Month: January 2021

January Wrap-Up and February TBR

It has been – quite simply – the longest month ever. I’ve found it hard to concentrate on reading at times and have fallen back on the genre that I know keeps me engaged – crime fiction!

I’ve read 10 books this month, of which 7 were crime novels.

Links below are affiliate ones – thank you for supporting my blog with any purchases.

January Wrap-Up

I started the month with the rather interesting ‘How Not To Be Wrong: The Art of Changing Your Mind’ by James O’Brien. I loved his previous book (‘How to be Right’), but was particularly fascinated by O’Brien’s exploration of his own prejudices and entrenched beliefs. It certainly gave me food for thought and I would recommend it.

Next up were a slew of brilliant crime novels that I would recommend whole-heartedly.

I read ‘Dark Memories’ by Liz Mistry, the latest in the DS Nikki Parekh series set in the seedy underworld of Bradford. This is a shocking tale of crime and abuse, but the fabulous Parekh/Malik investigative team at the heart of the novel makes it compelling. My review (for a blog tour for Rachel’s Random Resources) is here.

Another blog tour read was ‘Silent Graves’ by Sally Rigby and this proved another excellent police procedural. Although is the 9th book in the Cavendish and Walker series (a female duo of investigators), I think it works well as a standalone. In this book, West Mercia Police are grappling with a historical case as two skeletons turn up on a building site. You can read my blog tour review (for Damp Pebbles) here.

This was followed by ‘The Appeal’ by Janice Hallett which I read as a buddy read organised by Viper Books. Along with the lovely LockyLovesBooks, I tried to guess the murderer in this innovative and engaging crime novel – a novel presented through the emails, voicemails and texts of its main protagonists. I proved a terrible detective but had a lot of fun – you can read my review here.

Next up was ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’ by Agatha Christie. I read this with my blogger friends at The Write Reads and we had a lot of fun discussing it – although, once again, I got nowhere near the solution! A classic crime novel with such clever plotting – Christie really was a master of her craft!

After this, I had a brief break from crime to read Margaret Atwood’s new poetry collection, ‘Dearly’. This is a beautiful and insightful book about loss, grief, ageing, female bodies and the environment – and I loved it. I was lucky enough to have both the hardback (purchased) and audiobook (from NetGalley) – you can read my review about both formats here.

Following this, I went back to crime for the tense and pacey ‘The Jigsaw Man’ by Nadine Matheson – I won a copy of this from the publisher and was so excited to read it ahead of publication. This serial killer crime novel is gruesome and terrifying – and I raced through it. My review will follow nearer publication later on in February.

Another blog tour read followed, ‘Bad Habits’ by Flynn Meaney. This is a very funny and lively YA comedy which sees its heroine, Alex, try to stage a version of ‘The Vagina Monologues’ at her strict Catholic boarding school. Thanks to the publisher (Penguin) and NetGalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review. My review, for The Write Reads, will be on the blog tomorrow.

My last books of the month took me back to crime fiction (of course!).

I read ‘An Eye for an Eye’ by Carol Wyer for a Damp Pebbles blog tour – this is another brilliant police procedural with a female lead, in this case the damaged but insightful DI Kate Young. The plotting of this one, based around a serial killer in Staffordshire, is so clever and it is an absolute page turner. My review is due up on 7th February.

I finished this month with ‘Dark Truths’ by AJ Cross, another cleverly-plotted police procedural featuring DI Bernard Watts and his rookie sidekick, PC Chloe Judd investigating the brutal murder of a jogger on a rural trail. They are being helped in their investigations by forensic psychologist Will Traynor, but he seems to have his own agenda… This is the first in a series featuring Traynor and I look forward to reading more. The paperback is published on 4th February and my review will follow on the blog.

As always, thanks to blog tour organisers, publishers, authors and NetGalley for granting me access to books in exchange for an honest review.

February TBR

As always, I have more books to read than I can possibly get through! Any TBR I write is always a small proportion of books I have to read for blog tours, books I should read for NetGalley and a wish list of many other fabulous-looking reads. I am never accurate in predicting what I will actually read!

So, here is my best guess of books that have caught my eye for February. Affiliate links are at the end of the list for anyone who likes the look of any of these…

  • I have a blog tour for ‘Botanical Curses and Poisons’ by Fez Inkwright in February and am looking forward to diving into this beautiful book about the darker side of plants.
  • I also have a blog tour for ‘Old Bones’ by Helen Kitson (published by the excellent Louise Walters Books) in February too – this looks to be a gorgeous and gentle story of a group of older women.
  • My final blog tour for the month will be ‘Seven Days’ by Michelle Kidd. I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in this series, ‘The Phoenix Project’, and look forward to another lively thriller.
  • I also want to read ‘Ruthless Women’ by Melanie Blake, sold to me by NetGalley as a thriller about ambition on the set of a soap opera. I’m looking forward to glamour, glitz and some…ruthless women!
  • NetGalley have also granted me the fabulous-looking ‘Circus of Wonders’ by Elizabeth Macneal. I loved her first book, ‘The Doll Factory’, and cannot wait to read this new slice of quality historical fiction.
  • I’m also going to be reading ‘Paris by Starlight’ by Robert Dinsdale with my lovely blogger friends in the Tsundoku Squad. This is a new writer to me but I look forward to chats and lots of fun with them.
  • Agatha Christie’s ‘The Mysterious Affair at Styles’ is also on my February list as I join a Poirot readalong with The Write Reads crew. I need to catch up this book – Poirot Book 1 – before I can join the chat there!
  • Finally, I really want to clear some of my NetGalley shelf – it has more fabulous books in it than I can list and I am determined to make some headway this month. If only I can keep away from the ‘Request’ button…

That’s the plan anyway. See you here in a month’s time when I reveal that I actually read 10 more police procedurals because I am OBSESSED…

Header photo with thanks to Tim Wildsmith on Unsplash.

Have a fab Feb – K x

Blog Tour: ‘Dark Memories’ by Liz Mistry

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘Dark Memories’ by Liz Mistry. This tour has been organised by Rachel’s Random Resources – thanks to Rachel, the publisher and author for my copy of the novel for review – opinions are entirely my own.

Blurb:

Three letters. Three murders. The clock is ticking…

When the body of a homeless woman is found under Bradford’s railway arches, DS Nikki Parekh and her trusty partner DC Sajid Malik are on the case.

With little evidence, it’s impossible to make a breakthrough, and when Nikki receives a newspaper clipping taunting her about her lack of progress in catching the killer, she wonders if she has a personal link to the case.

When another seemingly unrelated body is discovered, Nikki receives another note. Someone is clearly trying to send her clues… but who?

And then a third body is found.

This time on Nikki’s old street, opposite the house she used to live in as a child. And there’s another message… underneath the victim’s body.

With nothing but the notes to connect the murders, Nikki must revisit the traumatic events of her childhood to work out her connection to the investigation.

But some memories are best left forgotten, and it’s going to take all Nikki’s inner strength to catch the killer…

Before they strike again.

Purchase Links

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dark-Memories-addictive-nail-biting-Detective-ebook/dp/B08NZ4LV2R

US – https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Memories-addictive-nail-biting-Detective-ebook/dp/B08NZ4LV2R

My Review:

Having absolutely loved the previous book in this series, ‘Broken Silence’, I was very pleased to be able to read ‘Dark Memories’ before its publication date. Thanks to Rachel’s Random Resources and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the third book in the (so far) excellent crime series featuring DS Nikki Parekh and DC Sajid Malik who work in Bradford. The last book was dark, gritty and so compelling so this one had a lot to live up to!

And it absolutely delivers. This story is closer to home for Nikki who begins to suspect that a number of murders are connected when she starts receiving newspaper clippings in the post from an anonymous sender. When the third murder is on the street she grew up on, she makes connections that link her past to the current horrors unfolding in Bradford.

Without wanting to give any spoilers, it is worth noting that Nikki’s childhood was not a happy one and this book touches on lots of hard-hitting issues. Regular readers will expect this of Mistry (whose last book tackled the grim world of people-smuggling), but I thought was worth mentioning for new readers.

One of the strengths of the novel is the relationship between Nikki and Sajid. Both are happily in relationships elsewhere (so it isn’t that kind of will-they-won’t-they scenario for so many reasons!), but their friendship is warm and genuine. There is lots of good-natured teasing between them that readers will recognise as being part of an intense working relationship. However, Saj is also really supportive when the truth about Nikki’s past comes out and this proves to be a positive in a book that otherwise would be extremely dark. Similarly, Nikki’s partner and children are also lovely – while the revelations about her past are sad and awful, she has the support network around her.

Another strength for me was the detail in the way the investigation was carried out. I love police procedurals, although I can’t claim to be an expert, and this felt realistic and methodical. There was a sense of the police being clueless at times and having to undertake lots of boring work in order to make any progress which felt real. That’s absolutely not to say it was boring to read though! Mistry manages the pace of the novel well – there are moments of high tension as well as more measured investigations.

As already mentioned, the themes are gritty and Bradford’s streets are populated with some awful people! As excellent as the plotting and characterisation is, I did find the grimness a bit of a challenge at times, especially the investigation involving children.

Overall, this is a tightly-plotted and tense police procedural. The fact that Nikki is surrounded by love and support helped to temper the dark themes a little and I’ll admit I raced through this to find out what happened!

About the Author:

Born in Scotland, Made in Bradford sums up Liz Mistry’s life. Over thirty years ago she moved from a small village in West Lothian to Yorkshire to get her teaching degree. Once here, Liz fell in love with three things; curries, the rich cultural diversity of the city … and her Indian husband (not necessarily in this order). Now thirty years, three children, two cats (Winky and Scumpy) and a huge extended family later, Liz uses her experiences of living and working in the inner city to flavour her writing. Her gritty crime fiction police procedural novels set in Bradford embrace the city she describes as ‘Warm, Rich and Fearless’ whilst exploring the darkness that lurks beneath.

Struggling with severe clinical depression and anxiety for a large number of years, Liz often includes mental health themes in her writing. She credits the MA in Creative Writing she took at Leeds Trinity University with helping her find a way of using her writing to navigate her ongoing mental health struggles. Being a debut novelist in her fifties was something Liz had only dreamed of and she counts herself lucky, whilst pinching herself regularly to make sure it’s all real. One of the nicest things about being a published author is chatting with and responding to readers’ feedback and Liz regularly does events at local libraries, universities, literature festivals and open mics. She also teaches creative writing too. Now, having nearly completed a PhD in Creative Writing focussing on ‘the absence of the teen voice in adult crime fiction’ and ‘why expansive narratives matter’, Liz is chock full of ideas to continue writing.

In her spare time, Liz loves pub quizzes (although she admits to being rubbish at them), dancing (she does a mean jig to Proud Mary – her opinion, not ratified by her family), visiting the varied Yorkshire landscape, with Robin Hoods Bay being one of her favourite coastal destinations, listening to music, reading and blogging about all things crime fiction on her blog, The Crime Warp. 

Social Media Links –

FB https://www.facebook.com/LizMistrybooks/

Twitter @LizMistryAuthor

Website: https://www.lizmistry.com/

‘Brave Girls Book Club’ – January 2021 Subscription Box Review

I’ve been a fairly long term subscriber of the ‘Books that Matter’ feminist book box and jumped at the chance to get the junior version for my 10 year old daughter.

This isn’t the first box we’ve had, but is the first I’ve managed to get pictures of before she has dived into it!

If you’re awaiting a January ‘Brave Girls Book Club’ box then beware – spoilers ahead…

The January Box

This month’s theme is ‘Self-Rescuing Princess’ and is labelled as a feminist fairy tale box. The contents are as follows:

  • ‘The Castle of Tangled Magic’ book by Sophie Anderson
  • Two stickers
  • A sew-on patch
  • A mini reading lamp
  • 3 fabric hair bands by Cabello
  • A bookmark
  • A booklet/activity pack

This box is £20 (including postage) although there is sometimes a discount if you also subscribe to the adult ‘Books that Matter’ box.

My Review

The book looks amazing – I cannot wait to read this with my daughter. She’s quite a reluctant reader but does like the look of this and the bookmark is a good addition.

She absolutely loves the little reading lamp – it is surprisingly bright and was the first thing she wanted to open.

She’s not so keen on the hairbands, but I had some of these in the adult box and love them so I’m hoping they will come my way!

All the rest of the items are nice, but I’m not sure what she will do with them – she doesn’t go for sew-on patches or stickers in a big way and the activity pack is very short.

Her only annoyance was the fact there weren’t sweets in this box as there were in the last one we had!

My Verdict

A fantastic theme, a good box and a happy daughter! I’m going to see how she gets on with the book before I decide what future boxes to get, but I am pleased with this one.

‘Dearly’ by Margaret Atwood

Although I’ve been a long-time fan of Margaret Atwood’s novels, I hadn’t really read much of her poetry before this. Thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook version (narrated by Atwood herself) – I did also buy the hardback version as I think I take things in differently through reading and listening. I can recommend both formats though!

This collection of poetry was published in 2020, a year after Atwood lost her long-term partner to dementia, and the poems do understandably focus on loss, grief and ageing. However, the poems were written between 2008 and 2019 and so do also have a wider scope of Atwood’s interests and concerns, among them the environment, attitudes to female bodies and the nature of memory.

Although some of the poetry is bleak, it is not without hope and the trademark flashes of dry wit for which Atwood is famous, such as in ‘Everyone Else’s Sex Life’ – and I like to think you can hear this in Atwood’s deadpan, drawling delivery of the poems.

There are some very powerful poems in the collection and I was glad to have had the hardback book to fall back upon to read the lines again and think further about them – I am not sure the audiobook, while slow paced in its narration, really gives readers the time to absorb the poetry. For this reason, I think repeated listening would be necessary.

Particularly poignant for me was the longer poem, ‘Songs for Murdered Sisters’. This was written for the baritone singer Joshua Hopkins ‘in honour of his own murdered sister’ (as we only find out in the acknowledgements at the end of the book). This poem moves – in clearly delineated sections – from the sense of absence and grief through anger to remembrance and acceptance. It’s a striking poem that stood out to me on first listen and one I’ve gone back to.

I can’t even pretend to have absorbed and fully understood all the poetry in this collection yet. I think it is one that I will need to return to many times, yet I can say that I found the first reading very engaging, thought-provoking and moving. I’m not a crier, but definitely had a lump in my throat for some of the poems!

As other reviewers have commented, the narration by Atwood is quite flat and without much emphasis. I don’t see this necessarily as a negative – I have heard Atwood read her work before so kind of expected the monotone delivery. Instead, I think her reading of the poems allows listeners to build their own interpretations of the words – and the poetry is strong enough that it packs a punch even without the narrator giving us clues through the reading.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys poetry or who shares Atwood’s concerns – and actually many of the themes are universal. What I would say is that the poetry collection is absolutely 5-star-excellent. However, I’m not wholly convinced that the audiobook is quite the right format for the poetry so I’d recommend it ideally in conjunction with a printed copy – for me, the audiobook is a 4 star presentation of 5 star material.

If you would like a copy of this excellent poetry collection (or its audio version), please use my affiliate links below – thank you for supporting my blog with any purchases.

Hardback version:

Audio version:

WWW Wednesday – 27th January 2021


WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Taking on a World of Words. Anyone can take part and it is a great way of sharing what you have just finished reading, what you are currently reading and what is next on the TBR.

Links are provided for books mentioned – thanks for supporting my blog with any purchases (at no extra cost to you!)

What have you recently finished reading?

This week, I read ‘Bad Habits’ by Flynn Meaney, a YA comedy about a rebellious girl stuck in a Catholic boarding school. In an attempt to get kicked out, she plans a production of ‘The Vagina Monologues’, much to the consternation of pretty much everyone! This is funny, feminist and was a very welcome light read on these dark January days.

The book is published in February 2021 and my review will appear on the blog as part of The Write Reads blog tour soon.

I also read ‘An Eye for an Eye’ by Carol Wyer for a blog tour in February. This is an excellent police procedural set just down the road from me in Staffordshire. The lead detective, DI Kate Young, is reeling from a horrendous incident where she was a first responder when she is called in to investigate the gruesome killing of a wealthy businessman. Highly recommended!

What are you reading now?

I’m embarrassed to still be reading ‘Maiden Voyages: Women and the Golden Age of Transatlantic Travel’ by Sian Evans but it is genuinely one to savour. I love the portrayal of women’s lives between the wars and (as a huge fan of cruises) am enjoying the descriptions of the impressive and opulent cruise liners. A glorious book!

I’m also reading ‘Perimenopause Power’ by Maisie Hill (from NetGalley). I liked her previous book, ‘Period Power’, and thought this might be a good one for my ageing self! It is interesting, but not a page-turner so I’m making slow progress – I am learning a lot though!

What do you think you will read next?

When I’m really tired (as I am now), it seems I need fast-paced fiction to keep me reading. With this in mind, I’m going to keep going with the crime novels – ‘Dark Truths’ by A J Cross is my starting point (from NetGalley).

I’ve also got to catch up Agatha Christie’s ‘The Mysterious Affair at Styles’ so I can join in a Poirot readalong next month. I got my Kindle copy of this free from Project Gutenberg.

I’m also planning on reading Agatha Christie’s ‘The Mysterious Affair at Styles’ so I can catch up with a Poirot readalong next month. I got my Kindle copy free from Project Gutenberg.

I hope you’ve had a great reading week! As always, thanks for reading and please do follow my blog for more updates.

Thank to NetGalley for the books in exchange for an honest review.

Header photo with thanks to Taisiia Shestopal for sharing their work on Unsplash.

‘Books that Matter’ – January 2021 Subscription Box Review

Regular readers of the blog will know I’ve been a subscriber to the feminist book box, ‘Books that Matter’ for quite a while now.

This £20 (including postage) box – featuring a book and other treats – has been one of the better things to happen to me over lockdown and is a monthly lift!

For those still trying to get their hands on the January box, there are spoilers ahead…

The January Box

The (newly reinforced) box arrived and was as beautifully presented as usual.

This month, the box’s theme was ‘You Are Your Best Thing’ and contained the following:

  • The book ‘Skin’ by E M Reapy
  • A sample size sleep balm by Scentered
  • A teabag from Bird and Blend
  • ‘Break the Glass’ – an essay by Rachel Edwards (in a separate booklet)
  • A box of ‘Self Care Prompts’ (cards)
  • A Recipes for Self Love calendar
  • A bookmark
  • A booklet with background information on the items in the box.

My Review

I’d like to say up front that I’m totally on board for talking about mental health issues and the importance of self care in these tricky times. That said, I’m not sure whether this box is perhaps not really hitting the spot for me.

The book – ‘Skin’ by E M Reapy – is absolutely in-keeping with the feminist message from ‘Books that Matter’ and looks like an intriguing read. It is about body image and features a protagonist who is struggling with her own relationships with her body and food.

The sleep balm is great. So great that I’ve pretty much lost it to my kids who love the smell and say it helps them sleep. I just wish it had been a bigger tube!

The bookmark and teabag will be used – although (not for the first time) I question whether there could have been more teabags!

The self care prompt cards and calendar are perhaps less up my street. As an *ahem* more vintage buyer of this box, I don’t need ideas on how to look after myself – I need someone to take over the childcare, housework and work that gets in the way of me actually being able to do it! Still, I guess in the absence of a fairy godmother who is going to grant me the gift of time, I appreciate the sentiment of the items in the box. I just probably won’t use them.

As always, the booklets are interesting – the one by Rachel Edwards is particularly well-produced and looks fascinating.

My Verdict

This is a mixed box for me, probably more so than usual, although the items are entirely appropriate and good quality.

I still wholeheartedly recommend this subscription box, but I’m hoping for something that strikes more of a chord with me personally next month. I prefer the more ‘fun’ boxes and this one is a serious one.

‘Alexa, what is there to know about love?’ by Brian Bilston

An belated happy publication day to the new poetry collection from Brian Bilston! This little gem of a book was out last Thursday (21st January) so do order now!

I first found Brian Bilston’s poetry on Twitter and loved its clever wordplay – this led me on to his first poetry collection, ‘You Took The Last Bus Home’ and his excellent novel (with poetic interludes) ‘Diary of a Somebody’. I was, therefore, thrilled to be granted an ARC of his new poetry collection by NetGalley and the publisher.

The poetry is – as the title suggests – loosely focused on the theme of love and is exactly what readers have come to expect of Bilston’s poetry – clever wordplay, interesting perspectives, unexpected twists. It is perhaps a little more serious in places than some of his other poetry (and certainly more serious than the ones that are so popular on Twitter). However, it is an enjoyable read – albeit a quick one as it seemed fairly short.

As a Literature geek, I really enjoyed the poems where Bilston riffed on literature from the past, from Shakespeare’s ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ (in ‘Cleopatra’) to Wordsworth (‘Status Update: a Lonely Cloud’) to tragic lovers (‘Five clerihews for Doomed Lovers’). However, Bilston is equally comfortable playing around with Mills and Boon novels, Spoonerisms, Brexit and many other incredibly varied ideas.

This is a lively and varied poetry collection that I’d recommend to those who like their poetry humorous. It does have serious messages and will leave you with food for thought, but – above all else – it is entertaining and engaging.

An affiliate link is below – thank you for supporting my blog with any purchases.

Header photo with thanks to Rahul Chakraborty on Unsplash.

‘How to Solve a Murder’ by Derek and Pauline Tremain

I’m a huge fan of crime novels and have always been interested in the truth behind the fiction! This seemed like the perfect opportunity to find out a bit more about forensic investigation from people who have spent their careers in the field – thanks to NetGalley for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was published on 21st January, 2021.

I’d already read the book ‘Unnatural Causes’ by Dr Richard Shepherd (who worked with the Tremains and who wrote the foreword for this book). I was hoping for more of the same – an insight into the cases that shaped a fascinating career choice. This book is much more about the forensic techniques than the actual cases, but it was still interesting.

The book mainly covers Derek Tremain’s career from a 15 year-old student technician at Gordon Museum (a museum of medical specimens) to working in Guy’s Hospital’s forensics department to setting up his own company dealing in body mapping of wounds for legal trials. It’s an interesting story, gruesome at times, and gives a lot of information about tests for various conditions carried out post-mortem. There’s some humorous anecdotes amid the gory details – Pauline’s coffee-making story being a very odd but funny moment!

Most of the story is told by Derek, but there are sections narrated by Pauline too – she worked at the forensics department in a secretarial role that took her way beyond the regular job. Indeed, she tells of crime scenes and mortuary visits which are interesting. However, it is difficult to tell from the layout of the book who is ‘speaking’ as the electronic version doesn’t make it clear and the perspective changes from Derek to Pauline between paragraphs sometimes.

Overall, this is an engaging read for those interested in forensics. It is perhaps a little too detailed in terms of testing procedures at times – I’d like to hear more about the cases that the Tremains worked on – but I enjoyed this and read it in a day.

Header photo with thanks to Bill Oxford on Unsplash.

An affiliate link for this book is below – thank you for supporting my blog with any purchases.

Blog Tour: ‘The Shape of Darkness’ by Laura Purcell

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Laura Purcell’s ‘The Shape of Darkness’.

This tour is organised by Random Things Tours and the book is published today (21st January)!

From the Publisher:

As the age of the photograph dawns in Victorian Bath, silhouette artist Agnes is struggling to keep her business afloat. Still recovering from a serious illness herself, making enough money to support her elderly mother and her orphaned nephew Cedric has never been easy, but then one of her clients is murdered shortly after sitting for Agnes, and then another, and another… Why is the killer seemingly targeting her business?


Desperately seeking an answer, Agnes approaches Pearl, a child spirit medium lodging in Bath with her older half-sister and her ailing father, hoping that if Pearl can make contact with those who died, they might reveal who killed them.


But Agnes and Pearl quickly discover that instead they may have opened the door to something that they can never put back.

‘Dripping with atmosphere with a corkscrew plot, Laura Purcell just gets better and better’

STACEY HALLS

‘Darkly addictive and utterly compelling. Reading Laura’s books is like watching a horror movie where you have to keep hiding behind a cushion because you dread what is coming next, but you simply have to find out!’

RUTH HOGAN

‘Wow. I think it’s her best one yet and that’s saying something. A story of a woman haunted in every way possible, I think it’s a future gothic classic’

MARTYN WAITES

My Review:

I’ve loved Laura Purcell’s previous books so I am very grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for my review copy – as always, opinions are entirely my own.

Gothic spookiness is really my thing, so I have absolutely lapped up Purcell’s previous books – I particularly liked ‘The Corset’ and ‘Bone China’ where the creepiness focused on inanimate items that seem to have more power than they should. I was expecting something similar from ‘The Shape of Darkness’, but feel that this book delivers something different altogether.

In this novel, our main character, Agnes Darken, is a silhouette artist working in early-Victorian era Bath. She has struggling health and relies on her art to support the family she has been left with after the death of her sister, Constance, a number of years earlier. However, bad things start happening to those who sit for her silhouettes and – as mysterious deaths begin to stack up – she searches for answers from a medium who seems to be able to communicate with the dead. The dead speak through a strange child, Pearl, and Agnes gets caught up in the girl’s own problems with devastating consequences.

One of the real strengths of this book is the way that Purcell ramps up the spookiness. This is a book absolutely packed with memories of the dead and their ghosts – the séance scenes are genuinely creepy and the tension is high for a lot of the novel. It certainly kept me reading as I wanted to understand the strange events and occurrences – as a life long cynic, I was desperately trying to find rational explanations for what was happening (often with no success!)

Another element that I really enjoyed was the sense of mystery – as murder mysteries are my favourite genre, I was absolutely engrossed by trying to work out who was behind the deaths and even if there was a logical pattern or set of clues to latch on to. Every time I felt that I was getting close, Purcell whipped the rug out from under my feet and I would have to start again while balancing the supernatural possibilities. There were a lot of twists and revelations and my head was spinning a bit by the end!

The period details were also well integrated into the novel – it felt like a real historical world, although I don’t know that it was specifically Bath as I don’t know that city. The gloom of the houses, the dirt and danger of the streets, the domestic details – everything felt authentic. In fact, some of it was rather stomach-churning – Pearl’s father’s illness, for example, is described in rather gruesome detail.

I did struggle a little with the fact that Agnes was not a particularly strong character – I like my protagonists with a bit more sass, whereas Agnes was weakened by her recent illness, pining for a man and seemed to mostly accept her role as subservient female. I do understand that this was the societal norm, but I longed for her to stand up and do something at times.

Overall, this is a beautifully written, well-researched and engaging Gothic novel. It hits the spot for those who like a bit of supernatural terror while also being absolutely rooted in the grim everyday realities of those living in fairly poor conditions in the 1850s. It’s cleverly plotted and will certainly keep you racing through the pages to the end.

About the Author:

Laura Purcell is a former bookseller and lives in Colchester with her husband and pet guinea pigs. Her first novel for Raven Books, The Silent Companions, was a Radio 2 and Zoe Ball ITV Book Club pick and was the winner of the WHSmith Thumping Good Read Award, while her subsequent books – The Corset and Bone China – established Laura as the queen of the sophisticated, and spooky, page-turner.

laurapurcell.com |@spookypurcell

WWW Wednesday – 20th January 2021


WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Taking on a World of Words. Anyone can take part and it is a great way of sharing what you have just finished reading, what you are currently reading and what is next on the TBR.

Links are provided for books already published – thanks for supporting my blog with any purchases (at no extra cost to you!)

What have you recently finished reading?

This week I’ve mainly been reading ‘The Jigsaw Man’ by Nadine Matheson. I won a proof copy of this from the lovely people at HQ Stories and was absolutely gripped by the gruesome tale of a serial killer on the streets of London. Those with a sensitive disposition should steer clear, but I thought this was a pacey and exciting story with a strong female lead, Detective Inspector Anjelica Henley. A review will follow on my blog nearer to publication date in February 2021.

I also finished ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’ by Agatha Christie which I loved. It has been a long time since I read Christie and I have seen a lot of the TV adaptations so it can be tricky finding a ‘fresh’ one! This one was vaguely familiar but I still failed to solve the crime myself and had to rely on Poirot’s ‘little grey cells’ which are in better conditon than mine! I read this with the book group at The Write Reads and it was a joy to discuss with them.

Lastly, I read Margaret Atwood’s new poetry collection, ‘Dearly’, which I have both in hardback (thank you, Waterstones’ sale) and audiobook (thanks, NetGalley). This is a powerful collection of poems that addresses – among so many other things – love, loss, ageing, feminism and the environment. I’ve got a lot of digesting of this book that needs to happen before I can attempt a review, but it will follow on the blog in due course.

What are you reading now?

I’m still reading ‘Maiden Voyages: Women and the Golden Age of Transatlantic Travel’ by Sian Evans although this has taken a backseat this week to all the crime fiction! This is a glorious and engagingly-written account of women at sea in the ‘Golden Age’, approximately between the wars but the narrative begins with the slightly pre-WWI ‘Titanic’ sinking. I love the fact that this covers a range of female experiences, from stewardesses to millionairesses.

What do you think you will read next?

I really need to clear some of the NetGalley shelf. I’ve got my eye on ‘Dark Truths’ by AJ Cross (a forensic mystery) and ‘Bad Habits’ by Flynn Meaney (YA humour) as books that I think will keep me going!

Additionally, I’ve got another looming blog tour for Carol Wyer’s ‘An Eye for An Eye’ which looks to be an interesting police procedural and the first in a series to feature DI Kate Young – this one sounds right up my street!

So that’s me for this week! As always, thanks for reading and please do follow my blog for more updates.

Thank to NetGalley for the books in exchange for an honest review.