review Archives - The Quick and the Read

Book Review: ‘How to Lose a Lord in Ten Days’ by Sophie Irwin

This isn’t my usual genre, but I did enjoy Sophie Irwin’s previous book, ‘A Lady’s Guide to Fortune Hunting’, and thought I’d give it a go. I’ve also recently discovered ‘Bridgerton’ (I know – where have I been?! Late to the party as usual!) so was quite happy to immerse myself in Irwin’s Regency world.

In this book, we meet the haughty Lord Ashford – a man with a title and some unfortunate business dealings to sort out which means he needs to marry money. The problem is, his idealistic father will only approve a love match – so Ashford needs to find a wealthy woman he can pretend to be in love with to get approval to marry. The perfect solution seems to be Miss Lydia Hanworth – she seems socially presentable, demure and compliant when Ashford has met her at parties, even if she comes from a family who own factories (absolutely not the done thing in high society!) Lydia’s family are keen to marry her off and an announcement date for the engagement is set. What could possibly go wrong?!

Let’s just say that Lydia isn’t happy with the arrangement!

What follows is an often hilarious comedy of manners – or Lydia’s total lack of them – at an extended house party graciously hosted by Ashford’s sister, Phoebe. Lydia is determined to convince Ashford that he doesn’t want to marry her and her tactics are very funny – hideous fashion choices, sabotage of Ashworth’s own clothes, poor table manners, crass topics of conversation and testing the boundaries of Ashford’s gentlemanly patience. She’s strong, single-minded and an absolute force to be reckoned with and I loved her.

Until – of course – she starts to notice that Ashford isn’t even remotely ugly, and can actually be quite nice… Yes, we can all see where it was going to head right from the start, but that doesn’t matter a bit. Irwin is skilled at throwing obstacles in the path of true love, even as the protagonists are starting to realise their own true feelings. Add in sub-plots about Ashford’s family and Lydia’s eccentric brother and there’s plenty of substance to get your teeth into here.

I’ll admit I was surprised by just how funny this book was – I was prepared for gentle comedy, but Lydia is brutal and totally unrelenting in her mission to lose her lord in ten days, so there is some quite extreme behaviour. I laughed out loud quite a few times and would have been happy to stay in Lydia and Ashford’s world a whole lot longer. By the time they were done antagonising each other, I was totally invested in the outcome of the story.

I’d recommend this if you like Regency romance with a bit of humour – there’s much to love in the strong female lead too. I definitely want to read more from Sophie Irwin.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my review copy of the book. This book is due for publication on 31st July, 2025.

Book Review: ‘No Safe Place’ by Hannah Brennan

I love a good police procedural, and this is a good police procedural!

This is a debut from Hannah Brennan, and marks what is (I presume) going to be a new detective series featuring Detective Liz Field.

In this book, Field is called in to investigate a brutal attack on a man who is stabbed multiple times and ends up with his life hanging in the balance. When a second attack happens with the same distinctive methods, Field has a murder investigation on her hands. Guided only by a page from an academic paper found with the victims, Field embarks on a race to understand the subjects of the paper a child psychologist’s study on his young patients with OCD. Field has to race against time to find the group of ex-patients, while also considering that one of them could be a killer…

The OCD element of the story is managed really well – the writer has personal experience of this and it shows in her careful treatment of the issue. Several of the characters who take turns narrating the story have OCD, and it is interesting that Brennan explores the different aspects for each character, such as agoraphobia, intrusive thoughts or fear of causing harm. This was an intriguing addition to the expected murder mystery, and something I’ve not seen so sensitively handled or so well integrated into the plot. before.

The other aspect of the book that I loved was Field herself. She’s an older character (in her fifties) and with a family connection to OCD herself, which makes this case more personal. I thought that the character was well developed, especially in her relationships with her son and her two (very competitive and warring) colleagues.

This was an enjoyable read with a bit more depth than some other books in this genre (not a criticism of other books – I love a mystery in pretty much any form!) because of the OCD element. I think that Field is an appealing central figure and look forward to more books in this series.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my review copy of this book. It publishes on 31st July, 2025.

Header photo by Marios Gkortsilas on Unsplash.

Book Review: ‘Dead to Me’ by Gytha Lodge

Gytha Lodge writes great books – twisty, fast-paced and totally immersive. I loved the series featuring detective Jonah Sheens and was intrigued to read this standalone crime novel.

This story centres on an investigation by an American journalist, Anna Sousa, who is digging into the circumstances surrounding the death of s student at Cambridge University. Going undercover and moving among the rich and elite students, Anna seems to be closing in on some very unpalatable truths. She begins writing her notes down in an email to Reid Murray, a British detective and Anna’s ex – they’re not really in a good place, but he’s the only one who will understand. Then Anna goes missing, and her ex is the only one who can help her…

I liked the way that the book was structured, moving between Anna’s father (who is looking for her), Reid and the email to Reid containing Anna’s account of what happened. It’s a clever model and allows insights into the separate characters and the situations they put themselves in. It also brings a great deal of tension into the book, as Anna mixes with the students knowing that one of them may be a killer – and puts herself in constant danger of discovery to get some answers. The suspense builds as the account gets closer to the University’s May Ball, while Reid and Anna’s father try to find her.

I’d recommend this to fans of clever crime fiction – it will keep you guessing with your heart in your mouth!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my review copy of this book. It is due for publication on 3rd July, 2025.

Header photo by Chris Boland, a fab wedding photographer based in Cambridge

Book Review: ‘The Earl Meets His Match’ by T J Alexander

This 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.

Book Review: ‘Making a Killing’ by Cara Hunter

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!

Book Review: ‘The Killer in the Cold’ by Alex Pine

I’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

Blog Tour: ‘Stoic in Love’ by Annie Lawson

A huge thanks to Random Things Tours and Murdoch Books for inviting me onto the blog tour for this funny, engaging and enlightening little gem!

As always, opinions are entirely my own.

From the Publisher:

You’re on date #17 since your last relationship ended in flames and within a minute of meeting Tom at a bar you realise you’ve made a huge mistake. You head to the bathroom to text your friend and complain about how your date says ‘aaaahh!’ after every sip of beer, seems to style himself after Boris Johnson and definitely
sniffed your hair. Ten seconds later, you realise you accidentally texted Tom instead. You sit frozen on the loo, wondering if there’s a back exit or if you should fake your own death instead of facing the music. You wonder how you ended up here again, locked in a small room, hiding from a man.

Whether it’s dating someone wearing horns and a kaftan, a relationship where blobs of toothpaste are left smeared in the bathroom sink, or being dumped via text with just one word – enough! – the philosophy of the Stoics can help us all navigate the life cycles of love. Across more than 40 rules, from dating tips like Do your due diligence to relationship advice like Don’t tell your partner to calm down to break-up wisdoms like Resist putting your foot in your mouth, Annie Lawson applies ancient wisdom to the modern world of being in love, out of love, lovesick, love-bombed or just love-tired. She reminds us that life is all about change and to keep our focus on the things we can control – like our thoughts and actions – and to let go of the things we can’t, like finding a date’s living room is a shrine to Manchester United. Love and its rocky pursuit often sucks but fortunately, not always, and Stoic in Love helps us realise that we can all use a little help in getting together and staying together. Or getting the hell out of there.

My Review:

I just really loved the sound of this one – funny, relatable commentary on relationships peppered with sage advice from the ancient Stoics. I can’t admit to being an expert on either relationships or the Stoics, so I thought I’d give it a go!

The first thing that really stood out to me was the quality of the illustrations. Most of the chapters have a full page illustration at the start and they’re really well done and cute – the elephant in the room was my favourite. Each chapter ends with a quotation from one of the Stoics accompanied by a picture, so I got very used to my friends Seneca, Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus turning up with their words of wisdom.

The book is split into 3 sections, covering Dating, Relationships and Breaking Up. In each section, there are a number of short chapters (there are 45 ‘Rules’ covered in total) and each one follows the same formula – a contextualising/explanation of the rule, then the advice from the Stoics and – finally – the ‘Final Word’ from one of the key philosophers. I enjoyed this format as it was so easy to dip in and out of, plus equally quite addictive once you start reading – I didn’t think this would be a book to read from cover to cover, but I ended up doing just that.

Yeah, the Stoics’ advice mapped onto modern relationships is cleverly done and interesting, but the real joy is in Lawson’s writing. She’s hilarious and packs each chapter with anecdotes, case studies, references to popular culture, research and jokes. Although it tackles some tricky topics – the ‘Break Up’ section in particular – it’s all approached with humour and makes everything seem relatable and manageable.

There’s some really good advice too – some of it is obvious stuff (e.g. ‘Avoid red flags’, ‘Avoid the wrong person’), but there’s some really sensible tips too. I liked ‘Remember that you can be happy or you can be right’ and ‘Remember it’s not you, it’s them (actually, it’s probably you)’ – both made me laugh a lot, but also the Stoic advice about taking responsibility for your own actions and the things you can control were food for thought too.

I’d recommend this if you’re after a fun, entertaining read – there’s also the added bonus that you’ll pick up some advice from the ancients that will be useful in more than love. Read and enjoy – and perhaps become a tiny bit wiser!

About the Author:

Annie Lawson is a former journalist who has had a diverse love life, from a first pash as a teenager with braces to several boyfriends including one who alphabetised cereal packets, and finally to marriage, which ended. This all taught her that the
key to a good relationship is not only lots of storage, regular holidays at a nice resort and someone who is funny, but finding a partner to do nothing with. She now works on the dark side of the corporate world and is a devoted student of the Stoics, taking every opportunity to apply their wisdom to life’s hard things – from the workplace
to matters of the heart.

Book Review: ‘The Christmas Appeal’ by Janice Hallett

Happy publication day to ‘The Christmas Appeal’ – 26th October, 2023.

I absolutely loved Janice Hallett’s ‘The Appeal’ so it was a joy to be given access to ‘The Christmas Appeal’ – a chance to rejoin the Fairway Players as they grapple with a pantomime, plus an unexpected dead body!

Book Review: ‘The Safe House’ by Cameron Ward

Happy publication day to ‘The Safe House’ – 14th September, 2023.

I enjoyed Cameron Ward’s first book, ‘A Stranger on Board’ so was delighted to receive an early copy of ‘The Safe House’ for review. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my copy – opinions are, as always, entirely my own.

This book follows Jess, a Metropolitan Police employee who – for her own reasons – wants to get away. The ideal solution presents itself (*alarm bells*) when Jess’ friend discovers a remote luxury house in the Australian Outback is in need of a house-sitter. It seems to offer the peace and respite that Jess needs – but she hasn’t considered the wild fires ravaging the local area or the mysterious visitors that appear. As the fire gets closer, Jess finds herself in danger – but is the real peril inside or outside the house?

Blog Tour: ‘The Silent Man’ by David Fennell

This is the third in the series to feature DI Grace Archer, following on from the brilliant ‘The Art of Death’ and ‘See No Evil’. I’ve followed this series – breathlessly, sometimes peeking through my fingers, with a pounding heart – from the beginning. This third instalment is another terrifying, gruesome and twisty tale.

Thanks to Compulsive Readers and Zaffre Books for my place on the blog tour and my copy of the book for review. As always, opinions are my own.