Best of the Best
1 January 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Best of 2023, Best of the Best, Danielle Valentine, Elodie Harper, Josiah Bancroft, Laura Purcell, Louisa Morgan, Mark Lawrence, Richard swan, Robert Dinsdale, T Kingfisher, Tananarive Due
As with previous years at the start of each year I take a look back over the past twelve months and choose my top ten books. This year, without dwelling too much upon things, was something of a shocker for me due to family matters and my reading and blogging was forced to take a back seat. I didn’t read for probably about three months and my blogging came to a complete stop. Fortunately, later in the year I got myself back on board. This past year I’ve read just shy of 80 books – which is probably the least amount of books I’ve read for years – but, I’ve had some fantastic reads and so choosing ten books was still difficult. But here goes:
***
The Whispering Muse by Laura Purcell
I love Laura Purcell’s writing, she is the queen of all things gothic and The Whispering Muse is another great novel in which she comes into her own.
Set in the theatre this is a dark and atmospheric read. It revolves around five key plays that reflect the story as it progresses. It’s a tale involving plenty of drama, unholy deals that come at a price, jealousy, ambition and tragedy.
***
A House With Good Bones by T Kingfisher
T Kingfisher is a relatively new to me author but I’m enjoying her work very much. In fact Nettle and Bone was on my ‘best of’ list last year.
This is a Southern Gothic horror that manages to temper the creepy horror elements with a good dose of humour and brings us a wonderful central character who has a great outlook on life.
***
The Tyranny of Faith by Richard Swan
This is the second book in the Empire of the Wolf series. The Justice of the Kings is the first book in the series and is a fantastic start. Fortunately, this second in series doesn’t suffer from middle book syndrome. This is a rollercoaster of a ride emotionally, the characters continue to impress and the story is packed with treachery and surprise. I highly recommend this series and can’t wait to jump into the third instalment.
***
The Book That Wouldn’t Burn by Mark Lawrence
Mark Lawrence is one of my favourite authors. I’ve read all of his series and it’s absolutely astonishing to me that he keeps on producing such amazing books. To be honest I’d be hard pressed to pick a favourite book or series but I would say that The Book that Wouldn’t Burn is a serious contender for the crown.
This first in series is without doubt a masterpiece. It blew me away. The whole story is so overwhelmingly clever and gripping. The tension is off the charts and the long story in play is just brilliant.
***
Delicate Condition by Danielle Valentine
Delicate Condition is a psychological thriller with a surprise twist. I was a little bit hesitant about picking this one up initially and so I’m really happy that I made the right choice – it would have been such a shame to miss out on this one.
This really was a very absorbing read. The main protagonist seems to suffer a constant string of ‘things’ or mishaps that for the most part seem coincidental or imaginary. The author throws in plenty of red herrings along the way and the tension is really cranked up as the conclusion goes into complete overdrive. A compelling read with a twisted ending.
***
The Hexologist by Josiah Bancroft
My first book by this author – and definitely the kick in the pants I need to go back and pick up his Babel series!
The Hexologists is a Victorian inspired world bursting with invention but at the same time still playing host to some wonderfully fantastical creatures. The imagination at play is superb and the writing – I am speechless. This is a book for lovers of intricate and exquisite writing. The detail is almost decadent and the style has clever flourishes and little snippets that make you want to wallow around and reread the page you’ve just read. I couldn’t tear my eyes away. It’s heartwarmingly cosy in parts, fiendishly clever in others and full of wonderful concepts that lovers of fantasy will be able to soak themselves in.
***
Once a Monster by Robert Dinsdale
I absolutely loved this book – of course I did (doh), otherwise it wouldn’t be on my list!
The story is exquisite, the writing is mesmerising, the characters are amazing. It gave me the goosebumps (good goosebumps these!), it filled my eyes with tears and the ending was magical.
Seriously, when I read the description for Once a Monster I was a little unsure, I do like a good period story, especially anything Victorian, on top of that I am loving my greek mythology retellings – but, you know, the two seemed to make unlikely playmates. How wrong I was. Put simply I requested this because I’ve read and enjoyed two books already by the author and so I just thought ‘what’s the worst that can happen, really? Maybe I won’t like it, it’s not the end of the world.’ As it happens, not only was it not the end of the world but I adored this book. Dickens meets the Minotaur. A story filled with good and evil, bravery and villainy sitting cheek by jowl with the impossible search for answers and finding oneself all whilst holding such fragile hopes alive and kicking. This is a story where actual monsters might not necessarily be the real monsters of the piece.
***
Temple of Fortuna by Elodie Harper
Temple of Fortuna is the stunning conclusion to the Wolf Den series. I absolutely loved this series and I have my fingers and toes crossed that this is a world that the author will return to (perhaps from a different pov). One can but hope.
What a journey Elodie Harper has taken us on here, every book has contained different aspects from the tense start in the infamous Wolf’s Den where we first met Amara to her precarious rise in fortune that eventually sees her escape the Den to this final episode where she has become established as a courtesan in Rome with an influential patron.
***
The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
The Reformatory is without doubt one of the most powerful stories that I’ve read so far this year. An absolute tempest of shock, horror, unbridled emotions and abject terror. And then, there’s also the ghostly elements of the story to take into account. Yes, for me, the most horrifying aspect to this particular story was not the haints of tortured boys but the historical facts that this tale is grounded upon. What a story. I mean, literally this story made me want to cry, it made me feel outraged and the final chapters had my pulse racing imagining all the many disasters that felt inevitable. A difficult but totally absorbing read.
***
The Ghosts of Beatrice Bird by Louisa Morgan
The Ghosts of Beatrice Bird is a beautifully told mystery circulating around the lives of two women who are both trying to escape something. An unusual ghost story that took me in a direction that I didn’t expect and was emotionally incredibly satisfying. I thoroughly enjoyed this story.
Countdown to 2024 Day 16: Turkey Dinner– eye’s too big for your belly? A chunkster
16 December 2023
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: A Chunkster, Countdown to 2024, Day 16, Tananarive Due, The Reformatory, Turkey Dinner
Today is day 16 of my countdown to 2024. Using a series of prompts each day I will post a book title that I believe fits the prompt. The aim is to highlight as many books as possible that I read from 2023 and shine the spotlight on them once again (although for some prompts I will be looking at future reads). A list of prompts can be found here if you wish to join me in counting down to 2024.
Today’s prompt: Turkey Dinner– eye’s too big for your belly? A chunkster
The Reformatory by Tananarive Due weighs in at just shy of 600 pages – but it certainly doesn’t feel like a big book when you’re reading it because the pages seem to fly by. Dark, horrific and difficult but an absolute must read.
15 Days Remaining
The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
My Five Word TL:DR Review : Wow, where to even begin
The Reformatory is without doubt one of the most powerful stories that I’ve read so far this year. An absolute tempest of shock, horror, unbridled emotions and abject terror. And then, there’s also the ghostly elements of the story to take into account. Yes, for me, the most horrifying aspect to this particular story was not the haints of tortured boys but the historical facts that this tale is grounded upon. What a story. I mean, literally this story made me want to cry, it made me feel outraged and the final chapters had my pulse racing imagining all the many disasters that felt inevitable.
The story is told from two POVs. Set in Gracetown (a fictional place) in Florida 1950 we meet Robert Stephens Jr and his older sister Gloria. The two are living on the outskirts of town, parentless and struggling. Their father has gone into hiding, classed as an agitator he has been accused of the rape of a white woman and has had to disappear to basically escape a lynching. Their mother died tragically and the two are now living day to day. Following an incident in which Robert tries to defend his sister from the son of a local influential landowner he is arrested and sentenced to six months in prison the Gracetown School for Boys – a reformatory with a terrible reputation. This is a segregated institution with both white and black boys and whilst it calls itself a ‘school’ the only real teachings here seem to come from bullying and beating and the place itself is little more than a front for modern day slavery with the boys being used as free labour on the surrounding farms.
So, the two characters. Well, I did find myself gravitating to Robert. His sister’s chapters at first felt a bit less gripping as she races around trying to get someone to help her (Gloria soon realises that Robert’s incarceration is little more than a ruse to lure their father out of hiding and is desperate to get him out) but, that being said her chapters become a horrible race against time and the conclusion had me reading and holding my breath at the sametime – which I don’t recommend to be perfectly honest. Robert is just so innocent really. I’m not saying he hasn’t suffered or been the victim of racial abuse but his incarceration into Gracetown is terrifying for him, and for the reader also as a result. At first, he finds himself a couple of friends,and that,together with the promise of regular(ish) meals lulls Robert into thinking he may be able to cope but within a very short time he has come to the attention of Warden Haddock. Dear god, this character should go down in the literary hall of fame for being the nastiest excuse for a human ever. No moustache twirling villain stereotype here. Haddock is absolutely an afront, he’s written so believably that he radiates evil and frankly I felt chills every time he appeared on the page.
Of course, on top of the bullying. the fear and the torture the school is haunted. And given the number of boys who have died over the years it’s little surprise that their souls have become trapped. This feeds so well into the story creating a perfect blend of horror with the actual horrible reality of the situation itself. Robert can see these ‘haints’ as they’re called. Without realising he soon becomes embroiled in a terrible battle between the ghosts, who want something from Robert and the Warden – who also wants something from him. The two are both pulling in opposite directions and Robert’s situation grows worse by the day .
This is so well written. It really did hold me gripped. It’s a disturbing read and very difficult to read but at the same time you have to keep going. You have to find out what was going on, what terrible secrets the Reformatory holds. And the tension and atmosphere is palpable. I was like some of the secondary characters depicted here, I wanted to know what was going on but I was scared to find out.
I don’t know what I can say. For a 600 or so pages book this one held my attention and kept the pages turning with indecent haste. Like I said, it’s not an easy story to read and this is compounded by the fact that the author based this on a real reform school although obviously Gracetown and its reform school are fictional- I would give a shout out to the Author’s note – make sure to give it a read when you finish.
Difficult to read but at the same time, I feel, a must read. A horror story contained within a story of horror based on historic happenings. Plus a fantastic twist. Did I forget to mention the twist? It’s very good but my lips are sealed.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the author, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 5 of 5 stars
Books and travelling with Lynn 