Blog Tour: ‘Betrayal’ by Lilja Sigurdardottir – Extract

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour organised by Random Things Tours for ‘Betrayal’ by Lilja Sigurdardottir.

I’m pleased to be able to present to you an extract from this tense, Icelandic thriller which was published by Orenda Books on 15th October, 2020.


From the Publisher:

Burned out and traumatised by her horrifying experiences around the world, aid worker Úrsula has returned to Iceland. Unable to settle, she accepts a high-profile government role in which she hopes to make a difference again.


But on her first day in the post, Úrsula promises to help a mother seeking justice for her daughter, who had been raped
by a policeman, and life in high office soon becomes much more harrowing than Úrsula could ever have imagined. A homeless man
is stalking her – but is he hounding her, or warning her of some danger? And the death of her father in police custody so many
years rears its head once again.


As Úrsula is drawn into dirty politics, facing increasingly deadly threats, the lives of her stalker, her bodyguard and even a witch-like cleaning lady intertwine. Small betrayals become large ones, and the stakes are raised ever higher…


The award-winning internationally bestselling author Lilja Sigurðardóttir returns with Betrayal, a relevant, powerful, fast-paced thriller about the worlds of politics, police corruption and misogyny that feels just a little bit too real…


The Extract:

Úrsúla was surprised at her own surprise: she was taken aback by just how much of a shock the note was. She was already kicking herself for having forgotten to lock the car. It hadn’t occurred to her that by parking in the spot marked Minister, she was telling everyone which vehicle was hers. Clearly every fruitcake in the country had an opinion on everything imaginable, and that seemed to include her appointment as minister of the interior.

The devil’s friend loses his soul and brings down evil, the note read, the last few words an almost illegible scrawl. It looked like someone had decided she had made friends with the devil himself.

There was nothing unusual about politicians being lambasted for entering into coalitions with people someone was unhappy with, but as she was not linked to any party, she had somehow imagined that this kind of criticism wouldn’t come her way. All the same, people ought to be used to seeing political parties working together when the parliamentary term was so far advanced, and anyway she’d simply been called in to finish the work begun by Rúnar. She screwed the note into a ball and flicked it aside, and it was lost among the mess of paper, juice cartons and sweet wrappers that filled the footwell. She reminded herself that this weekend the car would need to be cleaned as the smell was becoming overpowering. She sighed and tried to relax, to let her racing heartbeat slow. She had been aware before taking the job that she wouldn’t be popular with everyone and that she’d get to hear about it. But the note in the car had still been upsetting. Somehow it was too close to home, too personal. In future she’d leave the car in the other car park with all the others.

As she parked outside her house, she wound the window shut – the smell in the car had forced her to drive home with it halfway open. There had to be half a sandwich turning green somewhere down there, or something in the junk in the back. She’d have to ask Nonni to clean the car. Judging by the emails waiting for her and the long jobs list, there wouldn’t be much opportunity to do it herself. This weekend would have to be spent getting herself up to speed on everything the ministry did.

‘Congratulations, my love!’ Nonni called out as she opened the front door. ‘You made it through day one!’

Kátur bounced towards her, his furry body twitching with delight at seeing her again, and as usual she dropped to her knees to greet him. She held his little head in both hands, kissed the top of his head and breathed in the smell of newly bathed dog. Nonni regularly gave him a bath and used shampoo on him, even though Úrsúla had warned that it wasn’t good for dogs.

‘Lovely to see you, Kátur,’ she whispered into his fur as his tail wagged furiously. There was no limit to how much she loved this little dog. He had kept her sane when she had moved back home, becoming the compass that showed her the way back to love. He had helped her put aside her weapons and lower the defences she had erected around herself somewhere between the Ebola epidemic in Liberia and the refugee camps in Syria.

The dog wriggled from her arms, ran halfway along the hall into the apartment, and then back to her. That was what he always did, scampering between her and the family, as if he were showing her the way home to them. This was guidance she certainly needed, as since moving back to Iceland she had felt at a distance from them, as if they were on the far side of some invisible barrier that she had been unable to break through.

She took a deep breath, taking in the warmth of the household, and for a moment she was gripped by a doubt that she had done the right thing by jumping into a ministerial role. There was no getting away from the fact that it would mean less time at home, less energy to devote to the children, less time for Nonni. There would be less time for her own emotional recovery. But it was only for a year, the twelve remaining months of the parliamentary term.

‘Pizza!’ the children chorused the moment she stepped into the kitchen. They were busy arranging toppings on pizza bases, and she could see Nonni was preparing a seafood pizza just for the two of them. There was an open bottle of white wine on the worktop, a glass had been poured for her, and the dining table was set with candles.

‘You’re a dream,’ she sighed, kissing the children’s heads and wrapping her arms around Nonni. He was warm to the touch, freshly shaved and sweet-smelling, and she felt her heart soften with gratitude, blended with doubt that she genuinely deserved such a perfect man. This was how it had been for more than a year. Every time she felt a surge of warmth and affection towards him, it was accompanied by an immediate surge of bad feeling. There was guilt, regret and self-loathing. Why couldn’t she simply love him as she had loved him before?

‘So how’s it looking?’ he whispered and handed her a glass of wine.

She sat on a barstool and sipped. She’d tell him tonight, when the children had taken themselves off to bed. She would tell him how the day had begun, how she had been prepared for the first interview of the day, expecting to be getting to grips with complex and demanding issues, only to be faced with such a painful and difficult personal case.

The face of the mother who had sat opposite her that morning, rigid with anger and sorrow, remained vividly in her mind. As she watched her own daughter arrange strips of pepper to form a pattern on a pizza, she felt a stab of pain in her heart: she was only two years younger than the girl who had been raped.


About the Author:

Icelandic crime-writer Lilja Sigurdardóttir was born in the town of Akranes in 1972 and raised in Mexico, Sweden, Spain and Iceland. An award-winning playwright, Lilja has written four crime novels, including
Snare, Trap and Cage, making up the Reykjavik Noir trilogy, which have hit bestseller lists worldwide. The film rights have been bought by Palomar Pictures in California. She lives in Reykjavík with her partner.


Praise for Lilja Sigurdardottir:

‘Tough, uncompromising and unsettling’
Val McDermid


‘Stylish, taut and compelling and a film adaptation is in the pipeline. With characters you can’t help sympathising with against your better judgement, Sigurdardottir takes the reader on a breathtaking ride’
Daily Express


‘ The seamy side of Iceland is uncovered in this lively and original debut as divorcee Sonja finds herself coerced into drug trafficking while her banker girlfriend Agla fends off a criminal investigation
in the aftermath of the financial crash. Tense, edgy and delivering more than a few unexpected twists and turns’
The Sunday Times Crime Club Star Pick


‘A tense thriller with a highly unusual plot and interesting characters’
The Times


‘One of the darkest and most compelling series in modern crime fiction…Tackling topical issues, Cage will tell you a great deal about why the world’s in the state it is, while never neglecting its duty to
entertain’
S Magazine


‘ The key to Sigurðardóttir ’s writing is her deep empathy for her characters. Like in Sallis’s work, these are ordinary people having to face the vagaries that life throws at them. In this instance, she writes lucidly about the power of corporations, and the ease with which our current societal
systems can become brutally corrupted. In keeping with a lot of Icelandic fiction, Cage is written in a clean, understated style, the author letting the reader put together the emotional beats and plot developments. Smart writing with a strongly beating heart’
The Big Issue

The Sunshine Blogger Award


Today, I am answering some questions set by my fellow bloggers as part of the Sunshine Blogger Award. I was fortunate to be nominated by Danni at ForBooksSake and Ashley at Red-Haired Ash Reads.

Thanks to both of these bloggers – do follow them if you don’t already!

I’ll be answering all their questions in this post before setting my own questions for my nominees!

How does it work?

  • Thank the blogger(s) who nominated you in a blog post and link back to their blog.
  • Answer the 11 questions sent by the person who nominated you.
  • Nominate 11 new blogs to receive the award and write them 11 new questions.
  • List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or on your blog.

Questions from Danni:

Have you set a GoodReads Reading Goal for the year? If yes, how many books are you hoping to read?

I set an optimistic challenge of 100 books on GoodReads – this is more than I’ve read in recent years and the first time I’ve consciously set a target. However, lockdown gave my reading a bit of a boost so I’m already on 93 books.

What has been your favourite book of 2020 so far?

How can I possibly pick just one?!

I’ll go with ‘The Miseducation of Evie Epworth by Matson Taylor. I didn’t know what to expect from this debut novel, but it is an absolutely charming, funny and sweet novel about a young girl growing up with a quirky and dysfunctional family in the 1960s.

What book on your TBR are you most looking forward to reading?

Laura Purcell’s ‘The Shape of Darkness’. I have loved her previous books and a new book is always an event.

Do you have any pets? If yes, please post pictures! (I want to see your cute animals)

Yes – 2 cats (Geoff and Ivy) plus 4 bantam hens.

Geoff (who sleeps like no cat I’ve ever seen before)

Who are your auto buy authors?

I’m not sure I have that many, but definitely Caitlin Moran and Laura Purcell. There are also a couple of crime series that I’m following where I’d buy the next books without question – I really like the Maeve Kerrigan series by Jane Casey and Rachel Lynch’s DI Kelly Porter series.

I’ve read books by a lot of brilliant new writers this year (new to me or debut novelists) that I think this list will grow very rapidly!

What are your favourite books from your childhood?

One of the first books I remember as a child was ‘Peepo’ by Janet and Alan Ahlberg, a gorgeous picture book about a baby in a (not that I realised it then) World War II era family. I’ve since read this to my kids and it is a favourite.

There are loads of books I loved as a child that probably wouldn’t stand up to re-reading – I was an obsessive Enid Blyton fan and absolutely devoured any Nancy Drew books!

Other than that, Dodie Smith’s ‘I Capture The Castle’ was a book I loved as a teenager and have re-read as an adult. I still think it’s pretty great!

Describe your dream reading space.

I’ve always fancied my own library – something along the lines of the one in Beauty and the Beast! Definitely high wall-to-wall bookshelves that need ladders to get to the top and some cosy armchairs!

What is your favourite bookish merch?

So many things that I wrote a blog post on it – you can see my collection of bookish prints, pins and all manner of other things here.

What are your biggest bookish pet peeves?

I really hate books that promise an uplifting read but that turn out to be really, really depressing! I think there is some serious misrepresentation going on with some book blurbs and am always disappointed when I get to a really nasty bit in a book that I wasn’t expecting.

How do you feel about DNF’ing a book?

Guilty. I always think it is going to get better, but I’ve learnt that some books just…don’t. I’m quite good at choosing books that I think I’ll like but I do feel like it is my fault if I can’t finish a book.

You can only read one genre for the rest of your life, what are you choosing, and why?

Historical (preferably historical crime). There’s such a rich variety of settings that I don’t think I’d ever get bored. I love learning about different periods of history (although I have a soft spot for the Victorians) and there are so many brilliant writers working in this genre.

One of my latest historical reads – recommended!

Questions from Ashley:

What is your favorite genre to read?

Historical crime fiction – that’s a very specific genre to choose but I love the combination of the rich setting with a twisty crime story!

What nonfiction book(s) are your favorite?

Oooh, great question! I think non-fiction books often get overlooked in the world of Book Twitter.

I love any of Caitlin Moran’s non-fiction books and I’ve recently really enjoyed (if enjoyed is the right word for a book about death!) Peter Ross’ ‘A Tomb With a View’ – it’s absolutely fascinating, incredibly moving and not as depressing as you might expect.

I’m also a fan of history presented with a bit of wit and flair – ‘Dead Famous’ by Greg Jenner and ‘A Curious History of Sex’ by Kate Lister have been high points this year.

Do you read multiple books at once or just one?

Multiple – I can’t have too many similar books going at the same time, but I’ll often have a fiction (or two, but different genres), a non-fiction and an audiobook going at the same time.

What other hobbies do you have besides reading?

I’m not really sure I do! Between the reading, the blogging and Book Twitter, I’m pretty busy.

When I’m not book-focused, I spend time with my family and teach English full-time at a secondary school.

Do you have a reading goal for 2020? If so, how is it going?

I’d not set a goal before this year, but 100 books seemed like it was going to be a real challenge. However, 2020 has been a weird year in so many ways and lockdown has boosted my reading at times so I’m already on 93 books.

What prompted you to create a blog?

I was reading and reviewing on NetGalley and it seemed like the logical next step. I love talking to people about books and so was looking to infiltrate myself into the bookish community…it seems to be working, I think…

What is your favorite trope?

I don’t read a lot of horror at all, but I’m totally won over by anything with vampires!

What is your least favorite trope?

I’m getting quite fed up with the detective with the tragic personal life. It has been very over-done and I’d quite like to focus on the crime plot without having to work through the trauma of the detective first!

What fictional world would you like to visit?

Because I read a lot about the past, I think my world would have to be step back in time! I’d love to visit the world inhabited by Jeeves and Wooster – an idealised and very jolly version of 1920s and 1930s London that never really existed outside the imagination of P.G. Wodehouse.

There are other less salubrious time periods I’d love to visit but I’d not want to stay long!

What book disappointed you this year?

I always feel bad if I’m disappointed by a book because I do try to choose my reading carefully. I did read a crime novel that was quite hyped that I was disappointed with (and didn’t feature on the blog) but I won’t name it.

What is your favorite cover from 2020?

‘The Betrayals’ by Bridget Collins (out in November) looks glorious. I read the Kindle version but have been jealously looking at other people’s proofs and advance copies!

I’m going to nominate:

(Sorry if you’ve even tagged before!)

Mystery Bookworm Blogs

Rosegold Reports

JenJenReviews

Books are 42

A Writing Soul’s Story

Bookfever

Ellie Mai Blogs

Hooked with Books

Lily Reads

NovelDeelights

And YOU! Please do link to me so I can read your answers!

My questions for you:

  1. What was the last book that surprised you?
  2. What is your favourite book series?
  3. Is the book always better than the film?
  4. Which book would make a brilliant film (that hasn’t been made yet)?
  5. What was the last book you DNF?
  6. What is your favourite setting for a book?
  7. What title would you choose for your own autobiography?
  8. What 3 things would a book need to include to make it a must-read for you?
  9. Which genre do you like least and why?
  10. What’s been the most popular post on your blog?
  11. Which are your favourite book blogs to visit?

WWW Wednesday: 21st October, 2020

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.

Affiliate links are provided for books already published – thank you for supporting my blog with any purchases.

What have you recently finished reading?

It hasn’t been a great reading week for me – I’m finding it hard to concentrate on books at the moment, even ones that I am loving!

I have just finished ‘The Servant’ by Maggie Richell-Davies, an immersive historical crime novel set in Georgian London and featuring a fabulous heroine who really does get put through some tough times. You can read my review here.

What are you reading now?

Because I can’t focus on any one thing for very long, I’ve started a lot of books!

I’m listening to the audiobook of Roald Dahl’s ‘Boy’ with my children which is read – rather well, it must be said – by Dan Stevens of Downton Abbey fame. We are all loving this one and anything that can get my 9 year-old interested in an actual book is nothing short of a miracle!

I’m also listening to Bill Bryson’s ‘The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid’, the story of Bryson’s childhood in 1950s America. I’ve always enjoyed Bryson’s travel books but hadn’t come across this collection of autobiographical tales before. It’s (as expected) funny, interesting and engagingly read by the writer himself.

I’ve finally started reading Stuart Turton’s ‘The Devil and the Dark Water’ which is…dark so far! It’s early days but it seems to be building a historical setting that I can really buy into.

I’m also still reading ‘Pandora’s Jar’ by Natalie Haynes. I really like this exploration of the (perhaps unfair) portrayals of women from the world of Greek myth. It is a very involved read though and requires concentration so I’m not progressing as quickly as I thought I would.

What do you think you will read next?

Unfortunately, my reading slump hasn’t coincided with a desire to stop requesting books on NetGalley or buying even more 99p Kindle deals. I am not short of books to read.

Catching my eye at the moment though are the new Cara Hunter book, ‘The Whole Truth’ and ‘The Shape of Darkness’ by Laura Purcell.

Given my new-found love of audiobooks, I’m also thrilled to have been given access to the audiobook biography of Victoria Wood, ‘Let’s Do It’ by Jasper Rees and narrated by a selection of Wood’s friends and colleagues including Julie Walters and Celia Imrie. It’s a slightly daunting 20 hours of listening but I loved Victoria Wood and am looking forward to finding out more about her life.

Header photo with thanks Joanna Kosinska for sharing their work on Unsplash.

‘The Servant’ by Maggie Richell-Davies

I really love historical fiction and was pleased to be given the opportunity to review this book. I came to this book with high hopes because it was awarded the Historical Writers’ Association prize for an (at that point) unpublished novel – if the HWA says it is good, it will be good.

And so it is!

The story follows a young girl, Hannah Hubert, who has fallen on hard times in Georgian London. Although she is descended from a respectable silk weaver and has had the benefits of a good education, she has been forced into service after having been orphaned.

When she is sent to work for the Chalkes, she finds herself in a house of secrets. The mistress of the house is tough and Hannah is given cryptic warnings about the master by other servants. There is a locked room in the house, secret books and mysterious auctions that happen behind closed doors… To add to Hannah’s disquiet, the other servant in the house, Peg, is terrified of the Chalkes.

Thrown into the mix are Hannah’s friendships with two young men – one is an apprentice at the book store where she delivers Mr Chalke’s mysterious documents and the other is a widower farmer who delivers milk to the Chalkes. The real question becomes who she can trust when things go wrong.

I really don’t want to give spoilers that would ruin this book for another reader. However, I came to the book expecting historical crime fiction and it needs to be said that it is so much more than that. Crime is one element of the story, but it is more focused on the character of Hannah and her fight for survival in an extremely hostile world.

Hannah is a fantastic heroine who really develops as a character over the course of the book. She begins as a naïve but educated fifteen year-old whose kindness and desire to help others is evident – her treatment of poor Peg wins her not only Peg’s total loyalty but also the respect of the reader. She is clever, curious and willing to stand up for what she believes – something that puts her in the way of danger. As the book progresses, the reader sees Hannah’s resilience, pride and determination to do the right thing even in the toughest circumstances. I doubt any reader could do anything but root for Hannah throughout!

Without giving too much away, I felt that the book contained strong positive messages about female friendship and the willingness of the poorest in society to support each other when times become tough. I loved the relationship between Peg and Hannah, plus the glorious later addition of a pipe-smoking childminder with a charitable heart.

Another strength in the novel was the colourful historical setting. Georgian London really is evoked in all its glory and grimness. There is a real sense of the hardships of being a servant in this era, plus the seediness of the poorer areas of London. The period detail is perfect – we get a sense of the clothes, routines, lives of the characters – and there is a feeling that a vast amount of research must have gone into the writing of this book, although it never feels laboured.

It must be said that the book does touch on some very dark themes that make for uncomfortable reading at times. This is not cosy historical fiction and Hannah’s (justifiable) fear is palpable as she is cast into some awful situations. The reader has to trust that the story is in safe hands and Hannah’s resolve will see her through.

I thought that this story was well-paced and liked the fact that it was told in a series of short chapters. This made the plot feel like it had real movement and – indeed – it did cover a lot of ground in less than 300 pages. I kept thinking that I’d read just one more chapter, then another and – oh, the next one is so short, should read that too… I raced through it!

I was interested to read that the book was inspired by the writer’s visit to the Foundling Hospital Museum in London. This is somewhere I’d very much like to visit after reading the novel, although I can imagine it is home to many heart-breaking stories of mothers with no other option but to entrust their child to the (possible) kindness of strangers.

Overall, I’d join the Historical Writers’ Association in recommending this book. It is absorbing, lively and immersive – Hannah and her Georgian setting both felt entirely authentic and it is time you made a trip to her world too!

Although my copy of this book was gifted to me by the author, opinions (as always) are entirely my own. Thank you to Maggie Richell-Davies for giving me the book to review.

If you would like your own copy of this book, it can be purchased using my affiliate link below – thank you for supporting my blog.

Blog tour: ‘Cows Can’t Jump’ by Philip Bowne

Welcome to my stop on the Random Things Tours for Philip Bowne’s debut novel! This book was released on 24th September, 2020 by Neem Tree Press and was longlisted for the Guardian’s ‘Not The Booker Prize’.


From the Publisher

From debut novelist, writer for The Wombles and winner of the Spotlight First Novel prize, this hilarious and poignant coming-of-age odyssey catapults 18-year-old Billy across pre-Brexit Europe.

Literary fiction resonating with themes of family, faith, race, love, loss, taking risks, borders and barriers, downward mobility, and growing up under the shadow of Brexit.


“Bowne’s touch is light, but his themes resonate: faith, family, race, and (whisper it) Brexit.The prose sparkles like sunshine hitting the English Channel.” — D. Johnston, author of Peace, Love & Petrol Bombs

“Laugh-out-loud hijinx with moments of true poignancy… a cast of eclectic, authentic characters. Billy is a brilliant narrator-pilgrim for the next generation.” — Tyler Keevil, author of No Good Brother

“Innovative, punchy and tender… stiletto-sharp wit. — Ray Robinson, author of Electricity

“…a fresh take on the classic rite-of-passage, in the mould of The Buddha of Suburbia by Hanif Kureishi and Lean on Pete by Willy Vlautin.”— Marion Urch – Spotlight First Novel Prize


Synopsis

17-year-old Billy has just left school with no A levels and he’s desperate to escape middle England. As a grave-digger, he’s working the ultimate dead-end job. Billy’s home life isn’t any better. In the evenings, he observes his dysfunctional family: his Grandad’s engaged to a woman half his age, his xenophobic Dad’s become obsessed with boxing, and he suspects his deeply religious Mum is having an affair.

All the while, celebrities are dropping like flies and Britain is waiting for the EU referendum. Everything is changing, and Billy hates it.

Meeting Eva, though, changes everything. She’s Swiss, passionate about Russian literature, Gary Numan, windfarms and chai tea, and Billy gambles everything for a chance to be with her.

When things start to go wrong, Billy’s journey across Europe involves hitch-hiking with truckers, walking with refugees, and an encounter with suicidal cows. But the further he goes, the harder it is to be sure what he’s chasing – and what he’s running from.

My Review

Regular visitors to my blog know that I am always looking for funny books. Put the words ‘humour’ into a blurb, or ‘laugh-out-loud hijinx’ (as is mentioned on the back of this very book) and I am first in the queue. Take my money now!

So I jumped at the chance to take part in this blog tour and read a first novel by someone who I really hopes writes a whole lot more.

Right from the start, I was drawn to the character of Billy who – at the beginning of the story – totally lacks direction. He has quit school and his Mum has got him a job gravedigging at the local church. He has a dysfunctional family, including a dad with some anger issues and a grandad (GG) who is marrying what the family consider to be an unsuitable women. Brexit is looming on the horizon and celebrities seem to be dying in huge numbers.

So far, so many opportunities for black humour and Bowne does not hold back with the laughs, from the acquisition of Billy’s unfortunate nickname at work, GG’s unconventional way of making money and one of the most awkward fish and chip dinners I’ve ever had the (uncomfortable) pleasure to read!

However, even at these early stages, it is evident that Bowne is not going to shy away from serious issues as well and we do get a real sense of Billy’s confused and – at times – quite sad internal life through his first person narration.

The story then shifts to Eastbourne Summer School for International Students where Billy gets a job and meets Eva who is Swiss and unnerved by the anti-EU feeling emerging in the UK around the Brexit referendum. It absolutely isn’t love at first sight for Billy, but we see a developing relationship which feels very real and believable.

I really don’t want to give plot spoilers, but it is safe to say that the course of true love doesn’t run smoothly and Billy embarks on some fairly outlandish schemes in order to be reunited with Eva. This culminates in a trip across Europe which is full of interesting people (I loved Cooper in particular), strange events and a lot of growing up for Billy.

As I mentioned before, this book really does have some very funny moments and Billy is a fabulous – if slightly misguided – character who the reader does really root for. I found myself desperate for it to work out for him, while also not really knowing what that would look like for the best.

However, this book also has some very poignant moments that mean it isn’t a wholly comic novel. Little snippets of tragedy infiltrate Billy’s world – the Syrian refugees, the Museum of Broken Relationships, people whose problems are beyond anything in Billy’s experiences to that point. This all adds to the sense that Billy is being forced into maturing and his road trip – regardless of outcome – will be the making of him.

As a reader, the switches between the humour and tragedy are unnerving. One minute, you can be laughing out loud and the next shocked at the poignancy of what is being related. This makes the novel an absolutely compelling read, although it is not always a comfortable experience.

Overall, I would highly recommend the novel; I was totally invested in Billy’s story and raced through the book, always keen to find out the next scrape he found himself in and to meet the next set of quirky characters. I genuinely loved this book and look forward to seeing what Bowne produces next.

With thanks to Random Things Tours for inviting me onto this blog tour and for providing my copy of the novel in return for an honest review.

About the Author

Philip Bowne lives in London and works as a writer for The Wombles, a children’s entertainment brand.

Like his protagonist, Billy, Phil attended a failing and severely under-resourced school in Bicester, Oxfordshire. However, unlike Billy, Phil ended up studying English Literature and Creative Writing at university.

While studying, Phil published short stories in literary magazines and anthologies in the UK, US, Canada and Germany. After graduating, Phil spent time in Europe and the US, working and volunteering in various roles and settings: repairing boats at Lake Como, housekeeping at a mountain lodge in California and working with charity Care4Calais in the former Calais ‘jungle’ refugee camp.

‘Cows Can’t Jump’ is Phil’s debut novel, which he worked on while managing a bar in London. As well as a writer for The Wombles, Phil also works on a number of independent writing projects, including a musical set in 1970’s Soho and a sitcom set in a failing leisure centre.

Blog Tour: ‘The Creak on the Stairs’ by Eva Bjorg Aegisdottir

Welcome to my stop on the Random Things Tours blog tour for ‘The Creak on the Stairs’ by Eva Bjorg Aegisdottir.

This is the first in a new ‘Forbidden Iceland’ series and was published on 1st October, 2020 by Orenda Books. It is translated into English by Victoria Cribb.

From the Publisher

‘An exciting and harrowing tale from one of Iceland’s rising stars’ Ragnar Jónasson

The first in the electrifying new Forbidden Iceland series, ‘The Creak on the Stairs’ is an exquisitely written, claustrophobic and chillingly atmospheric debut thriller byone of Iceland’s most exciting new talents


When the body of a woman is discovered at a lighthouse in the Icelandic town of Akranes, it soon becomes clear that she’s no stranger to the area.


Chief Investigating Officer Elma, who has returned to Akranes following a failed relationship, and her colleagues Sævar and Hörður, commence an uneasy investigation, which uncovers a shocking secret in the dead woman’s past that continues to reverberate in the present day…


But as Elma and her team make a series of discoveries, they bring to light a host of long-hidden crimes that shake the entire community. Sifting through the rubble of the townspeople’s shattered memories, they have to dodge increasingly serious threats, and find justice … before it’s too late.

My Review

I love crime fiction and have made a few forays into Nordic Noir, although this was the first book I’ve read set in Iceland. It certainly won’t be my last trip to the Land of Fire and Ice.

I’ll admit to being intrigued by the premise of this book – a murder at a remote lighthouse that starts to uncover the secrets of the town. I also love a book with a female detective, so this ticked boxes for me too.

The story moves between the investigation into the 2017 murder of a woman in the small Icelandic town of Akranes with a voice from the the late 1980s/early 1990s narrating a tragic family story. At first it isn’t evident how the strands fit together but, as it becomes clear, the reader is pulled into the backstory that has led to the murder at the lighthouse.

One of the real strengths of the story is the main character, Chief Investigating Officer Elma. She has returned to Akranes, where she grew up, following the break-up of a relationship (something I sense will become more of a feature of future books – I know the second book in the series is already being translated by Orenda Books, so we shall see Elma again).

We get to view Elma more clearly than anyone else in the book, including her dysfunctional relationship with her sister, her hangovers and potential love interests. She is a charming and realistic character and her interactions with her work team, family and various people associated with the case seem authentic.

Another real strength is the plotting. The narrative device of alternating between the past and modern-day voices is interesting, but it also means that a lot of information is given that suddenly falls into place later in the novel. The early parts of the novel do seem a little slow, but they work brilliantly to set up a pervasive sense of foreboding that the reader never really escapes until the pace picks up towards the denouement. All very understated, but it really adds to the sense of claustrophobia in the small town where everyone knows everyone else’s business.

I really loved the setting of the book – Elma has left Reykjavik CID and is back in the town that she grew up in, so we experience the oppression of small-town life just as she does. We hear the gossip of a small community, see the close (but not always easy) relationships of people who have always known each other and experience the uncovering of secrets bubbling just under the surface. Akranes itself seems like a remote setting – a port town with a small population – that is perfect for this kind of story.

I think it is worth saying that the story is very dark – obviously expected in the genre, but it does sometimes make for uncomfortable reading – especially in the 1980s/1990s narrative which is a child’s perspective. Having a child relate some horrific elements makes the story very chilling at times.

Overall, I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys crime fiction with a dark heart. The sense of tension that builds gradually makes for compulsive reading – before you know it, you will be racing through to see where the story goes! It isn’t an easy read because of the dark themes, but it is cleverly plotted, engagingly told and has a heroine that you will want to see again in book two.

About the Author

Born in Akranes in 1988, Eva moved to Trondheim, Norway to study her MSc in Globalisation when she was 25. After moving back home having completed her MSc, she knew it was time to start working on her novel. Eva has wanted to write books since she was 15 years old, having won a short story contest in Iceland.


Eva worked as a stewardess to make ends meet while she wrote her first novel. The book went on to win the Blackbird Award and became an Icelandic bestseller.

Eva now lives with her husband and three children in Reykjavík, staying at home with her youngest until she begins Kindergarten.

Books That Matter – Subscription Box – October Review

I’ve been a subscriber to the ‘Books that Matter‘ feminist subscription box for about 6 months. I have to admit, a couple of other subscriptions have caught my eye recently (namely Bert’s Books and The Capital Crime Club), so I was keen to weigh up the options!

This month’s box arrived slightly less squashed than usual – always a bonus as the packaging box can be a bit flimsy (although the contents are usually just fine).

The theme of the box is ‘Season of the Witch’.

This month’s contents were:

  • ‘Frankissstein’ by Jeanette Winterson
  • A self-heating eye mask from spacemasks.com
  • A set of 3 no-snag fabric hairbands from Cabello Bands
  • A bookmark with a Mary Shelley quotation on
  • A Wellness Planner pad
  • A ‘Season of the Witch’ booklet with information about the box contributors

My Review

This is another great box from ‘Books that Matter’!

I absolutely love the book choice – I have actually read this book on NetGalley and adored it (you can read my review here) but it is great to have a proper copy. And it is beautiful – look at that pink cover!

Hairbands, bookmark and eye mask gratefully received – I will use them all and I am impressed with the quality of all these items.

The ‘Season of the Witch’ booklet is interesting and will be worth a browse.

The only item I’m not that excited about is the Wellness Planner as I can’t imagine I’ll use it. It is pretty and good quality, but just not for me.

My Verdict

Another excellent subscription box – my subscription is safe for another month and the others will just have to wait…

My only observation is that £20 (including postage) feels a bit expensive if there is one of the main items that I won’t use. Still, ‘Frankissstein’ has won me over this month.

‘Why Mummy’s Sloshed’ by Gill Sims

I first started reading Gill Sims’ writing on Facebook where she produces the very funny ‘Peter and Jane’. These (mainly slightly-veiled autobiographical) updates became a book, that book became a series and here we are – the fourth and final book in the ‘Why Mummy’ series.

In this book, Peter and Jane are now older teenagers and our main protagonist, Ellen, is having to deal with GCSEs, A Levels and her oldest baby leaving for university. She also has her ex-husband to contend with as he seems to be about to start a new family with his girlfriend, Marisa,. She is surrounded by her usual bunch of funny friends and eccentric family members.

As with previous books, this is presented as a diary, although most of the events seem to happen in the first part of the year. There are some real rites of passage here that those who have been through it (either themselves or as parents) will recognise – the driving test, first car, 18th birthday parties, exam results,..it is all just so relatable!

And that really is Sims’ skill – taking the everyday and making it funny. This isn’t an idealistic view of parenting – Ellen looking after her friend’s toddler for the weekend is enough to put anyone off having children and also reminded me of the time in my own life when I needed eyes in the back of my head and a cure for sleep deprivation. Much of the book is very funny – some of it made me laugh out loud in recognition or because of Ellen’s sharp take on things.

That’s not to say that this novel doesn’t have serious moments – there is recognition of the situation of having ageing parents and realising they aren’t invincible, plus the emptying of the family nest. As someone who has this a few years ahead of me, it does seem sad and unimaginable that my babies will move out one day. However, I still have the experience of living with them as teens which – according to this book – might soften the blow of them leaving! The teenage boys that eat through everything in the house, the teenage girls obsessed with socialising above all else, the nagging over revision and chores…all familiar already!

I’d recommend this to anyone who enjoys funny, relatable books about family life – things like Matt Coyne’s books and the Unmumsy Mum and Hurrah for Gin (all worth investigating if you aren’t familiar with them). It is funny, a bit poignant and absolutely engaging.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If you’d like to buy the book, please consider using my affiliate link – I’ll earn commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my blog!

Header photo with thanks to Kevin Kelly for sharing their work on Unsplash.

WWW Wednesday: 14th October, 2020

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words. It is open for anyone to join in and share what they have been/are/will be reading.

Affiliate links are provided for books already published – thanks for supporting my blog with any purchases.

What are you currently reading?

I’m still reading ‘Pandora’s Jar by Natalie Haynes from my NetGalley shelf. It’s great so far but I had to put it down to finish off some books for blog tours.

I’m also reading ‘The Servant’ by Maggie Richell-Davies. This is a Georgian-set mystery and is going well so far. It seems to be a mix of genres – historical, mystery and a bit of romance, I think. It won the Historical Writers’ Association prize for an unpublished novel so I have high hopes!

What have you recently finished reading?

I have just finished ‘The Creak on the Stairs’ by Eva Bjorg Aegisdottir, a Nordic Noir crime novel set in Iceland. It’s creepy and tense – but you’ll have to wait for my blog tour date at the weekend for my full review.

I also finished ‘Jeeves and the Leap of Faith’ by Ben Schott, a new Jeeves and Wooster novel out tomorrow and written with the approval of the P. G. Wodehouse estate. It is very funny and in the spirit of the originals – you can read my review here.

What do you think you will read next?

Stuart Turton’s ‘The Devil and the Dark Water’ is still waiting for me to have time to read it properly – I think I’ll need to be concentrating on the twists in this one!

I’ve also got another blog tour book to read for November, ‘The Phoenix Project’ by Michelle Kidd. This one is a fast-paced thriller and I’m looking forward to losing myself in the pages.

My NetGalley shelf is still looking at me balefully, so I hope also to polish off some of the excellent titles on there too!


Header photo with thanks to Jonas Jacobsson for sharing their work on Unsplash.

‘Jeeves and the Leap of Faith’ by Ben Schott

I am a Wodehouse obsessive – a connoisseur of the Jeeves and Wooster novels – and so I was excited to be granted an advance copy of the new novel by Ben Schott, written with the blessing of the Wodehouse estate. It will be published on 15th October.

It should be said that a new Jeeves and Wooster novel has been attempted twice in recent years. Sebastian Faulks offered us ‘Jeeves and the Wedding Bells’; this I thought misfired on providing too much context when Bertie’s world is blissfully oblivious and mostly unaffected by unpleasant world events. To be honest, I never recovered from the shock of reading about the deaths of Bertie’s parents in that one!

Ben Schott’s first novel, ‘Jeeves and the King of Clubs’, was the other offering and was – in my opinion – much more successful in emulating Wodehouse’s tone and the feeling of the original novels. However, he did start mixing in a spy theme which I wasn’t so keen on but – hey ho – I went along with it, albeit with some reservations.

Both attempts were enjoyable to read, I should say, but not perfect.

In this second outing for Jeeves and Wooster by Ben Schott, the spy theme is enlarged upon and there is a strong espionage storyline that takes centre stage. In the background, a sub-plot involving the Drones Club’s finances is also under way, plus the usual romantic entanglements that Bertie is trying to escape and difficult encounters with his nemesis, Spode. As usual, Jeeves is in the background as the faithful valet, picking up the pieces for Bertie.

Again, this book (like the other ‘new’ Jeeves and Wooster books) is very enjoyable, but still not perfect.

Some of this book is absolutely spot-on and pitch-perfect. I loved the boot competition at the Drones Club, the hilarious ‘replacement’ valet’s encounter with Aunt Agatha and the one-upmanship over the wallpaper choices, So far, so Wodehouse. The characters (for the most part) are also pretty good – Gussie Fink-Nottle, Madeline Bassett and all the various Drones are great and Spode is as (intentionally) awful as always! Aunt Agatha seems a bit more fallible that Wodehouse’s original, but still credible.

What worked less well for me is Bertie himself. He seemed far more intelligent than in the original books which detracts from his charm and the ability of others to manipulate him – the central joke of the original books is that Bertie is essentially a charming, amiable but dim man-about-town whose puppet-masters include Jeeves and a host of aunts. In Schott’s hands, he has to be a credible spy and seems to have his wits about him a bit more and even a (requited) love interest.

The plot was clever and as tight as Wodehouse original. I actually preferred the Drones sub-plot, the shenanigans with jewel theft and racehorses, marriage proposals and interfering aunts, because it felt more authentic than the spy story. However, more than in the first book by Schott, I just felt that this was an imposter Bertie.

I feel that I do need to say that I really enjoyed this book – as a light-hearted read with familiar characters and a comfortable world in which nothing truly bad will happen, it is a success. My reservations are more about whether it is a Jeeves and Wooster novel and that is because I am a stickler for authenticity!

I do recommend this book as a fun read and one that will make you laugh. If you have read the originals, there’s a sense of cosy familiarity in Schott’s novel you will enjoy. If you haven’t read the originals then you should – they are an absolute treat and hit the spot in a way this one doesn’t quite.

I received a free copy of the novel from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

If you’d like your own copy of this book, please use my affiliate link and – in doing so – support my blog!

If you’d like to read a Wodehouse original, this one is glorious!