Review:The House of Cursed Daughters by CJ Cooke
20 October 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, CJ Cooke, Fantasy, fiction, The House of Cursed Daughters
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Absolutely Brilliant. That is All
I practically inhaled this book, it was so good. I started, and for a moment there, I almost thought maybe this one is going to be the book that doesn’t wow me, but no, a hot minute later I was drawn in and it pretty much knocked my socks off.
I’ve read quite a few of this author’s books now and they seem to go from strength to strength. A Haunting in the Arctic scared the heebies right out of me – they still haven’t returned tbh. I haven’t got over that book. Shocking, dark, scary and absolutely compelling. To be fair I think that is still my absolute favourite although The Last Witch was also really good – and now The House of Cursed Daughters. I adored this book and I’m about 99.9% certain this will be on my favourites list come the end of the year.
Anyway. Review.
I don’t usually cut and paste the book blurb description but in this case the three separate paragraphs outlining the three central characters of the story are spot on, so here they are:
France, 1312. Queen Isabella is a new mother. Her baby boy secures not only her ill-starred marriage but her own precarious future. And yet, she is terrified. A generational curse hangs over her family. Can she free herself and her child from it?
London, 1865. The corridors of Bedlam Lunatic Asylum move like white serpents around Lois. The women here are all the same—more mad than when they entered its doors. But if sin is the cause of her illness, and her memories are the manifestations of insanity, then who is the little boy who calls her Mama?
Brittany, 2026. Artist Emma is preparing for her wedding in the French countryside, where she and her fiancé have rented a beautiful old castle for the occasion. She hopes the event will help her connect with her sixteen-year-old daughter, Ivy, who has never understood the demons that drive her mother’s life and fuel her art. But soon the echoes of her past threaten to derail not only the wedding but everything she holds dear.
This basically gives you an outline of our three MCs. Although Ivy (Emma’s daughter) also has some of her own page time.
What I loved about this.
The story is addictive. I love a story that is told with dual timelines so imagine my glee discovering that we have three timelines here. And they’re all so good and so different. Isabella’s story is really intriguing, to such an extent that I started googling to find out more about her, even whilst still reading. Then we have Emma and her wedding and art exhibition preparations. As a rule I’m not usually a lover of the more contemporary threads but actually this thread is really interesting. Emma has painted what she believes are 13 women, fictional, from different periods, all wearing the same dress, brought together by her painting of Queen Isabella and concluding with her own self portrait. This feeds into the story very well. And of course we have Lois, an inmate of Bedlam with no memory of how or why she ended up in an asylum. Such a hideous place, positively inhumane.
These three lives intertwine more than you will expect and all this becomes clear as the story progresses.
The writing is really good and the pacing is spot on. There are moments of reflection, we have back stories for the three main characters but on top of that there’s always something taking place. And lets not forget the curse, that terrible bloody curse that has followed Isabel and all her descendants. On top of this there’s a feeling of urgency. Everything is hotting up, something is wrong.
And yet these elements, as good as they are, are not the best part of this story. The absolute winning element of this story is the way Cooke writes the female characters. She is so good at bringing these females to life, painting their struggles, the unfairness that they face and then giving them the strength and courage to see things through. And the stories make you so furious. The inequality these women face, the way their lives are manipulated and abused, But they stand up to be counted and they stand together.
In conclusion, you may be able to guess, but I loved this book and I can’t wait to see what this author comes up with next. If you like split timelines, strong females, excellent writing and curses that become intense and scary then look no further.
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
Review: The Bookshop Book by Mark Lawrence
19 October 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, fiction, Mark Lawrence, reading, The Bookshop Book, The Library Trilogy
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Creative, Thoughtful and Beautifully Written
The Bookshop Book is the latest book penned by Mark Lawrence and set in the same world as his much esteemed Library Trilogy. That being said, you do not have to have read the Library Trilogy to enjoy this book as it reads as a self contained standalone – with obvious little treats for those that have read the trilogy.
This is a story of Rose and Red. Both very much immersed in the world of books – but definitely from different POVs.
This certainly is a love letter to literature lovers with the inclusion of various classics not to mention the settings sometimes taking us to the dusty tightly stacked shelves of a second hand book shop or the colossal scope of the Library itself. Yes, it definitely made me want to go wandering round the stacks. I cannot imagine a book lover not being entranced with the settings and exploration of literature. Not to mention the thought provoking ideas contained within.
Literally, I shall not be discussing the plot at all. Pick this up and let it unfold for yourselves. This is a relatively short story with just over 200 pages so I don’t want to spoil the fun.
What I really liked about The Bookshop Book. First and foremost, the writing. This wasn’t a surprise for me, it’s not my first ML book and his writing is always a joy to read. He, without fail, manages to create fantastic places, memorable plots and a level of clever twists and turns that make every word both meaningful and delicious to devour.
I love the imagination and thought provoking elements, firstly the inclusion of the books, within the book and how they play into things, and then the twist on the character Rose. It has this whole feel of everyone is the MC of their own tale. I like that idea, the idea of the library and even, strangely enough, the bookworm chasing Rose and Red. Don’t get me wrong here, I’m no hero, I don’t want it chasing me around, but it was pretty nasty as baddies go.
The only slight bug bear I had with this was I didn’t feel as connected to the characters as I wanted – but I think that’s inevitable in some ways given the length and frankly the amount of story that is contained in The Bookshop Book.
Overall, a beautifully told story with fantastic settings and lots of lovely books feeding into the plot.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 4 of 5 stars
Review: The Porcelain Sisters by Daryl Gregory
15 October 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, Daryl Greogory, Horror, reviews, The Porcelain Sisters
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Where Do I Even Begin.
Madness. Crazy, entertaining madness.
This story was an absolute blast from start to finish and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Now, this is only a shortish story, about 200 pages, and to be honest I try and avoid shorter stories as they’re not usually my ‘thing’, but I like this author, there’s a creepy MF of a doll on the cover and it sounded totally out there so clearly I wanted to get my grabby hands on a copy. And it truly doesn’t disappoint. In fact, it feels like the author manages to cram so much into this small space that I’d almost describe this as a tardis.
I’m actually going to say nothing at all about the story because literally, I mean seriously, you have to discover this for yourself.
The description itself states ‘a dizzying romp through the horrors of sisterhood’, which I love because on the one hand, the horrors of part of the sisterhood (in terms of the witches clan) really is horrific, but the actual sisters themselves, and apart from all their banter and occasionally getting fed up with being lumbered with each other – well, it’s not horrific at all.
There’s such a lot of imagination on display. We have the lore surrounding Le Clan des Sorcières, a terrible bunch of characters who are all at each other’s throats. Their leader barely holds them together and there is much rivalry. The truth at the heart of this Clan is horrific – and again, I’m not going to say why.
On the sister’s side, it turns out they have been lied to their entire life but they’ve decided to take action now. Of course they’re not expecting a practically invincible assassin – who, may I say, is creepy as all hell – a crow and a cat and their familiars and an overbearing matriarch.
To be honest, this was such a lot of fun to read. Very entertaining. Well written and I loved the dynamic between the two sisters. This review is going to be short and sweet purely on the basis of not wanting to divulge too much.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 4 of 5 stars
Review: The Thrice Bound Fool (Blacktongue #2) by Christopher Buehlman
13 October 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, Christopher Buehlman, fiction, reading, The Blacktongue Thief, The Thrice Bound Fool
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Wow, I loved This Book
It was simply brilliant.
I feel like there’s been a bit of a wait for this second instalment. But, I’m not complaining, I read and adored The Daughters’ War, which was, strictly speaking, the start of the story, and I completely understand the author’s desire to tell that tale because its so, so good.
Be warned that this review may contain spoilers for the previous two books. Also, I recommend that you read those books before delving into this one. In fact I will make it a special request – please read The Daughters War and The Blacktongue Thief – I implore you.
This story picks up with our two characters Kinch and Galva and, may I say, it was an absolute pleasure to follow the two of them around. And, trust me, there is a lot of meandering – not a criticism. The two are trying to keep one step ahead of the Taker’s Guild, whilst carrying along a sentient book that is trying to kill them – at the same time as trying to cross deadly mountains during the cold season. What could possibly go wrong. The main objective seems to be to buy time so that Kinch can try and uncover the secrets from the deadly book they carry, whilst Galva tries to protect him. What ensues is the strangest and most unexpected journey that you can imagine – and I do have a pretty good imagination.
Strangely enough I went back to check out my previous two reviews and I would say a lot of the feelings and comments I made for those are still relevant here.
If you’re looking for some sort of epic fantasy with a clearly structured plot that carries the story forward then you might need to give your head a wobble. This is definitely the type of tale that is more about the journey than the destination. And this journey is one major life threatening and twisty story. It’s incredibly entertaining, there is no shortage of action, its a conundrum in that it can be bleak and bloody, laugh out loud funny and indisputably crass and with a range of characters that really do run the gamut of humankind – kindness where you’d least expect, vicious cruelty without need and plenty of emotional scenes that will pull at your heartstrings.
We have giants, fickle and tricky Gods, corvids and although not as many as in previous books, goblins that will give you the heebies.
Lets be honest as well, the stakes in this one are again high. Mankind is possibly on the brink of being wiped out and what Kinch and Galva uncover in this latest instalment makes this possibility more than a little likely.
But, without doubt, the winning element to The Thrice-Bound Fool is the relationship between Kinch and Galva. I mean, to be fair, I absolutely adore Galva and so you could be forgiven for thinking Kinch plays second fiddle for me, but, to be honest, I really like his character too, he’s got such a lot of charm and he comes out with the most outrageous things that I simply explode, unexpectedly with laughter. It’s absolutely crazy. I love it when a book does that – particularly when a turn of the page can equally have me either on the edge of my seat or close to tears.
And I really liked the role that Kinch ends up playing – I’m not going to say what it is because it would give away spoilers, but it feels so ridiculously fitting somehow.
In conclusion, another great instalment. I’d say that The Daughters’ War is still my favourite but the three books are so close together that there’s barely anything in it. An excellent series. Well written, entertaining, outrageous, dark, brutal, bloody, funny and unexpectedly emotional. Also, can I just mention the title – which is absolutely perfect – I love it when the title is really meaningful.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 4.5 of 5 stars
Review: A Waltz of Sinister Import Lady and Lord Riven #3 by Stephanie Burgis
12 October 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: A Waltz of Sinister Import, Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, fiction, Lady and Lord Riven #3, reading, Stephanie Burgis
My Five Word TL:DR Review: A Perfectly Fitting Final Instalment
Well, the door isn’t totally closed, there may be more books in the future, or at least one can but hope.
I was so pleased to have an advanced review copy of A Waltz of Sinister Import by Stephanie Burgis. This series has been an absolute delight to read with it’s prickly central character who just so happens to be the leading expert on anything that goes bump in the night, by which I mean supernaturals.
First things first. This is the third in series and so I feel I should mention the possibility of spoilers lurking in this review, although I do my utmost to not drop clangers. Secondly, if you haven’t read the first two books I suggest you do so first. I suppose you could crash into this series at the final hurdle but you would deprive yourself of two very good books, which clearly you wouldn’t want to do, and also your knowledge of Lady and Lord Riven would not be as well grounded – in my opinion that is. Basically, be good to yourself and read all three. They are delicious – strangely enough there is also plenty of mention of tea and cakes so come prepared.
In this final instalment Margaret and her ever so patient vampire husband, Lord Riven, have swapped the Black Forest for the ballrooms of Vienna. A very unpleasant exchange in Margaret’s opinion. She’s not a lover of high society, dislikes all the pomp and ceremony of balls and finds it hard to blend into this so called polite society who are actually more vicious than a pack of wild animals. The couple long to return to the Black Forest but needs must, war is but a hair’s breadth away and Margaret needs to solve the latest mystery before everything goes to hell in a handcart.
I’m not going to say anything more about the story. It’s really well written and a wonderful read. It manages to bring to us magical balls – of the kind that you wouldn’t want to be invited to – political intrigue and, for me at least, unknown folklore in terms of the introduction of a totally fascinating new character.
What I love about this series. It begins with a marriage of inconvenience before quickly becoming obvious that Margaret and Lord Riven were made for each other. Their relationship is the key element in these books, especially in that certain conventions are turned on their head. Margaret, a woman of good standing and wealth, doesn’t like to socialise and has no time for niceties, she’s somewhat to the point, calls a spade a spade and is genuinely surprised if people are affronted. Lord Riven, on the other hand is a well spoken man about town. He has no problem talking and socialising with anybody and he does his best to step up and put himself into the fray in order for Margaret to not have to do so. This is one of the best married couples that I’ve read. They feel so caring and thoughtful of each others needs and emotions – which isn’t to say that Margaret doesn’t put herself in danger without a care in the world and that Lord Riven is nearly driven to distraction.
I actually enjoyed the switch of setting and in fact that’s something else I enjoy about this series. Each instalment brings a different setting, mystery and usually the introduction to something new in terms of fantasy folk and critters.
The dialogue is really good, something I feel Burgis really excels at. There is simmering romance, new friendships and a really fitting ending. Yes, its always a bittersweet feeling coming to the end of a series that you’ve enjoyed but there remains a tiny glimmer of light that we might see Margaret and Lord Riven in the future. Never say never.
I received a copy courtesy of the author, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 4.5 of 5 stars
