Spy stories aren’t usually my thing, but a middle-aged, single-mum spy? In 1960s London? With humour and sass and secrets? Yes, I’m sold!
Thanks to Aria and NetGalley for my review copy. Opinions are entirely my own.
Continue reading Book Review: ‘Mrs Spy’ by M J RobothamThis isn’t my usual genre, but having recently discovered Bridgerton (yes, I know I’m so late to the party that I nearly missed it!) I was intrigued by a Regency romance told through a trans lens. Thanks to HQ and NetGalley for my review copy.
Lord Christopher Eden lives as a recluse – having lost his parents, he’s been able to bury himself in life at his country estate with only a couple of trusted staff for company, keeping away from the gossip of the ton. Unfortunately, his comfortable existence it put in jeopardy when he’s told the future of his estate rests on him finding a wife by the end of the Season, which might just cause a few issues… One of his first hurdles is to appear as a respectable and eligible young bachelor in the eyes of high society – and for that, he’ll need a valet. Of course, the valet that arrives – James Harding – is problematically gorgeous and may prove to be quite the distraction from Christopher’s main goal.
Continue reading Book Review: ‘The Earl Meets His Match’ by T J AlexanderClassic crime fiction fans, this one is for you! If you can imagine a modern ‘And Then There Were None’ (Agatha Christie in fine form) and mix it with all the crime tropes you can think of, plus throw in some classic horror elements…you might be part of the way to imagining this book.
Thanks to NetGalley for my review copy. As always, opinions are entirely my own.
Continue reading Book Review: ‘You Are Fatally Invited’ by Ande PliegoThis is such a hard book to review – it’s so dark and gruesome, disturbing and odd, Gothic and horrific, yet also strangely compelling. I found that I couldn’t put it down, even as I was being pulled into the twisted workings of the protagonist’s mind.
The novel follows Winifred Notty as she arrives at Ensor House, the home of the fairly odious Pounds family. Her role is to be governess to the children, Andrew and Drusilla, although her unconventional bedtime stories and tendency towards brutality are at first dismissed as merely eccentricities compared to their previous governesses. As she begins to draw the attention of the master of the house, strange things begin to happen – someone defaces the family portraits and even the staff start to go missing… When guests begin to arrive for Christmas celebrations, it becomes obvious that Winifred is going to continue on the path of destruction that led her to Ensor House in the first place.
Wow, this book is so dark – we are literally taken inside the mind of a killer whose twisted way of looking at the world means that no-one around her is safe. Her thoughts and actions are presented in graphic detail and her total lack of remorse or empathy is chilling for the reader – although her voice is also often humorous and knowing and so not totally alienating for the reader. The book often focused on the macabre and grotesque – this is a book where description is frequently visceral and repellent. There’s lots of blood, bodily function, gorging on stomach-churning things, decay and rot, filth and death. Yes, it’s disgusting, but also shocking and interesting and unlike much I’ve read before.
As is evident from the above, Winifred isn’t a character we grow to love – this isn’t a book for anyone who needs to like the characters in what they read. In fact, every one of the characters is awful in their own way. Indeed, we are shown a procession of greed and lust and any of the other deadly sins you can name – and it’s probably best you don’t get attached to any of the characters anyway as they don’t have long life expectancies!
The writing is clever, although references to ‘fall’ for autumn jarred a little within a story set within Victorian England – in an otherwise immersive book, I found this tricky to skim over.
So, if you’re of a strong disposition then there’s much to get caught up in within the world of ‘Victorian Psycho’ – I’m not sure it is a wholly enjoyable experience, but it’s one you won’t forget!
Photo by Aimee Vogelsang on Unsplash
I’ll be honest – the words ‘TikTok historian’ didn’t draw me to this book as I’m far too old to grapple with too many social media platforms and so was unaware of Jenny Draper before now. I am on a perpetual hunt for engaging, lively history books – and if they’re funny too then that’s a bonus. The blurb of ‘Mavericks’ proved appealing for this reason. Thanks to Watkins Publishing and NetGalley for my review copy.
I liked the format of this audiobook – short chapters focusing on different ‘mavericks’ from history from whom we can learn something important, or certainly intriguing (“firing a gun at someone won’t make them love you” being a favourite). The figures chosen were mostly ones I hadn’t encountered before, although a few more familiar names such as Margery Kempe and the Chartists were mixed in. I enjoyed learning about historical figures who had taken the unconventional path – especially as these figures included a lot of women, non-nobles and those from around the world who don’t always make it into traditional history books. The chapters revealed quirky and telling details about each of the figures, reflecting Draper’s eye for an entertaining story and skills in producing vivid biographical writing.
The audiobook is engagingly narrated by the author herself – I’ll admit that I enjoyed hearing the stories told in the author’s own voice as the pacing sounded natural and the jokes landed well.
I’d recommend this to anyone who enjoys history told with humour and wit – think along the lines of ‘The Rest is History’ or Terry Deary for comparison.
Cara Hunter is one of my favourite crime writers and a new DCI Adam Fawley book is always exciting! This is the seventh book in a brilliant series – although I think it would work as a standalone. It actually picks up the characters from a previous book in the series, although I didn’t know this until after I’d finished reading as I think it’s the only one of the series I haven’t read!
Continue reading Book Review: ‘Making a Killing’ by Cara HunterI’ve followed this series since the beginning and have thoroughly enjoyed all of the books – this is the fifth. I was delighted to be granted a review copy by NetGalley and couldn’t wait to read about DI James Walker’s latest terrible Christmas.
Because DI James Walker always has a horrific festive season! All the books take place over the Christmas/New Year period and it seems the only time of year that serial killers appear in (usually sleepy, small-town) Cumbria.
This latest book takes place in DI Walker’s home village, making him the first on the scene as the snow starts to pile up. The deceased – dressed as Santa Claus – is someone he knows and someone who oddly hasn’t been reported as missing, even though he’s been in the snow a while. When another body is found, Walker and his team have to face up to the fact that there is another killer loose in Cumbria – and the villagers aren’t at all happy with the fact. Walker needs to keep his neighbours happy while finding the killer among them…
This series is always entertaining and engaging – there’s always lots of twists but also really solid police procedural elements that keep the story moving forward. I did guess the killer slightly ahead of DI Walker, but I’m quite a seasoned armchair detective these days! I liked the village setting as it put the crime scene/possible suspects/police team all in close proximity – something that made the setting quite claustrophobic as the snow fell and the village was isolated from the outside world.
If you’ve enjoyed the previous books in the series, there’s lots to like here – I think this was one of my favourites. If you haven’t discovered DI Walker, these are perfect winter reads and you’ve got 5 to enjoy!
Header photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
Cosy crime isn’t my go-to genre – I usually prefer something a bit darker – but I couldn’t resist this book! A fab and festive cover, a female lead character descended from famous Victorian food writer Mrs Beeton and the promise of a twisty mystery – count me in!
Thank you to Rachel Quin and HQ for my copy of the novel for review. It’s published in hardback on 24th October and would make a great Christmas present for the crime fan in your life.
The story centres on Alice Beeton, an older woman running the Good Household Management Agency – if your most famous relative is famous for the Victorian classic ‘Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management’ then why not capitalise on the connection?! Alice provides the best domestic staff to the poshest families in the UK and is known for her discretion and calm competence. Along with her dog, Agatha (named after the best crime novelist, of course), she lives in a basement flat in Kensington and focuses her efforts on her business.
When a well-to-do family need a housekeeper, Alice sends new hire Enya – a woman with perfect references and fluent French who seems ideal. However, a matter of days later, on New Year’s Day, Enya is found dead at the family home. Feeling responsible for Enya’s death, Alice gets herself involved in the police investigation led by the scruffy but slightly clueless Detective Rigby. Can she uncover the killer stalking through high society?
I absolutely loved Alice Beeton and need to read more about her! Initially, she comes across as someone whose life is very ordered and regulated – she has her dog, her flat and her business and that’s the extent of her world. However, being thrown into a murder investigation forces her to broaden her horizons and take risks – from going undercover to dealing with Detective Rigby and his charms. It’s lovely that Alice is an older woman – ‘the wrong side of fifty’ – as it’s rare to read about protagonists of this age and gender (even though women and older people make up a huge proportion of the book-buying public).
Alice’s connections with her famous ancestor are also used well within the novel – as well as the business name, there are Mrs Beeton recipes at relevant points throughout the book. These are (I think) taken from Mrs Beeton’s famous cookery book and are sometimes tempting, sometimes weirdly archaic, but always interesting.
The plotting of the mystery is well done and kept me guessing for quite a while. I did solve the mystery just ahead of Alice, but more through luck than judgement. There were plenty of surprises along the way, as well as a host of engaging characters (Alice’s co-workers are pretty great) and some luxury settings.
I thoroughly enjoyed my first (but hopefully not last) insight into Alice’s world; it’s cosy and festive, but also immersive and engaging. I really hope Book 2 is on the way…
I love this crime series featuring the brilliant DI Grace Archer. This latest book is a great addition to the series and one I recommend fully!
This story opens with the death of a young woman near a stream in North London. The last number dialled on her phone, found nearby, is DI Grace Archer – our hero of the Metropolitan Police who has worked to free women from sex trafficking. Archer wants to take the case because of her personal connection but is refused and instead finds herself investigating the death of a woman left in an abandoned house many years previously. cases have similarities, but Archer’s attempts to make connections continue to be knocked back by her superiors who just want the cases closed as quickly as possible. This leaves Archer with no choice but to toe the line…or break the rules!
As with the previous books, I love that DI Grace Archer is a strong female lead who is unafraid to take on those who don’t have the correct priorities – she believes that the violent deaths of all women should be given equal attention by the police, regardless of the women’s status and activities during life. This gives her a single-mindedness in her investigations and a determination to do her best by the victims which is commendable. Grace’s colleague, DS Harry Quinn, is similarly empathetic and likeable, putting a strong detective duo at the heart of this police procedural.
The plotting is clever and kept me reading – this is one of those books that you won’t want to put down, even as you are also slightly scared to be reading it late at night!
Although this book sits within the DI Grace Archer series, it would work as a standalone too – in case anyone is holding back from reading it because they don’t have the back-story. Each book is gripping in its own right so dive right in!
This is one of my favourite detective series and I love this latest instalment. Fennell can’t write these fast enough for me, so I hope the next book is in the pipeline…
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I don’t know why it took me so long to read the second book in Richard Osman’s series about a group of amateur detectives living in a retirement community. It just got pushed down the TBR list and I’ve only just (finally) picked it up.
This book follows the four characters from the first novel – Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibraham – as they embark on a mystery featuring a character from Elizabeth’s past, £20 million of diamonds and a whole host of murders.
As with the first book, the writing is engaging and humorous, although there is a poignant dimension to the story too – in this case, around a knock to Ibrahim’s confidence and also an Alzheimer’s plotline. This makes the novel more than a simple cosy crime novel. The mystery element of the novel is also cleverly done and kept me guessing to the end.
The range of characters is interesting – I loved Elizabeth, with her intriguing past and fierce intelligence. Joyce, whose narrative perspective drives some of the chapters, is also a fabulous character – witty and sharp and learning her true capabilities as the investigation progresses. The police who work with the group are also charmingly portrayed – I like that they all have back-stories and insecurities and flaws in the same way as the main characters do.
I also listened to the audiobook, which is brilliantly read by Lesley Manville. I’d recommend this whole-heartedly as she brings out the warmth of the characters, especially in the Joyce chapters.
This is a strong sequel to ‘The Thursday Murder Club’ and I’ll keep going with the series – hopefully in a slightly more timely way than with this book!
