Review: Too Old for This by Samantha Downing
8 December 2025
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Reviews, Books, fiction, reading, Review, Samantha Downing, Too Old For This
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Morally Grey and Darkly Humourous
I must say that I enjoyed Too Old for This much more than I thought I should! I mean this is a story about a serial killer after all and it feels like you really shouldn’t like the main character, and yet, here I was rooting for her and liking her almost instantly!
Lottie has retired from her days of murdering. She’s moved and started a new life in a different part of the country. She has a house that is too big and old age is really catching up with her giving her good and bad days. But, she’s quite content in her retirement, she plays bingo at the church and has a couple of close friends. Her son is about to remarry and she has a third grandchild on the way. Lottie expects to live the rest of her life peacefully and there’s no reason why she shouldn’t until an investigative reporter called Plum arrives unannounced on her doorstep. Plum plans on dredging Lottie’s past back up for content on her podcast – obviously to showcase how innocent Lottie is – but Lottie has no intention of going through the horrors of infamy again and so it’s back to business.
From here onwards, and although Lottie really shows just how cold and clinical she can be, things really do start to spiral in the most wonderfully chaotic and over the top fashion.
I will say that I haven’t read this author before but on the strength of this I would like to take a look at her backlist for sure.
What I really liked about this.
Well, it’s a conundrum because the author really does suck you into Lottie’s life from the outset and you find yourself, dare I say, rooting for her. I love the way her backstory unfolds and the way her mind works. It does make me think to myself be careful who you’re being rude to! Lottie certainly has a temper and isn’t afraid to act on it.
The writing is great and the humour is absolutely spot on not to mention the tension. It’s one of those slow build stories where you’re getting more and more hyped up as things begin to descend into chaos. At first you think Lottie has a handle on everything, and she’s staying in control, then she starts to make mistakes.
Lets have a look at Lottie. You have to hand it to Downing for coming up with such a compelling character. She’s intelligent and cunning and I loved her narration. She’s not above really hamming it up when it comes to hoodwinking others using her age shamelessly and hobbling around but then at other times she really isn’t acting, her age really has become an encumbrance. One minute she’s figuring out gifts for her grandchildren and looking at retirement homes and the next she’s disposing of bodies and breaking into people’s houses.
I really enjoyed the almost comedic feel to the story – which the out of control tension feeds into. It reaches a point where you can’t imagine how things will ever work out and yet the author pulls you on relentlessly in Lottie’s wake.
In conclusion, I had an unexpectedly good time with this story and can’t wait to read more by this author.
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: The Naked Light by Bridget Collins
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Didn’t Quite Work For Me
A gothic tale that combines ancient folklore and superstition with the stories of three women post WW1.
On the face of it this book was perfect for me. Elements of old horror, a gothic tale with an old cottage perched above a village, windswept and lonely, a dark menace that is no longer being held at bay and the unsettling atmosphere of a village trying to pull itself together post war. And, this is atmospheric. The writing is beautiful. I could picture the hills and the village, the stifling confines of the vicarage and the petty mindedness of some of the villagers and I genuinely didn’t struggle to read this (because the writing is so good) but, I didn’t really get along with the characters for the most part, it was a very slow burn and the magical realism elements were a little bit thin on the ground.
Set in the fiction village of Haltington, on the Sussex coast, this is a tale of three women.
In the hillside, etched into the grass, is a chalk face, rumour would have you believe that this face protects the village from an ancient menace and the residents of Bone Cottage look after the ‘face’, keeping it visible to the village below. Unfortunately war kills off most of the Bone cottage family and the remaining member dies whilst trying to fulfil her duties. The face eventually begins to disappear, grass and weeds encroaching and taking back their rightful place, the villagers begin to forget about the rumours until an artist called Kit takes up residence in the cottage causing unrest with her alternative style.
Kit wants to be left alone. Traumatised by her work during WW1 she’s running away from everything and everyone she knows, unfortunately the villagers hold a strange fascination for her and two members of the community in particular are intrigued. Florence, a lonely spinster who has come to live with her brother-in-law (the vicar) following the death of his wife, and Florence’s niece Phoebe. The pair develop a fascination for Kit. Florence becomes attracted to her and in fact she and Kit become romantically involved, and Phoebe, out of some sort of jealous instinct spies on the pair often becoming vindictive or malicious. Meanwhile dark forces are gathering strength, unnoticed.
What really worked for me.
As I mentioned above the writing is absolutely wonderful in fact it kept me reading even though the story itself wasn’t particularly working it’s magic. This is such an atmospheric piece. It’s wonderfully gothic and really quite creepy. In fact the folklore elements are deliciously creepy although they’re a little late to make an appearance and quite under explored overall.
What didn’t work for me.
The characters. I don’t know why but I really struggled to connect to any of them and that remained constant throughout the story. So, although I did complete this I didn’t come away loving it.
I thought the magical realism elements were really well done, quite gripping and very creepy when they made an appearance – but by that point they felt a little too little too late.
Overall, I had no problem reading this and I certainly wouldn’t want to put off other readers from picking this up – it just didn’t work it’s magic for me (in spite of the writing and creep factor).
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 3 of 5 stars
Review: The Place Where They Buried Your Heart by Christina Henry
2 December 2025
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Reviews, Books, Christina Henry, Horror, Review, reviews, The Place Where They Buried Your Heart
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Haunted House, Character-led Horror
I loved The Place Where They Buried Your Heart and in fact would say it’s my favourite by the author. Henry manages to really capture the essence of the spooky, abandoned house where something terrible happens. The story put me in mind of old school King, the writing was excellent and I really liked the characters. The whole story is absolutely gripping. The House is terrifying and the author manages to deliver a coming of age story with depth and emotional impact.
The story is told by Jesse, who years ago ‘dared’ her younger brother Paul to go inside the creepy house on the street. Of course, Paul doesn’t want to go, especially alone, but he also doesn’t want to back down so he talks his two friends into going with him. The result, is that one of the friends is very badly injured, the other is traumatised and Paul – well, he’s never seen again.
As you might imagine, Jesse lives with massive guilt, made much worse by the further tragedies that eventually play out that I won’t go into here. She remains defiantly on the street, although other neighbours come and go, always in the hope that one day her brother will return.
Now, there’s much more to the story than the very brief outline sketched above but I prefer to focus on what really worked for me.
Well, the story really is gripping. It hooked me within a few pages and quite literally didn’t let up. The writing is so easy to get along with and the story just had me on the edge of my seat. I could barely put this book down in order to carry out basic day to day necessities.
I don’t read a lot of horror and tend to be a bit picky as some really don’t work well for me – but this simply fit the bill. It’s massively creepy, the way Henry writes about the house gives you a real feeling of fear to the extent that I didn’t want the characters to step inside because I was scared for them. And, of course, there’s no shortage of horror in the backstory. And yet this is all balanced by the whole emotional feel that the author delivers. I loved all the family related issues and the found family that Jesse eventually finds herself surrounded by. Not to mention that Jesse eventually becomes a mom herself and struggles with wanting to upsticks and run as far as she can with her new son and wanting to do the write thing, protect the neighbourhood, help her friends and keep others from falling into harm’s way.
As I mentioned, I enjoyed the characters, and in this story the House is a character itself. It’s a place of evil. The door will stand open, enticing people within, usually people who have already become obsessed with the place, and very few come back out. Attempts were made over the years to burn the place down, or to demolish it, and yet the house still stands, impervious to such weak attempts. And now, it’s power seems to be growing, putting out feelers in the neighbourhood and seeking new victims. Jesse and a few of her stalwart neighbours do their best to guard the property and keep people away, but their attempts don’t always work.
There’s so much to enjoy in this book. I really, thoroughly enjoyed it. I think the only very small issue I had was the ending felt a little rushed. That being said, and because I like to argue with myself, I also don’t think I would have liked a longer ending – go figure.
In conclusion – highly recommended.
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 creepy stars
Review: The Austen Christmas Murders by Jessica Bull
25 November 2025
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Jessica Bull, Review, The Austen Christmas Murders
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Another Enjoyable Instalment in Series
I’m enjoying Jessica Bull’s Miss Austen Investigates series and so couldn’t resist this novella with it’s seasonal title.
This is only a short instalment but I found it an easy and enjoyable read and a good addition to the series.
In this latest story the Austen Christmas is disrupted when human remains are uncovered in the cellar of Deane Rectory where Jane’s brother James is rector. James, his wife and their new baby move out until the body can be removed and take up residence in the Austen household causing pandemonium. Meanwhile, Jane, who was expecting nothing if not a dull Christmas, particularly in her sister’s absence, has now set her sights on discovering the true identity of this body – particularly as the local magistrate has immediately written the whole case off already. Jane has her sights on a local woman who went missing some years ago, on the day of her wedding.
So, not to elaborate on the story too much because this is a bitesize story that can be read in one or two sittings with ease.
What I really enjoyed about this particular story were the family elements. Of course, the central story is the mystery of the dead body, discovering the identity and if foul play was involved, and also we have Jane running around, determined, even with the firm instructions of her father to the contrary, to discover the identity and uncover the truth. And, to be fair, the mystery is actually quite intriguing, but what I particularly enjoyed were all the letters back and forth between Jane and her siblings, the chaotic family household and all the little Christmas references.
This was a very easy read, the writing set the scene really well and in fact the author has caught the tone well without reverting to over fussiness.
Overall I had a good time with this and am enjoying this series.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 3.5 of 5 stars
Review: The Everlasting by Alix E Harrow
20 November 2025
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Alix E Harrow, Book Review, Books, Fantasy, Review, Romance, romantasy, The Everlasting
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Another Contender for Best Book
Honestly, I’ve been reading some fantastic books just recently. I mean books that are just so good they’re not only going to stay with me probably forever but I’m undoubtedly going to be ‘pushing’ them and recommending them at every and any opportunity. The Everlasting is definitely one such book.
I went into this a little wary. The reviews were glowing and so I started to avoid the book chatter in order to keep my expectations from going through the roof, and as I started the read I would describe my initial reaction almost as a little doubtful. I think before I picked this up, although I’d heard the general hullabaloo, I had little idea what the story was about and I hadn’t quite expected it to take the turn it does in the first few chapters. Now, take all this with a very large pinch of salt because as soon as the story took this ‘turn’ I fell head over heels in love with it in, literally, a New York minute. In fact it’s ridiculous how much of a big pushover I really was given my initial thoughts that this wouldn’t be for me. I hadn’t expected this whole time loop, nor the Arthurian legend (with a twist) to poke it’s head above the parapet and then the love interest – the nerdy scholar who has read all about her exploits and is perhaps her biggest fan!. It all works so perfectly.
I’m not even going to tell you about the plot because going into this story with no knowledge was a winner for me – so maybe it will be for you too.
So,
Are you enjoying your romantasy at the moment? If so, this is about to knock your socks off. This is the romantasy I didn’t know I needed in my life. I don’t like romance and I really dislike it if the fantasy elements are tacked on rather than grounded. That isn’t the case with this book. This is a love story that puts a stupid smile on your face when you’re reading, it makes you want to turn the pages faster, it makes you want to skip the pages (don’t) so you can find out what’s going to happen, it makes you want to cry but more than that it delivers all the feelings.
Then we have this whole ‘Arthurian legend’ element. The central couple work so well together. The strong knight and the geeky, book loving scholar turned on its head by the fearsome, undefeated knight, being the female whilst the male brings his strength to the table in the form of ‘knowledge’.
Thirdly, the scope of the story is quite breathtaking. This is a couple who know how to wait for each other. They’ve been through so much together but actually trying to simply hold onto it, to retain their own little bit of happiness, is so difficult. They’ve made themselves rules, they’ve broken the rules, they’ve loved, laughed, fought and died for each other but they keep trying and waiting underneath the old yew tree and believing that maybe the next iteration will succeed.
It helps of course that I liked all the characters. Even the antagonist is the perfect fit for the story. I’m not going to say too much about her because, again, I don’t want to ruin the discovery, but she has motivations that you can actually understand, even if you don’t sympathise with her, she’s trying to find her way and to succeed in an environment where she would most probably be cast out with ridiculous ease if not for all her own dastardly interventions.
The writing is, much as I expected from this author, quite beautiful and utterly beguiling to read. This element of the story I can truthfully promise was not a surprise to me. I’ve read Harrow before and love her storytelling. Okay, well, maybe she surprised me a little by not only delivering a first class romantasy to a sceptic but also managing to deliver a story that can at times be so beautiful and yet so dark and brutal.
In conclusion, come for the great writing and stay for one of the most deliciously unexpected romantasies that you’re likely to read. This is a story about the power of stories, a story with many stories creating the whole and a story that truly shows the power that stories can wield. Dare I say – the pen is mightier than the sword!? Maybe not if the sword is wielded by Sir Una Everlasting. Read it and weep people.
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 of the most dazzling stars
Books and travelling with Lynn 