The Marriage Act by John Marrs #NetGalley #TheMarriageAct #bookreview #January2023books @johnmarrs1 @panmacmillan

 

The Marriage Act by John Marrs

Published by PanMacMillan, MacMillan

Publication Date 19th January 2023

My thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication in exchange for my honest, unbiased views.

Book Description:

What if marriage was the law? Dare you disobey?

Britain. The near-future. A right-wing government believes it has the answer to society’s ills – the Sanctity of Marriage Act, which actively encourages marriage as the norm, punishing those who choose to remain single.

But four couples are about to discover just how impossible relationships can be when the government is monitoring every aspect of our personal lives, monitoring every word, every minor disagreement . . . and will use every tool in its arsenal to ensure everyone will love, honour and obey.

My Thoughts:

I never cease to be astounded at how John Marrs' mind works! Every one of the books he has penned is cleverly set in a time just slightly ahead of the present day, so the scenarios he creates are scarily possible given the technology we currently have. 

In this latest book, The Marriage Act, the author has taken idea of smart speakers to another level and linked them into a government network of monitors to completely oversee our private lives. To try and improve the standard of living across society the government has brought in a policy of Smart Marriage, the belief being that married couples provide a much more stable and beneficial environment for us all to live amongst - it doesn't matter whether the marriage is between a single sex couple or the more traditional heterosexual couple so long as you sign up to the new policy. There are socio-economic advantages to signing up: NHS+ provides better healthcare systems, the area you live in has much better facilities, and the tax benefits see you much better off financially. The pay-off is that the government can listen in to and even record the conversations you have within your home; should they feel you are not putting sufficient effort in to maintaining certain standards within your marriage they can send in government representatives to get you back on track.

The book follows four truly diverse couples and their experiences of The Marriage Act. There's the elderly couple who have a long-established traditional marriage, the same sex couple who have no issues with their marriage until a government approved relationship counsellor is sent to monitor their home life, the online influencer who craves the high-profile media life but whose family just wants privacy, and the guy who works behind the scenes for the government but is beginning to look towards retiring in the sun as he begins to question whether life really is better this way. The only thing I'll say  is: I don't think I'd want any dealings with government officials!

The story leads you through the many and varied arguments for and against a society which lives under constant scrutiny and will have you pondering how much of your own privacy you would be prepared to sacrifice for the benefits on offer. I was pleased to see the author include a strong section of society willing to stand up and fight for what they believe in so the reader gets a very balanced representation of all points of view.

A fascinating taste of what life could be if Big Brother were allowed to step up a notch. Thank goodness it's only fiction!

About the Author:

John Marrs is an author and former journalist based in London and Northamptonshire. After spending his career interviewing celebrities from the worlds of television, film and music for numerous national newspapers and magazines, he is now a full-time author. His books include No1 bestseller and Netflix series The One, The Passengers, award winning What Lies Between Us and The Good Samaritan. Follow him at www.johnmarrsauthor.co.uk, on Twitter @johnmarrs1, on Instagram @johnmarrs.author and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/johnmarrsauthor.

The Drift by CJ Tudor #NetGalley #TheDrift @MichaelJBooks @PenguinUKBooks @CJTudor2022

 

The Drift by CJ Tudor

Published by Penguin UK, Michael Joseph Books

Publication Date: 19th January 2023

My thanks to the publisher for allowing me the privilege of reading this book ahead of publication in exchange for my honest thoughts

Book Description:

Survival can be murder . . .

During a deadly snowstorm, Hannah awakens to carnage, all mangled metal and shattered glass. Evacuated from a secluded boarding school, her coach careered off the road, trapping her with a handful of survivors.

Meg awakens to a gentle rocking. She's in a cable car stranded high above snowy mountains, with five strangers and no memory of how they got on board.

Carter is gazing out of the window of an isolated ski chalet that he and his companions call home. As their generator begins to waver in the storm, the threat of something lurking in the chalet's depths looms larger.

Outside, the storm rages. Inside one group, a killer lurks.

But which one?

And who will make it out alive?

My Thoughts:

The opening paragraphs of this book grabbed my attention with both hands and showed me that CJ Tudor has upped her game considerably with this book - I'm not saying anything detrimental about her previous books (which I have loved by the way) just that it seems like she has stepped up to another level with her descriptions, plotting and execution this time.

From the description I expected this to be one of a whole slew of books out recently set in a cold, icy environment; a group of people trapped in the throes of a terrible snowstorm and then one of them decides it's an ideal time to get revenge for a long-held grudge. Boy, was I mistaken! There's not one but three separate locations/groups of people, each experiencing their own horrors, which somehow seem to be linked but it's not clear how for a good percentage of the book. The chapters switch between those locations which I found a little disjointing at the start, but soon adjusted to - I felt this writing style just helped keep the suspense building with little cliffhangers slotted at the end of virtually every chapter which I love.

The author has pitted each character in their group against one another; the mistrust between them all is tangible - right at the time they should be pulling together just to survive the storyline drops in another element of doubt to make them question who is a team player and who is purely out to save themselves.

Set in a world where a new virus with no cure has swept the globe it is a frightening insight into what could happen to the human race and how money, corruption and power could influence the outcome. This book will perhaps shock some of the author's previous readers as it has a quite strong lean towards the horror genre, its descriptive writing quite shocking at some points. Personally, I would say to keep an open mind and go with the flow as the world these people are survivors of would be as brutal as the author describes. The relationship between both the places and people involved provides an excellent conclusion to the book and left me feeling fulfilled plot wise and mightily impressed with the author's writing talent.

About the Author:

C. J. Tudor lives with her partner and young daughter. Her love of writing, especially the dark and macabre, started young. When her peers were reading Judy Blume, she was devouring Stephen King and James Herbert.

Over the years she has had a variety of jobs, including trainee reporter, radio scriptwriter, dog walker, voiceover artist, television presenter, copywriter and, now, author.

Her first novel, The Chalk Man, was a Sunday Times bestseller and sold in thirty-nine territories.

Those People Next Door by Kia Abdullah #NetGalley @KiaAbdullah #bookreview #ThosePeopleNextDoor @HQstories #worcesterbookstagrammer

 

Those People Next Door by Kia Abdullah

Published by HQ

Publication Date: 19th January 2023

My thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read this book via NetGalley prior to publication in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Book Description:

You can choose your house. Not your neighbours.

WELCOME TO YOUR DREAM HOME…
Salma Khatun is extremely hopeful about Blenheim, the safe suburban development to which she, her husband and their son have just moved. Their family is in desperate need of a fresh start, and Blenheim feels like the place to make that happen.

MEET YOUR NEW NEIGHBOURS…
Not long after they move in, Salma spots her neighbour, Tom Hutton, ripping out the anti-racist banner her son put in their front garden. She chooses not to confront Tom because she wants to fit in. It's a small thing, really. No need to make a fuss. So Salma takes the banner inside and puts it in her window instead. But the next morning she wakes up to find her window smeared with paint.

AND PREPARE FOR THE NIGHTMARE TO BEGIN…
This time she does confront Tom, and the battle lines between the two families are drawn. As things begin to escalate and the stakes become higher, it's clear that a reckoning is coming… And someone is going to get hurt.

My Thoughts:

If I am not granted approval for any further books on NetGalley this year I won't mind after receiving Kia Abdullah's latest novel. She is in my top 3 favourite authors, One of those I don't even need to read the description as I just love her writing. Always topical with the subject material, there is always a sting in the tail which the reader is unlikely to see coming.  This book doesn't let us down.

Young family Salma, Bil and Zane are new arrivals in Blenheim, a nice area which is away from the dangers of the previous estate they lived on. The initial welcome from the neighbours is positive with an invitation to a barbecue at the neighbour's house but it's not long before the cracks start to show when the BLM banner which Zane puts up in the garden is knocked down, then an act of vandalism on their property makes it obvious that someone isn't quite as nice as they first appeared.

The second part of the book covers the court case which investigates events leading up to the tragedy which befalls one of the residents. Whose actions were the trigger? Who is responsible and were they justified in reacting to provocation or have they misinterpreted the other person's intentions? This is a book which really gets you thinking about the two opposing stand points and what constitutes racism in a civilised society. Something which might initially seem innocent can turn toxic when you switch places with the person on the receiving end. There's plenty to mull over without the book ever being preachy, just thought provoking - but to make the correct assessment of a situation, we need to be in possession of ALL of the facts...

About the Author:

Kia Abdullah is an author from London. Her novel Take It Back was named one of the best thrillers of the year by The Guardian and Telegraph and was selected for an industry-first audio serialisation by HarperCollins and The Pigeonhole. Her follow-up novel, Truth Be Told, is out now (Mar 2021, HarperCollins).

Kia has written for The New York Times, The Guardian, The FT, The Telegraph, the BBC and The Times, and is the founder of Asian Booklist, a nonprofit that advocates for diversity in publishing.

New Year...New Books.!

 

A belated happy new year to you all, my apologies for having been rather quiet here on the page. With Christmas preparations and celebrations together with illness and the day job on top, something had to give. Sadly the book reviews and blog posts were the thing which sadly got sidelined. 

I'm delighted to say though that there is a mega publication day coming this Thursday and in celebration I have reviews for not 1, not 2 but 3 sparkly new books being published that day! First up will be Kia Abdullah's new social drama focusing on racism and how it is perceived depending on which side of the argument you're on. In true Kia style Those People Next Door isn't over until you've turned the very last page.

Next up will be CJ Tudor's new spine-chiller The Drift. Set in a dystopian world of ice and snow, who can you trust to be on your side when the going gets tough? And who will be tough enough to survive?

Last but by no means least this Thursday will be the amazing John Marrs. Always there with a concept which could quite feasibly happen within our lifetimes, John has created a world where the government believes that marriage, within whatever relationship dynamic you prefer, will give you the best life. Tax breaks, better health treatment - even a better area to live in - all within your reach as long as you are married. But at what cost? An interesting, quirky read as we have all come to expect from Mr Marrs.

I am changing how I do things a bit on the blog this year and while I will continue to review some of the shiny new publications which are due out, my increasingly heavy bookshelves are creaking under the strain of older titles which I just haven't had chance to read so I'll be reviewing some of those in the hope that at least one of them may catch your eye if you've not already beaten me to reading them. In order to fit in these older books I shall be stepping back from participating in blog tours for a while as I don't want to be in a position of making promises to tour organisers and not being able to fulfill them. That wouldn't be fair on either the organiser or the author. 

There's always the draw of my local library too, so there could well be a few titles reviewed from authors who are new to me whose work I have borrowed rather than bought. I am an avid supporter of libraries and I think it's vital that we continue to support our library services as I would hate to see our country without them. 

I'll also be featuring some fab new titles from favourite authors later in the year which the publishers have kindly allowed me early access to via NetGalley, such as these:

Plus a legal thriller from a guy you may have heard of before somewhere which I am really excited to read:

So, there's lots to look forward to in the world of fiction this year. I hope you enjoy reading my thoughts on the books featured and most of all you continue to enjoy everything you read. If you spot anything out there on the shelves that you think I'd enjoy and would like to recommend to others, please send me a message to share the book love!

Lies Lies Lies by Adele Parks #NetGalley @HQstories @adeleparks #LiesLiesLies #bookreview #worcesterbookstagrammer

 

Lies Lies Lies by Adele Parks

Published by HQ

Publication Date: 5th September 2019

My thanks to the publisher for approving me to read this book via NetGalley, however this review is based on a finalised paperback copy of the book.

Book Description:

After years together, the arrival of longed-for daughter Millie sealed everything in place. A happy little family of three.

And so what if Simon drinks a bit too much sometimes – Daisy’s used to it, she knows he’s letting off steam. Until one night at a party things spiral horribly out of control. And that happy little family of three will never be the same again.

My Thoughts:

This is very much a book of two - if not three - parts. In the first part we are introduced to Daisy and Simon. Daisy is portrayed by the author as a responsible character - almost too sensible and organised - whereas Simon is less so, has issues with handling his drink and is slowly losing the respect of the friends the pair have known since their university days together. The author did a sterling job in this scene-setting part of the story, influencing the reader into making judgments about each of the main characters, a situation only reinforced by the terrible events which change the course of the family's lives.

I well and truly followed the author's trail of breadcrumbs leading me into the desired mindset only to have to set the book down and completely rethink everything in what I felt was the filling in the sandwich of the plot. My 'swingometer' of likes and dislikes for the majority of the adults in the book was set to maximum, their words and actions changing my opinions of each of them as regularly as the chapters moved along.

This book is quite possibly the biggest smokescreen of a story I read in 2022 and I regret having left it on the shelf for so long. Adele Parks remains among the authors I know I can rely on to keep my interest from the first page to the last.

About the Author:

Adele Parks MBE is the author of twenty-two bestselling novels including the recent Sunday Times hit and audible Number One sensation One Last Secret. Over 4 million UK editions of her work have been sold and she is translated into 31 different languages.

Her number one bestsellers Lies Lies Lies and Just My Luck were both shortlisted for the British Book Awards and have been optioned for development for TV.

She is an ambassador of the National Literacy Trust and the Reading Agency: two charities that promote literacy in the UK. She is a judge for the Costa Awards.

Adele was born in North Yorkshire and has lived in Botswana, Italy and London and is now settled in Guildford, Surrey.

In 2022 she was awarded an MBE for services to literature.

Connect with Adele Parks on Twitter @adeleparks, Instagram @adele_parks and Facebook @OfficialAdeleParks or visit www.adeleparks.com.

I Know Who You Are by Alice Feeney #NetGalley #IKnowWhoYou Are #bookreview @alicewriterland @HQstories

 

I Know Who You Are by Alice Feeney

Published by HQ

Publication Date 23rd April 2019

I read this book as part of #NetGalleyNovember, an online annual event where NetGalley reviewers use the whole month of November to try and catch up on some of the older titles which we have sitting on our virtual shelves. My review is based on a finished, paperback copy of the book which I purchased from a charity bookshop.

Book Description:

Aimee Sinclair: the actress everyone thinks they know but can’t remember where from. But I know exactly who you are. I know what you’ve done. And I am watching you.

When Aimee comes home and discovers her husband is missing, she doesn’t seem to know what to do or how to act. The police think she’s hiding something and they’re right, she is – but perhaps not what they thought. Aimee has a secret she’s never shared, and yet, she suspects that someone knows. As she struggles to keep her career and sanity intact, her past comes back to haunt her in ways more dangerous than she could have ever imagined.

My Thoughts:

I have to say of all the ones I've read recently this book is one of the most difficult to relate my thoughts about. I didn't like any of the adult characters however child Aimee was SO well written that she broke my heart on numerous occasions. The book flips back and forth timeframe-wise as is the case of many books these days but I feel in this instance it works particularly well. There is so much trauma in Aimee's life that it is understandable that she should be so damaged emotionally and struggles with relationships both socially and romantically in her adult life. I don't think writing the story in any other format would have portrayed the damage done to her in quite the same way.

I would be careful who I would recommend this book to as there are some shocking events dotted right throughout the whole story. Anyone of a particularly sensitive disposition would certainly be affected by at least two scenes which readily spring to mind. The treatment of Aimee once she arrives in England is harsh and upsetting and her 'parents' have some strange ideas when it comes to how to bring up children. Then as she finally starts to find her feet in the acting world and feels that life is finally giving her a break it becomes clear that someone out there knows things about her that she thought nobody else possibly could. And without disclosing her darkest secrets to the police, she is struggling to prove her innocence when she is implicated in a major crime. 

I am still trying to process the ending of this book even now as I try to express my thoughts about it. Certainly not the climax or explanation I was expecting, it threw me a curveball of monstrous proportions. Was I shocked? 100% yes. Did I get even a hint of where the story was going? 100% no. Whether it sits comfortably as a satisfactory conclusion the jury is still out, but this book has definitely left its mark on me. I'd say that's a success then, but it would be a bit of a stretch to say I enjoyed it.

About the Author:

Alice Feeney is a New York Times million-copy bestselling author. Her books have been translated into over twenty-five languages, and have been optioned for major screen adaptations. Including Rock Paper Scissors, which is being made into a TV series by the producer of The Crown. Alice was a BBC journalist for fifteen years, and now lives in Devon with her family. Daisy Darker is her fifth novel.

You can follow Alice on Instagram/Twitter: @alicewriterland

To find out more visit: www.alicefeeney.com

Sticks and Stones by Jo Jakeman @penguinrandom @JoJakemanWrites #NetGalley #paperbackbooks #bookreview

 

Sticks and Stones by Jo Jakeman

Published by Random House UK, Vintage Publishing

Publication Date: 12th July 2018

Book Description:

Imogen’s husband is a bad man. His ex-wife and his new mistress might have different perspectives but Imogen thinks she knows the truth. And now he’s given her an ultimatum: get out of the family home in the next fortnight or I’ll fight you for custody of our son.

In a moment of madness, Imogen does something unthinkable: she locks her husband in the cellar. Now she’s in control. But how far will she go to protect her son and punish her husband? And what will happen when his ex and his girlfriend get tangled up in her plans?

My Thoughts:

Also released under the title of The Ex's Revenge this is a tale of narcissism, gaslighting and abuse, both psychological and physical. Imogen is the second unfortunate wife of Phillip Rochester, his first wife Ruby still feels that there could be the chance of rekindling their relationship, especially once she finds out Phillip has asked for a divorce from Imogen. New girlfriend Naomi could well have something to say about that though as she's not backward in voicing her opinion. 

The opening chapter is set at Phillip's funeral and it doesn't take many paragraphs to get the general feel of just how much bad feeling there is towards Phillip from the various women who have populated his life. Surprisingly, they're all present at the funeral which kind of spoils the overall story as you know where you're going to end up but that's not to say it's not full of tension and feelings of dread. It most certainly is and there are times when you wonder just how the scenario at the start of the book is going to even happen. The chapters are headed with a timeframe relating to how far ahead of the funeral events happened with a couple of flashback chapters which add to the reader's dislike of Phillip.

The three women involved soon come to realise that they're stronger working together than as individuals despite them being so completely different personality-wise and understandably full of mistrust of one another. Ruby seems quite hippy-ish and 'new age', something Imogen struggles to deal with, and Naomi is much younger but has been through experiences which make her tougher than her years. Imogen is quite average in comparison to them both - something Phillip uses as a put-down (amongst many other things) to make Imogen feel useless and that now he doesn't want her nobody else will either: washed up, middle aged and unwanted. I was delighted to find there was still fire in her belly even if she had to dig deep for it.

By the end of the book I was rooting so strongly for the three women although the author did have me wondering right to the conclusion whether Phillip had persuaded one of the three to take his side or not. Very cleverly written, there is a constant worry as to just who you can trust when life has made you question everyone and everything around you. There was even one part where I had to go back a few pages and check my facts myself!

This book should definitely come with trigger warnings but that said I did find it a very engaging read.

My thanks to the publisher for allowing me access to this title through the NetGalley platform however my review is based on a finalised paperback copy. My apologies to both author and publisher for the delay in reviewing this book.

About the Author:

Jo was the winner of the Friday Night Live 2016 competition at the York Festival of Writing. Born in Cyprus, she worked for many years in the City of London before moving to Cornwall with her husband and twin boys. Find out more at www.jojakeman.com