Thanks to the lovely people at Yellow Kite/Hodder and Stoughton for providing me with a copy of this new poetry book for review.
As always, opinions are entirely my own.
I’ve long been an advocate of literature as a means of wellbeing – for lots of us in the blogging community, books are where we relax, engage, challenge ourselves and zone out of everyday problems and stresses.
With this in mind, I was delighted to be asked to review Rachel Kelly’s ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone: Poems for Life’s Ups and Downs’. Kelly is a Sunday Times bestselling author as well as a mental health campaigner so I was interested in her poetry collection – an anthology of poems that have helped her over the years.
Thanks to the lovely people at Penguin Michael Joseph for my copy of ‘The Night Man’ by Jorn Lier Horst. I was delighted to win this in a giveaway but – as always – opinions are entirely my own.
I love Scandinavian crime fiction and was intrigued by this – especially when I saw that it has been made into a major TV series which will be my next port of call! I came to this expecting a dark, tense thriller and wasn’t at all disappointed.
The story opens with the gruesome discovery of a severed head on a stake in the centre of a small town called Larvik in Norway. Police Inspector William Wisting is called in to investigate, but the media are also circling as they seek out a sensational story – and the media pack are led by Wisting’s own daughter, Line. When a second body is recovered from a lake, Wisting is forced to confront the fact that Larvik has been infiltrated by a dangerous and ruthless criminal network…
This was my first book by Neil Lancaster – and I don’t think it will be my last!
The reviews for this series are amazing, so I was pleased to be granted a copy by NetGalley so that I could make up my own mind.
The book opens with the deaths of a high-profile lawyer and one of his past clients, one of Scotland’s most notorious criminals who has just been released from prison. As the bodies begin to stack up, DS Max Craigie starts to suspect that they have a murderer taking revenge on those who have done bad things – a vigilante killer who seems to have insider knowledge of the police’s methods and processes. The investigation team is forced to face the fact that the culprit may be one of them – but how are they going to uncover someone who knows their every move?
Something different for the blog today – I was invited to review a graphic guide to class by Laura Harvey, Sarah Leaney and Danny Noble.
This is a gorgeously-illustrated book – thanks to Random Things Tours and Icon Books for my copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I started reading this book on Pigeonhole, a chunk at a time, released daily. This is definitely one you don’t want to read in small chunks – to keep up with everyone and to not constantly be on a cliffhanger, you need to devour this in one sitting! Thanks to NetGalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review.
‘The Miseducation of Evie Epworth’ was one of my books of 2021 – I couldn’t wait to see how Matson Taylor was going to follow up his impressive debut novel. Thanks to NetGalley for granting me access to this sequel in exchange for an honest review.
This novel picks up a way after the first one finished with 1960s Evie heading for London. She’s now 10 years older and living the high life in 1970s London – until a surprising and unfortunate incident involving Princess Anne ends her BBC career a little prematurely. Faced with a number of possibilities, Evie picks herself up and tries some different paths with the help of her friends.
A new Cara Hunter book is always a treat – and this is no exception. I read A LOT of crime fiction and think that Cara Hunter’s books are among the best.
This is the sixth book in the series featuring DI Adam Fawley and his team – although there are some plotlines that run across the books (mainly to do with the team’s personal lives and relationships), I think this could be enjoyed as a standalone novel.
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘The Bloodless Boy’ – a fabulous historical crime novel that is out in paperback on 14th July.
I am absolutely delighted to be opening this tour – thanks to Nikki at Melville House Press for inviting me onto the tour and for my copy of the book for review. As always, opinions are entirely my own.
Regular visitors to The Quick and the Read know that I’m kind of obsessed with crime fiction – specifically, I love pacey, engaging police procedurals. Even better if the lead characters are distinctive or quirky in some way, plus an interesting setting is hugely important to me.
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).
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.
