Welcome to my shelves. This page was born in summer 2017 as a place to share my thoughts about the books I read. Any reviews I post here are my own thoughts and opinions unless otherwise accredited.
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The final month of the year comes to a close, here's a quick run-down of the books I read this month. Look out for reviews here on the blog for all of these titles - if they haven't appeared already, keep a look out nearer publication date as some are due for release very soon.
The Chalk Man by CJ Tudor
Penguin UK/Michael Joseph
Publication date 11th Jan 2018
White Bodies by Jane Robins
HQ Harlequin UK/HarperCollins
Publication date 28 Dec 2017
The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
Bonnier Zaffre
Publication date 11th Jan 2018
If I Die Before I Wake by Emily Koch
Random House UK/Vintage Publishing
Publication date 11th Jan 2018
Million Love Songs by Carole Matthews
Little,Brown Book Group UK
Expected publication date 4th Jan 2018
Anything You Do Say by Gillian McAllister
Penguin UK/Michael Joseph
Publication date 25th Jan 2018
January is going to be such a busy month for excellent new releases, those mentioned in December's round up are just the tip of the iceberg. I hope you received lots of lovely book tokens in your Christmas stockings as you are going to be thoroughly spoilt for choice on what to spend them on.
Wishing all of you a happy, healthy and book filled 2018.
Just a quick post to wish everyone in the bookish world a very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy 2108. Thank you to every one of you who has supported me in any way in my venture in to the world of book reviews and blogging whether it be advice, shares, invitations to review books or be a part of blog tours. Special thanks go to Abby from annebonnybookreviews, Sarah Broadhurst of sbroadhurstreviews, Anne Cater of randomthingsthroughmyletterbox and Matthew Smith from Urbane books - you have all helped me more than you realise. The book world is an amazing community and I am so pleased and proud to be a small part of it. 2018 is looking amazing!
Today we welcome KL Loveley to the page with a guest post discussing her book Love,Secrets and Absolution, and the dream scenario of having her novel made in to a blockbusting movie.
Book Blurb
People in the village gossip about Grace’s son,
Alfie.
He’s a lonely boy full of secrets, lies, and
obsessive thoughts.
How far can a mother’s love go? Will she ultimately
sacrifice her life for his?
Set in Nottinghamshire, this family drama follows
the lives of Grace and Alfie as he transforms from a naïve, young boy into a
teenager spiralling out of control.
Love, Secrets, and Absolution is a coming of age
story with a difference.
Deceit, betrayal, love, and addiction, a family
falling apart in the midst of teenage angst and torn loyalties; will anybody
find absolution?
Book Trailer
About the author
K.L Loveley is a retired nurse, who has seen,
heard, and dealt with a wide range of medical, social and family dramas. She
has used her nursing experience, along with her excellent people-watching
skills to create fascinating characters and intriguing scenarios within her
books. She writes contemporary fiction, psychological dramas, and poetry.Her debut novel Alice was
published in February 2017, and the story tackles alcoholism head-on and
presents the reader with an empathetic account of a spiraling addiction and the
resulting pattern of hopelessness that many fall into.
K.L Loveley’s second novel Love, Secrets,
and Absolution: An emotional and gripping psychological, family drama is
a coming of age story with a difference. Deceit, betrayal, love, and addiction,
this story is about a family falling apart in the midst of teenage angst and
torn loyalties.If you enjoy reading authors like Jodi Picoult and
Diane Chamberlain, you will enjoy K.L Loveley!
K.L Loveley lives in Nottinghamshire, England and
loves socialising with friends and family. She is an avid reader and enjoys a
variety of genres including psychological, thrillers and historical fiction.
Her favourite authors include John le Carré, K.L Slater, Marian Keyes and
Philippa Gregory.
If
my novel Love, Secrets, and Absolution was made into a movie
1)Would
you want a Hollywood or British film production and why?
Most
definitely British, in order to retain the authenticity of the story. I have
watched far too many British stories, Americanised resulting in a complete
change of direction within the story.
2)Who
would you want to direct it and why?
Christopher
Nolan, a British director known for his determination to stick to the story
without diluting the content.
3)Where
would you film it?
One
of the local Nottinghamshire mining villages that have a welfare and rows of Pit houses. Forest Town is my first
choice. Blidworth my second choice.
4)Who
would be the big name star and what role would they play?
Brian
Blessed would play the grandfather.
5)List
who would play all of the main characters, and why you have chosen them.
Grace.
Sheridan
Smith, because I have seen her in similar roles and she was outstanding.
Paul.
Daniel
Mays. Ever since I have seen him in Mrs Biggs with Sheridan Smith and more
recently Against the Law, I have
admired his work.
Grandmother.
Brenda
Blethyn. The part is perfect for her and she would be a great foil for Brian
Blessed.
Alfie.
Nico
Mirallegro. A superb good looking young actor who played a Goth in the drama, Killed for Being Different.
Magenta.
Abigail
Lawrie. An amazing young actress who played as a Goth alongside Nico Mirallegro
in the drama, Killed for Being Different.
6)If
you were given ten tickets to the movie premier, who would you invite and why?
Oh
dear. Ten is not enough. I have so many amazing friends and my family far
exceeds ten. I guess that I would invite both my husband and our five children.
My mum, my brother and two sisters.My
family will always come first to me and currently, my grandchildren are far too
young to appreciate a movie premier.
My thanks to KL Loveley for her time, and the team at Globeflower books - in particular Anna-Lisa Hasedzic for the opportunity to feature on the Blog Tour for this publication.
Felix and Tilda seem like the perfect couple: young and in love, a financier and a beautiful up-and-coming starlet. But behind their flawless façade, not everything is as it seems. Callie, Tilda’s unassuming twin, has watched her sister visibly shrink under Felix’s domineering love. She has looked on silently as Tilda stopped working, nearly stopped eating, and turned into a neat freak, with mugs wrapped in Saran Wrap and suspicious syringes hidden in the bathroom trash. She knows about Felix’s uncontrollable rages, and has seen the bruises on the white skin of her sister’s arms. Worried about the psychological hold that Felix seems to have over Tilda, Callie joins an internet support group for victims of abuse and their friends. However, things spiral out of control and she starts to doubt her own judgment when one of her new acquaintances is killed by an abusive man. And then suddenly Felix dies—or was he murdered?
My review:
This book is definitely more psychological than thriller. Every one of the characters has issues (except Wilf, Callie's boyfriend who is lovely), which makes for a perfect storm of personality disorders which could only ever end one way. The author clearly has an excellent understanding of psychological and behavioural problems but I found this overtook everything else in the story. Callie is completely obsessed with her twin sister Tilda who is in turn only obsessed with herself. As much as Tilda's partner Felix is a neat freak with his controlling behaviour this only supports Tilda in her life plan and she allows him to control her in order to back up Callie's claims. Tilda surrounds herself with damaged people who she can manipulate to her own end. The novel also explores how the internet can be a source of support for people looking for help but equally can be a dangerous place for those who are vulnerable. I was pleased that Wilf helped Callie create some balance in her life amongst all the extreme behaviours, and felt that maybe everyone reached where they were meant to by the end of the story even though some of the journeys the characters took made for some uncomfortable reading at times.
About the author:
Jane Robins began her career as a journalist with The Economist, The Independent, and the BBC. She has made a specialty of writing historical true crime and has a particular interest in the history of forensics. She has published three books of nonfiction in the UK, Rebel Queen (Simon & Schuster, 2006), The Magnificent Spilsbury (John Murray, 2010), and The Curious Habits of Doctor Adams (John Murray, 2013). More recently, she has been a Fellow at the Royal Literary Fund.
I feel honoured to host a question and answer feature with Julie Newman the author of a fabulous book which I reviewed here on the blog back in the summer, Beware the Cuckoo.
Book Synopsis: They were reunited at his funeral, school friends with a shared past. A past that is anything but straightforward. A past that harbours secrets and untruths.
Karen has a seemingly perfect life. An adoring husband, two wonderful children and a beautiful home. She has all she has ever wanted, living the dream. She also has a secret. Sandra's once perfect life is rapidly unravelling. The man who meant everything to her had a dark side and her business is failing. To get her life back on track she needs to reclaim what is rightfully hers. She knows the secret. As the past meets the present, truths are revealed - and both women understand the true cost of betrayal. My review:
First of all I have to say what a gorgeous cover design! It
was this stunning artwork which drew me to the book initially then once I had
read the book I understood how the artwork very cleverly linked to the
storyline.Secondly, I do think there should be a warning to readers
who are sensitive to the subject of grooming and paedophilia as this is a
strong component of the story.The book centres around the friendship between 3 young girls
who are thrown in to more of a friendship of convenience and circumstance
rather than a close bonding.The lives
of them and their families are entwined throughout the girls' formative years
as they are tested by peer pressures and the need to fit in with the crowd.Their friendship finally hits a huge
stumbling block when tragedy strikes, and the girls go their separate
ways.Years later, two of the three are
once again forced to meet when events and secrets from their youth rear their
ugly head.Years of pent up jealousy and
resentment come to a head and the story takes an even more sinister turn.
My only criticism of this book is that the conclusion could
have been longer and more detailed to make for a more satisfying finish, hence
I award this excellent book a strong 4 out of 5 stars
A chat with the author:
Q) First and foremost, can you tell us a bit of background about yourself, the person behind the writing?
A) I
was born in East London but now live in North Essex. I am married with two
children. I have had a variety of jobs, including running my own publishing
company. I have written a children’s book called Poppy and the Garden Monster.
As well as writing, I love reading. Other interests include theatre, music and
running. Besides my family, the only thing I love more than books is Bruce
Springsteen…
Q) The subject material is quite controversial, some would say a brave choice for a debut novel. What gave you the idea for the book, and how did you research such a taboo subject to make it as credible as possible?
A) The seed for this story was sown during a
conversation with friends regarding abuse/grooming after reading about
historical cases. As our discussion developed, we talked about toxic
relationships and how some people continue with friendships despite said
friendship being unhealthy. The idea of a bad friend being better than no
friend.
Once I had the idea set for Beware the Cuckoo I
undertook some research as I knew I was looking at a controversial subject that
required sensitivity. Primarily my research took the form of conversations with
people who had experience of the issues involved.
One comment made to me during these
conversations was, ‘Abuse is very often in the media these days and I think some people
are becoming desensitized and also they think it only happens to vulnerable
kids.’ I put this to others I spoke to and many agreed with the
comment. This is why I portrayed Karen as a teenager facing the same things
that many of her peers face: body image, disagreements with parents, school.
She is quite typical and therefore not someone whose ‘vulnerability’ would have
been spotted. In doing this I hope I’ve highlighted that anyone could fall prey
to a predator like Bill. I was also urged by some not to shy away from
detailing the abuse, which is why some passages in the book are explicit.
Unhealthy/inappropriate relationships is the over-riding
theme of the book: Bill and Karen, the three girls, Sandra and Nikolaas, even
Sandra and her Father. All the relationships are shrouded by secrets and built
on lies.
Other themes include growing up and up-bringing.
Sandra is an unpleasant character completely
lacking in empathy. This is largely due to her up-bringing. She has been put on
a pedestal, told she is perfect and better than everyone else. Her childhood
shaped her and turned her into an unfeeling human-being who wants everything her
way.
Karen is a character who found her teenage years
difficult, she constantly compared herself to others and had very little
self-worth. This was clearly not helped by having a ‘perfect’ friend. Her
self-esteem issues are carried into adulthood.
Q) Getting your book into print is a difficult job in such a competitive world, tell us more about your own journey into becoming a published author.
A)It has been a long held dream of mine to write a
novel. In fact I attempted it several times but I never truly believed my
writing was of any merit so consequently many manuscripts were either
unfinished or if finished they were unread. However, despite my lack of
confidence and self-belief the desire to write never left me. Fast forward a
few years and I’m still writing, (albeit just for myself and my children) and I
am now a partner in a small publishing company. This was a short-lived venture
that, although not a commercial success taught me a great deal. It highlighted
the dos and don’ts of the publishing world and introduced me to many people,
but most importantly it reminded me that I wanted to be a writer and not a
publisher. The route from page to print can be a very fraught one and I hoped
that if my work was deemed suitable for publication I would find a publisher
and/or an agent who would smooth this passage for me. Although I did not want
the responsibility of publishing, (which is why I knew self-publishing was not
for me), I did want some input. Someone pointed me to the door of Urbane
Publications.What I learnt about Urbane
Publications and its founder and Publishing Director Matthew Smith left me
suitably impressed and I hoped that he would consider my work. His vision and
ideas were exactly what I was looking for. Urbane’s ethos is collaboration;
collaboration with author, working partners and ultimately the reader.
Thankfully he did like my writing and when I signed with Urbane Publications I knew
I had found my publishing home.
Q) Who are your favourite authors and what books would you recommend?
A) Joanne
Harris and Ali Smith are two of my favourite authors. Other recommended reads:
Natural Flights of the Human Mind by Clare Morrall and The Crime Writer by Jill
Dawson. My all-time favourite book is East of Eden by John Steinbeck.
Q) Many authors are life-long readers. What books stand out for you during your early years of reading?
A) The first
book I read alone was A Bear called Paddington, closely followed by the Water
Babies. Loved them both. My teenage years saw me read more classics like Jane
Eyre, Tom Sawyer etc.
Q) What have been your most memorable moments since being signed up as an author? And who would you like to give special mention to for their support along your journey into print?
A) Best moments
as a published author - when the books first arrived and when I received my first
message/review from a reader I didn’t know.
The biggest support
of course have been my family, and a good friend who read as I wrote and encouraged me - and
finally but by no means last Matthew Smith.
Julie has a new book coming out 19th April 2018, The Kindness of Strangers.
How can a child go missing without a trace?
Last night, eight-year-old Daisy Mason disappeared from a family party. No one in the quiet suburban street saw anything - or at least that's what they're saying.
DI Adam Fawley is trying to keep an open mind. But he knows the nine times out of ten, it's someone the victim knew. That means someone is lying... And that Daisy's time is running out.
Introducing DI Fawley and his team of Oxford detectives, CLOSE TO HOME is the new crime series readers and authors are raving about.
My Review:
"You can't hide from me. I'm going to find you. You know that don't you Daisy. I'm going to find you." Those are the opening words of the book, however we don't know which of several suspects is saying them.
Canal Reach estate in Oxford is the setting for the disappearance of 8 year old Daisy Mason. Her parents have hosted a barbecue in the garden of their family home with many friends and neighbours in attendance. The children are in fancy dress, which muddles the time line of when Daisy was last sighted. The book is well written as we are fed clues and information in a very muddled fashion, just as would happen in a real enquiry.
Father Barry Mason appears to have a close relationship with Daisy, mum Sharon is far more interested in her own appearance to give Daisy and brother Leo much attention. As is usual in cases of a child's disappearance social media goes crazy and allegations against the parents are lighting up twitter and the police are forced to ask difficult questions of Barry and Sharon. Daisy's close school friends are questioned which throws up some interesting rifts in the young girls' friendship group. Leo seems to be hiding something from the officers during questioning but they are unsure whether this is purely due to him being a quiet, shy lad or whether he knows something which could help the enquiry. For much of the story the police are chasing dead ends and false starts but eventually a break through comes and charges are brought - some of which are fairly shocking and unexpected.
The story draws to a conclusion despite there being loose ends which are never quite tied up, but the author has held back one absolute gem and I defy anyone to work out the final twist in the tale. As I tweeted the author after finishing the book "not even specsavers could have got me to see that one coming!".
If you like a book with a twist in its tale, you will love this one.
I am pleased to announce that the Urbane publishers' Christmas Blog Tour will be stopping off here on Tuesday 12th December. Make a date in your diary to see which of Urbane's brilliant authors has stopped by with their novel on the celebration Tour of a fabulous year's work.
At a glance, here's what I have read during November:
The Confession by Jo Spain
Quercus Books
Anything for Her by GJ Minett
Bonnier Zaffre
The Innocent Wife by Amy Lloyd
Random House, Cornerstone
Three Things About Elsie by Joanna Cannon
Harper Collins UK, Harper Fiction
Faking Friends by Jane Fallon
Penguin UK, Michael Joseph
Close to Home by Cara Hunter
Penguin UK
I can honestly say I have enjoyed every book I have read this month. A couple of them really stand out for me, and reviews will feature here on the page so keep popping back - or click on the link to become a regular follower and get notifications of when new posts are published.
#TheConfession will feature as part of the #BlogTour (organised by the wonderful Anne from Random Things Through My Letterbox) on 19th January 2018, so make sure you put the date in your diary now.
