatsoever at all to perfection, means that her employment prospects don’t look too promising and when her first interview turns into a disaster Hannah realises that standing on her own two feet might be easier said than done.
However, against the odds, her second interview – which doesn’t resemble an interview in any shape or form, leaves her as the new assistant editor to the Stranger Times. Now, before you become all flabbergasted at this piece of luck two things must you know. Firstly, Hannah was the only interviewee and secondly, as a result of a very grumpy editor, most new people leave before their colleagues have even had a chance to remember their name. Hence, Hannah becomes known as the ‘new Tina’, the only person to have stayed in post long enough to make an impression.
The plot, is something of a murder mystery. We are immediately made aware that somebody evil is prowling the streets and after a couple of deaths, The Stranger Times employees find themselves drawn into the investigation and actually doing some real journalism. I’m actually not going to say anything more about what takes place because I think it would involve spoilers and I really loved the rather chaotic style of the story and think it best left for readers to discover it all for themselves.
What particularly worked for me was threefold. Firstly, the setting – as I mentioned ‘Manchester’ – but more than that, the humour, the author seems to have really captured the essence of the place in terms of banter, dialogue and sarcasm. Secondly, the characters. This feels like a cast that I could become attached too – on top of this the author has left a lot yet to explore with all of them. Thirdly, the quirky eccentricity of it all combined. A group of misfits working for a publication that writes about the weird and wonderful and pretty soon discover there’s more to all this ‘hocus pocus’ than they ever imagined.
To be honest, it’s not easy to pinpoint exactly why this worked for me at the time I picked it up. Perhaps it’s the nature of the strange times in which we live that makes such escapism a fun distraction but I can say without doubt that I would love to read more from this eclectic bunch of characters. I would love for certain friendships to develop further and I, well, I just want more. Pretty please.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
Two-fer – A Double Review of Two Audio Books
9 January 2021
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: A Christmas Carol, Audio Reviews, Charles Dickens, Dina Gregory, Hugh Grant, Kenneth Graham, The Wind in the Willows
Due to a Christmas and New Year break – in which I did virtually no blogging, but was still reading, I’m now a little behind with reviews so the next couple of weeks will be a little more active as I try to catch up.
Today, I’m posting mini reviews for two audiobooks that I listened to during the last few days of December – one of these was a festive story that strictly speaking I would have liked to have posted pre-Xmas (but the best laid plans, etc, etc) – regardless of timing, I enjoyed both.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, narrated by Hugh Grant.
This is a story that I have reread many times over the years. A well known tale of one man’s redemption and overall a story of hope.
I won’t elaborate greatly upon the plot as I’m sure most people are well aware of the basics of this well loved classic. Ebenezer Scrooge is a selfish man – in fact over the years his very name has become synonymous with anything miserly or avaricious. He works long hours, constantly striving for success yet taking no pleasure in his wealth. He is penny pinching and mean spirited, not just to others but also to himself. His path is one of misery, not only in this life, but if he doesn’t change for the better, in the afterlife as well. On Christmas Eve, he is paid an unusual visit by Jacob Marley. Jacob was Ebeneezer’s business partner, dead these last seven years and paying the price of his pernicious greed in life by wearing a heavy and burdensome chain in death. He seeks to save Ebeneezer such a fate and plans an intervention from three ghosts. The ghosts of Christmas past, present and future. These visits reveal much. Scrooge wasn’t always such a bitter and twisted individual and but for the hand of fate could have found himself on a very different path.
This is a story than never fails to work it’s charm on me and once again I found myself spirited away to Victorian London as it prepares for another Christmas Day. Carols are being sung, turkeys are being prepared, children are skating on the icy streets and one cold office remains open to the bitter last. Dimly lit and poorly heated, it’s occupants won’t go home until the close of day. Ebenezer Scrooge and his uncomplaining clerk, Bob Cratchit, are where our story begins. My full review of a previous reread can be found here.
I thoroughly enjoyed this audio version. It’s told by Hugh Grant who is a superb narrator and whilst I can’t compare it to other readings (this being my first (but definitely not my last) for this particular novel) I would definitely recommend it. Of course, I set the scene well, listening to this as I was undertaking my own Christmas preparations and being very much in the mood for everything and anything seasonal.
I found this every bit as enjoyable as my past rereads, it truly is a wonderful story to listen to written in simpler times when people would gather round to tell stories to each other. In fact Dickens writing style really lends itself to this form of storytelling. This has a great balance between the bleak and the sensational and given the seasonal feel is a lovely tale of hope and redemption.
I have no hesitation in recommending this audio version and in fact I picked up a copy for free on Audible and understand that the offer remains valid for members until the end of the current month. So, do yourself a favour and pick up a copy – then you’ll be prepared, well in advance, for next Christmas.
Rating 7.5/8 out of 10
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Graham, Dina Gregory narrated by Cush Jumbo, Harriet Walter, Aimee Lou Wood, Susan Wokoma, Jennifer Saunders, Raj Gatak, Clare Corbett, Gerard McDermott, Stephanie Racine
‘This is an all female retelling of a classic.’
Okay, first things first. This was another free audible book for members – a holiday gift in fact. And, in my excitement at finding a present available for download (yes, I am still just as excited in adulthood at the thought of a prezzie as I ever was as a child) I failed to notice the ‘all female retelling’ element and grabbed a copy with positively indecent haste – my expectations were for a a new audio version of a classic tale – for goodness sake, if I’d taken one moment it’s fairly obvious from the cover that Toad is female and this is a different kettle of critters. Ah well, something about fools rushing in.
Now, firstly, I’m not averse to an all female cast, I’m also not averse to a retelling of a story and in fact have enjoyed many retellings of well known stories over the years, and, in fairness, I can see what the author was hoping to achieve in some respects, but, this one didn’t really work it’s magic on me.
To be fair, this is an excellent cast of narrators but in spite of some impressive narration I felt like there was something stopping me from truly enjoying this. One thing that immediately springs to mind is the drawn out pace of reading. Obviously, as an audio book, the pace can be increased and in this particular case I would say that it’s essential to do so, but this pacing issue detracted a little from the overall enjoyment – like the charm of the story somehow became lost in the need to slowly enunciate every word.
On top of this, and in spite of my enjoying retellings, I can’t help but feel a bit puzzled by this one because it follows the original story almost to the letter – simply replacing the ‘he’s’ with ‘she’s’ and calling the characters Mrs Mole and Lady Toad, etc. It feels, for me, a little like a lost opportunity somehow, if you’re going to take a story and retell it then make it your own. Instead of telling the same story why not create a new adventure set on the river bank and the wild woods but with some of the female inhabitants of those places taking the lead roles with a whole new adventure to explore?
I think overall, perhaps if you haven’t read the original story then this might work better for you than it did for me and if you fancy giving it a shot I understand it is available for free on Audible until the 31st January.
Mr rating 4 out of 10
Books and travelling with Lynn 