Tag: Suspense

Sunday Summary – 20th April 2025

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Happy Easter friends! It may be a bank holiday weekend, but I’m not taking any breaks in content! Today’s Sunday Summary has plenty to update you on. Make yourself a cuppa and get settled in, because I have a few books to share with you!

Firstly, though, let’s catch up on the content I’ve shared with you so far this week.

The first post I published earlier this week was my book review of Soul Identity by Dennis Batchelder. If you enjoy science fiction, thrillers, or ideally both, Soul Identity is a great book to try. I really enjoyed this first instalment to the three-part Soul Identity series, and I’m excited to read the next. If you haven’t already read my review, check it out using the link above.

Next, I shared my latest instalment to my Shelf Control series on Friday. In Friday’s post, I featured a courtroom thriller I’m keen to try. The book may not be for everyone given the subject matter, but I am intrigued by the synopsis.

 

Books Read


Normal Women

Progress with Normal Women by Philippa Gregory remains slow but steady.

Over the course of this week, I’ve read another fifty pages or so. I’m now moving into the life of women in the 18th century, and it’s not great. Women’s rights are pretty atrocious at this point in history, so it makes for infuriating reading. It’s no fault of the book at all – it’s thoroughly researched, and there’s a lot of information and aspects of women’s lives covered. It’s how badly women are treated and controlled that angers me.

Hopefully, in the next week, I’ll get to a more positive period of history for women?!


The Perfect Wife

As of last week’s Sunday Summary post, I was around halfway through my audiobook copy of The Perfect Wife.

Over the last six days, I’ve listened on and subsequently finished this book. It’s a relief to have it read well in advance of our book club meet in the beginning of May. It wasn’t difficult to achieve though – the story was compelling, and as the revelations and mysteries started to come together, I was drawn to read on.

Having recently read another thriller, I wasn’t sure if I’d find The Perfect Wife more of the same. However, the books were vastly different, and I enjoyed reading from the thriller genre again!


Elektra

A book I forgot to talk about last week was Elektra by Jennifer Saint. I was looking for a smaller physical read to take around and about with me. Normal Women wasn’t practical to carry around, so I grabbed my copy of Elektra and read about 30 pages.

Picking up from there this week, I’ve read a further 100 pages. As of this Sunday Summary update, that puts me  just shy of 50% through the book.

Elektra is certainly a Greek Mythology story that focuses on the women’s perspective. Throughout, we see chapters from Elektra, Clytemnestra, and Cassandra. All three female characters’ lives are impacted by the war with Troy, and I’m enjoying the often overlooked view. Too often, we can read of the glory of men, but not the suffering of the women. If you like books around this topic, The Silence of the Girls is another great book.

I’m looking forward to reading more of Elektra in the next few days. I hope you can join me for next week’s Sunday Summary post to see how far I get.


Books Discovered


The delight my wallet had at not purchasing a copy of Vulture Capitalism last week ended up short-lived. In my defence, I was allowed in a local bookstore unsupervised and spotted it. So, I got it!

I also picked up 24 Hours in the Viking World and The Twentysomething Treatment because they sounded interesting…


Coming Up…

I have some great posts lined up for you in the next week.

First and foremost, I’m looking forward to sharing a Top Ten Tuesday post. It’s been a while since I shared one of these posts. This week’s theme is books that surprised me – and that can be good or bad. I’ll likely end up going down the positive route as I won’t have many negatives.

On Friday, I’ll be back with a First Lines Friday feature. This week, I plan to set myself a challenge for this post. In this week’s feature, I’ll share a non-fiction book on my TBR. I commit to that here and now but without a set book in mind. Wish me luck finding a suitable book to feature!

Finally, I’ll be back the same time next week with another Sunday Summary update. In that post, I’ll get you up to speed on the books I’ve been reading over the week and let you know where I get up to.

Until next time, have a great week and happy reading!

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Sunday Summary – 13th April 2025

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The end of another week is upon us, so that can only mean one thing! I hope you’re ready to dive into this Sunday Summary update and catch up on the books I’ve been reading this week.

Before that though, as I always do, let’s take a recap of the blog posts I shared earlier this week. Technically, last week’s Sunday Summary post went live on Monday morning to accommodate a blog tour post on Sunday.

Next, I shared my list of five authors I will always buy books by. If you are a regular reader, the authors featured on this list shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. If you are new here though, you can get a feel for some of my favourite authors by checking out this post!

In Friday’s First Lines Friday, I featured a recent release that’s part of a series I adored as a teenager and I want to re-read. If you’re curious to see what that book is and sample the opening lines, take a look at that post here.


Books Read


Normal Women

With no carryovers from last week, I returned this week to Normal Women by Philippa Gregory.

I put down this book a few weeks ago in order to prioritise blog tours and other books of a more time-sensitive nature. Now that I’ve got those commitments out of the way, I’ve picked up this non-fiction again. The focus of this book is on women in society as a whole, as opposed to specific individuals.

I haven’t read a whole lot of this book this week given I only picked it up again for the first time on Saturday. However, I have made 40 pages progress and I’m looking forward to reading more over the next week.


The Perfect Wife

Today, I started listening to the audiobook of our book club pick that will be discussing in early May. In last week’s Sunday Summary, I shared that the contenders for this month’s read were All the Light We Cannot See, The Anxious Generation, and The Perfect Wife. In order to avoid a conflict, I didn’t vote in this month’s selection; it would have resulted in a draw. Instead, our other members chose The Perfect Wife by J.P. Delaney.

I have to say, although this wasn’t my first choice, I am enjoying the book. So much so, I have listened to just under half of this audiobook today. I like audiobooks because they are convenient to listen to whilst running errands. It certainly makes a trip to Tesco more bearable anyway…

That’s now I’m reading this book and it’s a good listen so far!


Books Discovered

I confess that I added one book to my reading list earlier today. However, my wallet can be satisfied because I didn’t purchase it.

In the world of finance and in light of the turmoil we’ve seen in markets this week, a book called Vulture Capitalism caught my attention. Whilst I’m not particularly informed on the content of the book to make an assessment on whether it’s true or not, journalist and author Grace Blakeley certainly seems to be. Would I be surprised at corruption within our capitalist society? Absolutely not.

It’s a completely different subject to what I would normally read, but that’s precisely why it’s caught my attention.


Coming Up…

My first post of the week will be a book review. I’m looking forward to sharing my thoughts on Soul Identity by Dennis Batchelder.

On Friday I’ll be back with another instalment in my Shelf Control feature. In this series, I take a look at upcoming books on my TBR and share why I’m excited to read it!

Finally, this time next week I’m back with another Sunday Summary update. I hope you can join me to see all my latest reading updates and goings-on.

Until next time, happy reading!

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Sunday Summary – 29th October 2023

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Good evening from a rainy and dreary island! But that’s okay – as I’m inside, cosy with a cup of coffee and ready to dive into publishing this week’s Sunday Summary! As always, let’s take a look at the posts I published earlier in the week.

My first post this week was a Top Ten Tuesday feature. This week’s theme was ‘atmospheric reads’, and I had several different genres and bookish vibes to share as part of the post. If you haven’t checked it out already and are looking for reading inspiration, look no further.

On Thursday, I shared my review as part of the recent blog tour for Warrior Prince. I enjoyed this historical fiction novel which features Vikings in an Eastern European setting, as opposed to the English variants. It’s a fun, action-filled adventure, and if you want to find out more, my review is here.

 

Books Read

 

Killing For Company: The Case of Dennis Nilsen

I left off last week’s Sunday Summary post having concluded my ‘current reads’ at that time (I mentioned in that post that I had about 20 minutes of Surrounded by Idiots left to finish, which I did. I didn’t feel like that warranted a section in this Sunday Summary post.)

So, I picked up my next read on the TBR, Killing For Company by Brian Masters. You would like to think that based on the title and subject matter, it would be obvious that this book isn’t for the fainthearted or those with a sensitive stomach. However, in case that’s not clear, let me emphasise that now. This book isn’t for the fainthearted or those with a sensitive stomach. 

In this book, we explore the life, history and grisly murders Nilsen fully admits to committing between 1978 and his arrest in 1983. In the latter stages of the book, we start to address some of the psychological elements and potential diagnosis for Dennis as a means of explaining his actions… both the murders he did commit and for those he failed and/or chose not to go through with.

It has been a really interesting book, although I am sure it is not for everybody. As of this post, I have read 85% of the book and I have an estimated reading time of one hour to complete it. I’m hoping to get that done tonight!

 

The Flood

I have been off work this week – something I haven’t mentioned before now I don’t think. I have been busy though. In addition to catching up with jobs in the house, I have been out and tidying up the garden ready for winter. Whilst I’ve been doing these jobs, I have taken the opportunity to make progress with my second audiobook of the month.

The Flood is actually written by a local author, and it is for this reason I added it to my reading list. It is also the book I pulled out of my TBR jar this month, and I’m enjoying the story so far. There’s definitely a lot more going on under the surface of this narrative that I am yet to discover, and I’m looking forward to unravelling it all. The audio is also very good, so I can recommend the format!

As of this Sunday Summary update, I am coming up to 50% of the way through this audiobook. I may be back at work from next week, but I will be finding any opportunity I can to continue listening. 

 

Books Discovered

I have added a book called Unmasked by Ellie Middleton to my reading list this week. One of my LinkedIn connections has liked content by Ellie on a few occasions, and as a result, I have seen it too.

I’m interested in picking up Unmasked as it looks at ADHD and other forms of neurodivergence. I have a friend who was diagnosed with autism only when she was an adult (not surprising for girls given the ‘official’ symptoms or flags are those typically exhibited in boys and take no account of girls learning to mask them). As somebody who is interested to understand more about neurodivergence in general, I’d like to take a look at this book.

 

Coming Up…

With the end of October and the beginning of November falling into next week, you can expect my usual busy schedule.

My first post of the week though will be a review for Cinderella’s Crimes by Kelsey Josund. I have a deadline to share my review on Tuesday, so that’s when you can expect my thoughts on this fairytale reimagining that I read last week.

After that post has gone live, I will be kicking into gear with my usual monthly wrap-up post, and then my monthly TBR for November. mMy intention is for the wrap-up to go live on Thursday and my TBR on Saturday. I hope you can join me for both of those!

And, as always, I will be back at the same time next week with another Sunday Summary update post.

Now, I don’t know about you, but my plan is to take a cup of tea to bed and finish my current read.

What are your plans for this evening?

 

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Shelf Control #64 – 28/04/2023

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Happy Friday and welcome to today’s Shelf Control feature post! I’m looking forward to sharing today’s post, as I get to feature a legal thriller by an author that is well-known, but I am yet to try!

Before we get into it, let’s recap what my Shelf Control feature is all about.

Shelf Control is a regular feature – a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a celebration of the unread books on our shelves! The idea is to pick a book you own but haven’t read and write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up!

If you want to read more about the Shelf Control feature, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

 

The Rainmaker – John Grisham

Genre: Legal Thriller

Pages: 419

Audience: Adult

Publisher: 01 Apr 1995

Publication Date:

 

 

Goodreads – The Rainmaker

In The Rainmaker, John Grisham tells the story of a young man barely out of law school who finds himself taking on one of the most powerful, corrupt, and ruthless companies in America — and exposing a complex, multibillion-dollar insurance scam. In his final semester of law school Rudy Baylor is required to provide free legal advice to a group of senior citizens, and it is there that he meets his first “clients,” Dot and Buddy Black. Their son, Donny Ray, is dying of leukemia, and their insurance company has flatly refused to pay for his medical treatments. While Rudy is at first skeptical, he soon realizes that the Blacks really have been shockingly mistreated by the huge company, and that he just may have stumbled upon one of the largest insurance frauds anyone’s ever seen — and one of the most lucrative and important cases in the history of civil litigation. The problem is, Rudy’s flat broke, has no job, hasn’t even passed the bar, and is about to go head-to-head with one of the best defense attorneys — and powerful industries — in America.

 

My Thoughts

The Rainmaker isn’t the first John Grisham book I have featured in a Shelf Control post. However, as of writing this, I am still yet to read any of his books.

I have heard a lot of good things about John Grisham as an author. In what I have already read of the legal thriller genre, this is also something I enjoy. It’s not something I read a lot of, granted. However, it is a genre that I enjoy reading as something different to the typical books I pick up!

I like the sound of The Rainmaker as the synopsis and storyline is one we can all get behind. It deals with a humanitarian subject. I’m not sure how detailed this plot explores the circumstances of Donny Ray, but I am intrigued to read about his story and circumstances all the same. You may recall that I went out of my way to read Me Before You as it features difficult themes around disability and assisted suicide.

Obviously, those are two very different things. However, I really enjoyed that the subject even made it into a book. A lot of people like to look the other way when it comes to this sort of thing, but I’m not one to shy away. What I’m trying to say is, if we get some gritty detail in The Rainmaker, I’m all for it.

Have you read The Rinmaker or any other books written by John Grisham? 

Thanks for taking the time to check out today’s Shelf Control post, and I look forward to seeing you in the next one!

 

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Book Review: The Taking of Annie Thorne – C. J. Tudor

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In today’s post, I am sharing my book review for The Taking of Annie Thorne by C. J. Tudor. I read this book just over a year ago, so it’s well due its five minutes of fame on my blog.

I really enjoyed The Taking of Annie Thorne. Previously, I had read and loved The Chalk Man, also by the same author. It’s for this reason that I wanted to pick this latest book up, and I’m glad I did. This time last year I wasn’t reading anywhere near as much as usual. However, I read this book a lot quicker than I had been managing other books of similar length.

I think that speaks volumes for itself, but in today’s post, I share plenty more reasons why you should read this book for yourself!

 

The Taking of Annie Thorne – C. J. Tudor

Genre: Thriller/Mystery

Pages: 346

Audience: Adult

Publisher: Penguin

Publication Date: 21 Feb 2019

Rating: *****

 

Goodreads – The Taking of Annie Thorne

One night, Annie went missing. Disappeared from her own bed. There were searches, appeals. Everyone thought the worst. And then, miraculously, after forty-eight hours, she came back. But she couldn’t, or wouldn’t, say what had happened to her. Something happened to my sister. I can’t explain what. I just know that when she came back, she wasn’t the same. She wasn’t my Annie. I didn’t want to admit, even to myself, that sometimes I was scared to death of my own little sister.

 

My Thoughts…

With any mystery or thriller, one of the greatest aspects of this kind of narrative is the characters and their backstory. The Taking of Annie Thorne is told in a dual timeline; we learn the history of the characters and what happened in the past, and we see some of those same characters back as adults. If you like this kind of idea, and in particular, if you liked the timeline in the likes of Stephen King’s book, IT, this is very similar.

Given that we are juggling two timelines interspersed within each other, the pacing of the book works really well. Nothing is revealed too early, keeping us on our toes as to what happens – in both timelines! If you are concerned that juggling both at the same time is confusing, I can assure you, I didn’t find this to be the case at all. Each is clearly set out at the beginning of the chapter as to which timeline we are in. The chapters are also not too long, so nothing too chunky happens all at once and we then forget the events of the other timeline.

I particularly liked the characters of Annie and Joe. The story is told from Joe‘s perspective. As Annie’s brother, he is close to the event when she goes missing, and in the subsequent action. I liked both of these characters for different reasons. Annie, after she comes back, is creepy. She definitely has a sinister vibe that defines this mystery novel for me, but adds elements of horror. She is characterised perfectly.

I like Joe for different reasons. He turns out to be a very complex character with very distinct character development between these two timelines. Also, I enjoyed how this was kept consistent throughout the book; at no point did his personalities or perspective merge. It made the reading of each timeline easier to follow, and was very interesting to observe how he has changed outside of the book. Joe turns out to be a character with varying shades of grey when it comes to morality. I really enjoy this element of a book. I like reading a narrative and having to consider whether whatever has happened is true, or whether the perspective is biased or not. Having Joe as a morally grey character really added to the mystery that was already here and present in the book, and I’m all for it!

As I said in my introduction above, I read this book a lot quicker than I was reading other books of a similar length. I was deliberately not taking on anything too ambitious last year, as I experienced a little bit of burnout. Yet, I managed to devour this book in a handful of days at a time when that wasn’t really the norm for me. At about 350 pages, I think this is a book that anybody could pick up at any given time. It’s not too heavy (and I don’t just mean in the literal sense) – it’s a very easy narrative to consume. It is engaging with its interesting mystery with a creepy twist, so this can appeal to a lot of readers.

As a fan of The Chalk Man, I wasn’t disappointed by The Taking of Annie Thorne. I got the narrative style and characterisation of a calibre I was expecting, with a plot twist that I couldn’t anticipate; this was one of my better reads of last year when you consider the five-star rating I gave it, and how quickly I read it!

What are your thoughts on The Taking of Annie Thorne? As always, I would love to hear from you!

 

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Book Review: Keep You Safe – Rona Halsall

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In today’s book review post I’m sharing my thoughts on a book written by local author, Rona Halsall. Keep You Safe appealed to me in its own right, but when I found out that Rona also lives on the Isle of Man, and that the book is also set here, I knew I had to give it a go!

I’m a huge fan of thriller novels anyway, and I was not disappointed by this book at all! I read this over the course of a week, and as with all thrillers, I could not put this down at the end. I binge read the last 130 odd pages in one sitting, late on a Sunday night because I didn’t want to leave it… I couldn’t!

Before I jump into my full review, here are details of the book below: –

 

Keep You Safe – Rona Halsall

Goodreads- Keep You Safe

What if trying to protect your child only put them in danger?

Natalie is desperate to find her little boy. It has been more than three years since she saw Harry. Three long years in prison for a crime she knows she didn’t commit.

But her husband believed the police, and took their son.

Who has gone to such great lengths to destroy Natalie’s life? Everyone she once trusted – friends, family, everyone close to her – what secrets do they hide?

If Natalie finds the truth, will she get Harry back, or lose him forever?

A totally gripping psychological thriller– perfect for fans of Big Little Lies, The Girl on the Train and C.L Taylor.

 

My Thoughts…

It is a surreal experience to read a book set in the place where you live and work. Streets I have walked countless times – some I see every day nearly – set the scene of this novel… and I will be honest and say it was a tad strange! But at the same time, it was brilliant! I could picture exactly where events were happening in vivid detail and it was really easy to follow. Even without the local knowledge, I think anybody could follow the events in this book. I just have the added advantage that I know the local geography.

Keep You Safe is the kind of novel that keeps you guessing. Natalie has been betrayed in the past by someone she loves, and her distrust and paranoia is deep-rooted. She is a protagonist who can be sympathised with to the extent that she has been separated from a child. However, in other respects, she is a very morally grey character. I wasn’t rooting for her 100% of the time; her decision-making is far from rational or logical. But in the same vein, it is these flaws that make her undoubtedly human. She is a well rounded character – and as a key component to the story… this shines through.

At the heart of this tragic story is a little boy that just wants to be loved. In amidst the lies, deceit, and far more besides, there is an innocent child stuck in the middle. I really enjoyed the ending of this book, as evidenced by my binge reading of it! Perfect elements of mystery come together with a darker, more thrilling ending that I really enjoyed! The pieces slotted together very nicely and we are kept in suspense up until that very last moment. I was lining everybody up as a potential suspect. It’s the kind of book that you think about even when you’re not reading it.

My one, small wish this book is that the island was not referred to as a tax haven. The island has that reputation enough, when in reality most residents as normal, working people just like everyone else. Just like most of the characters portrayed in this book. The only difference is that we have to pay over the odds for a pint of local milk. It may not be all sunshine and roses here on the Island, and yes it has some very wealthy corporations and individuals, but I feel it isn’t an accurate representation and the Island could have been painted in a better light if this was not mentioned. That’s a personal thing though. I’m very passionate about living here and naturally, I want people to see the best of it! 

 

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Shelf Control #47 – 22/04/2022

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Hello everyone and welcome to today’s Shelf Control post! Shelf Control is a regular feature here on my blog (typically fortnightly on a Friday) and is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up!

For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

I really like the sound of today’s featured book. The synopsis is intriguing and sinister all at the same time! I’ll put you out of your misery and not keep you in any suspense – as I am sure you are curious to find out what today’s feature is?

 

Sleepyhead – Mark Billingham

Goodreads – Sleepyhead

Detective Inspector Tom Thorne now knows that three murdered young women were a killer’s mistakes — and that Alison was his triumph. And unless Thorne can enter the mind of a brilliant madman — a frighteningly elusive fiend who enjoys toying with the police as much as he savors his sick obsession — Alison Willetts will not be the last victim consigned forever to a hideous waking hell.

Already an international bestseller, Mark Billingham’s “Sleepyhead” is a chilling masterwork of crime fiction — a boldly original experiment in terror that will beget dark dreams and sleepless nights.

 

My Thoughts…

The synopsis of this book is well-written, because there is enough information to draw your attention but equally give nothing away at all. And all in a nice, concise and easy to read way. Perfect, right? Well, it worked for me, and I can’t wait to pick this up. I haven’t read any books by Mark Billingham to date, although I am very familiar with the name and the kind of genre he writes.

I can’t wait to give this a try! I’m always looking to broaden my horizons and read new books/authors. What I particularly like the idea of is getting invested into this series. According to Goodreads, this series of his alone is 18 books long. That’s plenty to sink my teeth into if I fall in love with it! I enjoy the mystery/thriller genre as well, so it has plenty of promise!

Have you read Sleepyhead, or any other books by Mark Billingham? If so, what did you think? I’d love to hear from you!

 

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Shelf Control #46 – 08/04/2022

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Hello everyone and welcome to today’s Shelf Control post! Shelf Control is a regular feature here on my blog (typically fortnightly on a Friday) and is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up!

For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

When looking through my TBR for my next feature for this post, I got excited seeing this title! I remember adding this to my TBR all those years ago because the premise really stood out to me.

This is a book that deals with difficult topics, namely mental health, so if this sort of thing triggers you then I wouldn’t recommend reading this post. I do hope though that it doesn’t upset you too much and that you can enjoy my initial thoughts on this particular book!

 

The Good Samaritan – John Marrs

Goodreads – The Good Samaritan

She’s a friendly voice on the phone. But can you trust her?

The people who call End of the Line need hope. They need reassurance that life is worth living. But some are unlucky enough to get through to Laura. Laura doesn’t want them to hope. She wants them to die.

Laura hasn’t had it easy: she’s survived sickness and a difficult marriage only to find herself heading for forty, unsettled and angry. She doesn’t love talking to people worse off than she is. She craves it.

But now someone’s on to her—Ryan, whose world falls apart when his pregnant wife ends her life, hand in hand with a stranger. Who was this man, and why did they choose to die together?

The sinister truth is within Ryan’s grasp, but he has no idea of the desperate lengths Laura will go to…

Because the best thing about being a Good Samaritan is that you can get away with murder.

 

My Thoughts…

This book caught my eye for its unique plotline, and I think it’s interesting to base a thriller novel around the abuse of a position of power. It’s not the sort of thing you were traditionally associate as this kind of role, but it is true. When you are emotionally vulnerable, and you connect with somebody you think is reputable in order to help you, they will have a lot of influence over you in that moment. This is a really interesting hook for the premise and I can’t wait to see how events of the book play out!

For some people this won’t be an ideal read. It might not be the easiest subject to read about if you’ve had health problems in this way before. I’m not shy though. I’m not saying any sense that I haven’t experienced my own difficulties before and therefore mental health doesn’t concern me. I’ve had a moment.

Years ago I got the contraceptive implant and it was the worst decision I ever made. It’s one thing to be told what kind of side-effects you can have and quite another to experience them. Although, to be honest, I’m not even sure that these were explained fully. I don’t remember a conversation that went along the lines of “this could make you feel like shit”. I never did anything drastic on it, but it did affect me. I was angry and short-tempered a lot of the time, I would get upset at the slightest inconvenience or comment and it dragged me down for over a year. I’m not exaggerating when I say that having it taken out 15 months later felt like a cloud lifted – it really did. I was lucky in that I was able to identify the problem and get rid of it. Not everybody has that luxury!

It’s true that we all have our own difficulties throughout our lives. We all experience it, maybe to varying degrees, but we do. I would like to see a day where it isn’t taboo to talk about it transparently… where we can open up to our friends and family, or work colleagues, as openly as if we had a physical injury. I’m a firm believer that only through talking about these things and demonstrating that it’s okay to be open about it can we encourage others to open up themselves. I’ll start in the only way I can – with myself. 

And that’s the same for my blog. I am going to read books with difficult topics and I am going to talk about them. It’s a great way to open up to a subject and start a conversation. As is the case with this book, it can highlight vulnerabilities and where additional safeguards need to be put in place to protect people.

All in the guise of an entertaining read. Every day really is a school day. That’s all from me in today’s Shelf Control post! Have you read this book, or is it on your TBR? Let me know in the comments!

 

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Shelf Control #45 – 25/03/2022

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Hello everyone and welcome to my Shelf Control post for today! Shelf Control is a regular feature here on my blog (typically fortnightly on a Friday) and is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up!

For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

There was no dramatic purge of my reading list this week, and I’m excited to share today’s feature with you.

When I first saw and purchased a copy of this book I didn’t realise it was the fourth of a series! Given how exciting this book sounds, I have very high hopes for the earlier books in the series too! Shall we find out what it is?

 

Th1rt3en – Steve Cavanagh

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36217425-thirteen

The serial killer isn’t on trial.

He’s on the jury…

They were Hollywood’s hottest power couple. They had the world at their feet. Now one of them is dead and Hollywood star Robert Solomon is charged with the brutal murder of his beautiful wife.

This is the celebrity murder trial of the century and the defence want one man on their team: con artist turned lawyer Eddie Flynn.

All the evidence points to Robert’s guilt, but as the trial begins a series of sinister incidents in the court room start to raise doubts in Eddie’s mind.

What if there’s more than one actor in the courtroom?

What if the killer isn’t on trial? What if the killer is on the jury?

 

My Thoughts…

The synopsis of this book sounds brilliant, and there are obviously a lot of other people who agree with this! The book has several thousand reviews and a 4+ star rating. I’m willing to go with the consensus here and say that I’m going to enjoy this book.

It’s a courtroom legal thriller, which isn’t something I pick up a lot of… but for that reason I’m sure I’m going to enjoy it. I pride myself on the diversity of books that I pick up and whilst I’m not shy towards a crime thriller novel, this is going to be new for me. I can’t think of any books I’ve read in the past with a similar theme. The characters also sound intriguing in themselves, so I can only hope that they uplift this already tense and exciting story to the next level.

You know me though. I’m not going to be able to pick this up until I’ve read the first few books in the series.It’s just my thing. If it’s written that way, I’m of the view it’s meant to be read that way too. So, I’ll be picking up the first three books of the series before I get to Thirteen.

I’m excited already!

 

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Shelf Control #43 – 25/02/2022

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Hello everyone and welcome to today’s Shelf Control post! Shelf Control is a regular feature here on my blog (typically fortnightly on a Friday) and is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up!

For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

Today’s feature is a crime fiction novel – something that I don’t think I’ve picked up for a while. I added this to my TBR several years ago, but my interest in this book has not waned over time in the slightest!

So, do you want to find out what today’s book is?

 

99 Red Balloons – Elisabeth Carpenter

Goodreads – 99 Red Balloons

Two girls go missing, decades apart. What would you do if one was your daughter?

When eight-year-old Grace goes missing from a sweetshop on the way home from school, her mother Emma is plunged into a nightmare. Her family rallies around, but as the police hunt begins, cracks begin to emerge.

What are the secret emails sent between Emma’s husband and her sister? Why does her mother take so long to join the search? And is Emma really as innocent as she seems?

Meanwhile, ageing widow Maggie Taylor sees Grace’s picture in the newspaper. It’s a photograph that jolts her from the pain of her existence into a spiralling obsession with another girl – the first girl who disappeared…

 

My Thoughts…

Crime fiction novels are always a great genre for me to turn to. It’s not something I’ve read anything in recently, but it’s for that reason that I’m looking forward to picking this up. I really like reading this style of book and it’s always good to pick up something a little different and diversify every now and then.

What really catches my attention with this book is that the reliability of one of the main characters is called into question. This is an aspect I really like about books. I like how the bias of perspective can alter the way we interpret a storyline and if used effectively, it can provide opportunities for major plot twists!

Naturally, the storyline might not be for everybody. If the idea of children getting hurt or going missing is difficult for you to stomach, then this isn’t necessarily going to be a book for you. However, I don’t shy away from topics like these. Ultimately, this is a fictional narrative. Yes, there is reality that this could happen to somebody child, and that’s the hook that gets you to invest into the story and really feel for the characters involved, but at the end of the day it is just that – a story.

Have you read 99 Red Balloons by Elisabeth Carpenter, or anything like it? Let me know in the comments!

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