Holy Island by LJ Ross

 

Detective Chief Inspector Ryan retreats to Holy Island seeking sanctuary when he is forced to take sabbatical leave from his duties as a homicide detective. A few days before Christmas, his peace is shattered and he is thrust back into the murky world of murder when a young woman is found dead amongst the ancient ruins of the nearby Priory.

When former local girl Dr Anna Taylor arrives back on the island as a police consultant, old memories swim to the surface making her confront her difficult past. She and Ryan struggle to work together to hunt a killer who hides in plain sight, while pagan ritual and small-town politics muddy the waters of their investigation.

Murder and mystery are peppered with a sprinkling of romance and humour in this fast-paced crime whodunnit set on the spectacular Northumbrian island of Lindisfarne, cut off from the English mainland by a tidal causeway.

I’ve always fancied these books by LJ Ross, I’ve heard brilliant things about them and love that they’re all set around my neck of the woods. I spotted Holy Island in a local Charity shop so had to grab it. So ok, first off I love DCI Ryan, and I’m really looking forward to reading more about him, I want to know a bit more about his background. The book starts off with a gruesome discovery of a body, always a good start in my opinion, and goes on to keep you guessing whats happening. The background story of the cult and paganism was different, but played a good part in the story.

I love holy Island, I’ve only been once, and it was a bit of a rainy day, but this was about 16 years ago. I’d love to go again.

I really enjoyed this, and I’m looking forward to buddy reading the second book in 2024 with my friend. 

The Woman in Me by Britney Spears

 

The Woman in Me is a brave and astonishingly moving story about freedom, fame, motherhood, survival, faith, and hope.

In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice-her truth-was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey-and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history.

Written with remarkable candor and humor, Spears's groundbreaking book illuminates the enduring power of music and love-and the importance of a woman telling her own story, on her own terms, at last.

The day this book was released I shot my chance at seeing if my library had it, they did! And it was only on hold for 2 weeks, but actually came back a week early. So I was so happy and lucky to be able to read this for free pretty quick from release day. 

I’ve been a fan of Britney and her music forever, I was a teenager when ‘Baby One More Time’ came out. She is a huge part of the soundtrack to my life. I was shocked and quite devastated throughout reading this book, I knew there had been a lot of stuff happen in her life, but I didn’t know the extent her father had gone to with the conservatorship. Her life was ruled by others from the get go. And not just her father, her exs, her management team, and more.

She put up with so much crap, I’m so glad she has things back the way she wants now, I hope she lives a very happy life.

This is a must read, brilliantly written, absolutely shocking behaviour throughout. Michelle Williams does a great job at narrating it, I sometimes forgot it wasn’t Britney talking!

 

The Christmas Appeal by Janice Hallett

 

One dead Santa. A town full of suspects. Will you discover the truth?

Christmas in Lower Lockwood, and the Fairway Players are busy rehearsing their festive pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk, to raise money for the church roof appeal. But despite the season, goodwill is distinctly lacking amongst the amateur dramatics enthusiasts. Sarah-Jane is fending off threats to her new position as Chair, the fibreglass beanstalk might be full of asbestos, and a someone is intent on ruining the panto even before the curtain goes up.

Of course there's also the matter of the dead body. Who could possibly have had the victim on their naughty list? Join lawyers Femi and Charlotte as they read the round robins, examine the emails and pore over the police transcripts. Will the show go on?

The Appeal is one of my favourite books, so when I heard the sequel was coming out I had to pre order it. This is such a fun book, just like the first one. The book is again filled with emails and text messages, and it was quite fun to try to work out what was going on. I say try because I figured out nothing haha. The characters are ones we know from the first book, with a few newbies thrown in too.

I love Janice Halletts books, I now want The Appeal 2 to happen (This is book 1.5).

Heartstopper 5 by Alice Osman

 

Boy meets boy. Boys become friends. Boys fall in love. The bestselling LGBTQ+ graphic novel about life, love, and everything that happens in between: this is the fifth volume of the Heartstopper series.

Nick and Charlie are very much in love. They've finally said those three little words, and Charlie has almost persuaded his mum to let him sleep over at Nick's house ... But with Nick going off to university next year, is everything about to change?

I Love Heartstopper and devoured this in one sitting. The story carries on from book 4 and we see the boys growing up a lot more in this one. There is a lot more sexual content in this one too, but it fits in so well with the storyline we’ve read so far, all starting in book 1. I love Nick and Charlie,I love how much they care about each other, the obviously love each other very much. We see bits and pieces from supporting characters, and Tao is one of my favourites.  

If you enjoy the Hearstopper books you’ll love this one too!

Heaven by Mieko Kawakami

 

In Heaven, a fourteen-year-old boy is tormented for having a lazy eye.

Instead of resisting, he chooses to suffer in silence.

The only person who understands what he is going through is a female classmate, Kojima, who experiences similar treatment at the hands of her bullies.

Providing each other with immeasurable consolation at a time in their lives when they need it most, the two young friends grow closer than ever.

But what, ultimately, is the nature of a friendship when your shared bond is terror?

I read this as a buddy read with my pal Kath, it’s been on my shelf for a little while now so I was happy to dive in. 

What a powerful and sad book. This is a story of some really nasty brutal bullying of the main character (whos real name is never said) ‘Eyes’, and Kojima (who they nickname Hazmat), by a bunch of 14 year olds at school. Reading those parts was awful, the torture the 2 kids endured throughout was horrific, and the ending was so bad. I had to make myself read through the ‘football’ part, to me was worse than the last part. 

There was some very touching parts too, I really loved the scene with ‘the hair’, the friendship between ‘Eyes’ and Kojima was such a love thing.

I’ll definitely read more of Kawakami’s work.

Grandfathers House by Jon Athan

 

After a prank lands him in serious trouble, Malcolm Hernandez, a sixteen-year-old boy, is shipped off to live with his grandparents while his mother attempts to save him from expulsion and criminal charges. Malcolm believes the stay will be easy—a vacation with milk and cookies and tales from the past. His hopes, however, are shattered when he bumps heads with his grandfather, Ronald O'Donnell—a stern, violent man with a sinister past.

Ronald plans on disciplining his grandson in order to 'save' him from himself. He is not afraid of abusing him, either. He will physically, emotionally, and mentally break him.

This was a book I picked up after reading Brother by Ania Alhborn, and expected something similar. Well that was not the case. This was absolutely nuts. Poor Malcolm thinks he's going to have an easy time at his Grandparents house as a punishment for being a class clown, well he thought wrong indeed! His Grandfather, Ronald, is awful, like seriously disgusting. The abuse and torture he inflicts on Malcolm, I don’t want to believe anyone would do that to someone, never mind their own flesh and blood. This story was all kinds of horrible, I thought his Grandmother was going to be a shining light for him, well that turns out a bit freaking weird too!

The author writes books like this to shock you, well this one did the trick! I’ll be up for trying another of his! 

T.V. By Peter Kay

 The long-awaited return of the comedy national treasure.

Join Peter Kay on his incredible journey through the great and the good of TV: from tea-making in Granada, to behind the scenes on Phoenix Nights, Max & Paddy and his legendary performance as John Redmond in Car Share.

Charming, sidesplittingly funny and utterly unforgettable, T.V.: Big Adventures on the Small Screen is Peter Kay at his vivid, nostalgic and hilarious best.

I absolutely love Peter Key, so when I knew this was coming out, I just had to pre order it on Audible with one of my credits. Peter Kay has long been a favourite of mine, I’m off to see him in 2025 (long time away I know!),and I knew his newest book would be hilarious. 

It had me laughing out loud in the kitchen with my headphones on. Oh the stories he has to tell about working on tv shows are brilliant. I particularly enjoyed the stores when they were filming Max and Paddy, and Phoenix Nights (2 beloved tv shows of mine), and laughed so hard at some of the ad-libbed stuff he mentioned. 

Another great story was the Ronnie Corbitt one, filming Is This The Way To Amarillo, oh I loved that song, and the video was freaking hilarious.

If you like Peter Kay, or just a laugh in general, listen to it, he is so funny.

Brother by Ania Ahlborn

 

Deep in the heart of Appalachia stands a crooked farmhouse miles from any road. The Morrows keep to themselves, and it's served them well so far. When girls go missing off the side of the highway, the cops don't knock on their door. Which is a good thing, seeing as to what's buried in the Morrows' backyard. 

But nineteen-year-old Michael Morrow isn't like the rest of his family. He doesn't take pleasure in the screams that echo through the trees. Michael pines for normalcy, and he's sure that someday he'll see the world beyond West Virginia. When he meets Alice, a pretty girl working at a record shop in the small nearby town of Dahlia, he's immediately smitten. For a moment, he nearly forgets about the monster he's become. But his brother, Rebel, is all too eager to remind Michael of his place…

I’ve seen this book all over Instagram, so thought I’d give it a go. Wow, this was so good, a bit effed up, but was such a good story. There were so many parts which I was shocked, there’s some rough stuff that goes on, so you may think I am mad for being so upset during some of it. My heart broke for michael, it’s not his fault he was brought into this wierd messed up family, and made to do some awful stuff, but he wants out, he doesn’t like what his ‘family’ do. Rebel, Michaels older brother, is an absolute psychopath, what a nasty nasty piece of work he is. 

I don't’ think anyone can really tell what this book is about properly without reading it, and once you have you will see its not what you would first think. Such a good read.

The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore

 

When Jeanie's aunt gifts her the beloved Pumpkin Spice Cafe in the small town of Dream Harbor, Jeanie jumps at the chance for a fresh start away from her very dull desk job.

Logan is a local farmer who avoids Dream Harbor's gossip at all costs. But Jeanie's arrival disrupts Logan's routine and he wants nothing to do with the irritatingly upbeat new girl, except that he finds himself inexplicably drawn to her.

Will Jeanie's happy-go-lucky attitude win over the grumpy-but-gorgeous Logan, or has this city girl found the one person in town who won't fall for her charm, or her pumpkin spice lattes…

We’ve all seen this one all over Bookstagram and BookTok right? Well I grabbed it when it was 99p to see what all the fuss was about. Also I love a PSL, Autumn, and cosy small town romances. 

Wow this book was brilliant, it certainly lived up to the hype. First off we have to talk about Logan… phwoar! A sexy, plaid shirt-ed farmer. I had a very good image of him in my head. I love him, I think he’s my new book boyfriend, sorry Jeanie! He had some of my favourite scenes in the book, and some of my favourite lines too… 'Walk you home?' he nearly growled the words into her ear.  Phew is it getting hot in here??  

Anyway focus Dee, focus. I loved his character, and I loved Jeanie. She’s the type I think I’d be friends with if I lived in a little town like that, you know the likes of Stars Hollow, Serenity, Virgin River etc. There are some side characters there that I’d like to read a bit more about too, and I saw book 2 is out next year, and focuses on Noah and Hazel (and it’s set in a BOOKSHOP!!!).

Perfect book for this time of year, and I think it will be one of my favourites of 2023!

Juno Loves Legs by Karl Geary

 

Juno Loves Legs is the story of two teens labeled as delinquents. Juno and “Legs” grow up on the same housing estate in Dublin, where spirited, intelligent Juno is ostracized for her poverty and Legs is persecuted for his sexuality; they find safety only in each other. 

Set against the backdrop of Dublin in the 1980s, a place of political, social and religious change, the friends yearn for an unbound life and together they begin to fight to take up the space of who they truly are. As their defiance reverberates through their lives, the children are further alienated from their surrounding society through acts of bravery and cowardice, both their own and others’. Finding themselves as outsiders, they are feared, coveted and watched, but rarely truly seen.

Told through the eyes of Juno, we see the pair begin to navigate the political and oftentimes confusing adult world with honesty and intuition. A country emerging from a dark Catholicism into the wider world of possibilities. Who is invited into modernity and gentrification and who is left behind?

Caught between the rich depth of her intellect and the harsh reality of her life, we follow Juno as she begins to understand how divergent a life lived and a life thought can be.

Me and my pal Kath read this as a buddy read, and I loved it so so much, it gave me feels of Shuggie Bain and Young Mungo (by Douglas Stuart, which if you haven’t read yet you must now, or forever unfriend me!). The poverty Juno and Legs endure, is well seen within the story, and I couldn’t help but feel so sorry for them both. I loved Juno’s imagination though, I liked the parts where she was talking to the librarian. The love between Legs and Juno was immense, regardless of his sexuality, and there not ebing romance between them, the love they had for each other was so real, you could feel it jump at you from the pages.

There were times when I cried, so many sad things happen, and as they grow older we dive deeper into a life they don’t want to live but get pulled into. The ending was both happy and sad, and yet Mr Geary… I think it was just perfect.

In The Company of Strangers

 

She had everything she ever wanted – apart from love.

As the wife of a wealthy but cruel businessman, Mona has all her heart desires: money, friends, social status… everything aside from freedom.

Reconnecting with old friend, Meera, introduces her to a world of glamour, parties and covert affairs. And when she meets Ali, a young man whose beautiful exterior hides the pain of his humble roots and family tragedy, Mona feels alive for the very first time.

Heady with love, Mona and Ali begin a delicate game of deceit that spirals out of control. But in a world where danger lurks on every corner, their forbidden love may not only destroy Mona’s marriage, but have tragic and long-lasting consequences.

I loved No Honor by Awais Khan, so I knew I had to buy In The Company Of Strangers. Luckily I bought one that isn’t in print anymore so it’s a bit more special!! This meant though that I didn’t want to take it on holiday with me so had to buy the ebook too. Awais knows that it took me a long time to get through this, I hardly read none on holiday apart from fits and starts on the flights, so I had to ksim back through those parts before continuing on. But once I did, I flew through it and loved it! 

The characters are all so different, but intertwine in ways I didn’t see. The Elite and the non elite, their lives are so different. I loved Mona, and rooted for her so much throughout. Were there times when I thought she was a bit much? Yeah of course, but knowing her life, the way she was treated, I just wanted her to be happy and free. I really really liked Ali, I had a perfect picture of him in my head while reading, and oh he’s just beautiful. I hated, and I mean hated, Bilal, Monas husband. What an arsehole, awful awful man.

The ending came from nowhere and struck my heart so hard, I cried, of course I did. But wow, what a punch this book delivers. Awais writes with such passion, his stories are brilliant. I can’t wait to read his new one, Someone Like Her.

Thank you for your amazing stories Awais, and for signing my book!!

The Confession by Charlotte Bigland

 

They said they killed her. But they didn't - you did.

I should never have gone to her house. But I was desperate to ask her some questions about that night. About what she saw when Joe fell from the bridge.

All I wanted was some honesty, for someone else to have seen what I saw.

I never meant to hurt her. To push her.

As she lay at the bottom of the stairs, blood pooling around her head, I knew it was the end for me too.

I kept expecting the knock on the door, the police, the handcuffs. But it never came.

On the news, they are reporting someone has come forward and confessed to her murder.

But that can't be true. Because her killer is me…

Thanks so much to InstaBookTours for including me in the tour for this one! I was excited to read it.

So the first thing I notice is that this book is kind of set in my hometown of Newcastle, with the rest being set in Manchester. I love when books are set where I’m from so it intrigued me a little more. The story gets off to a good start, what the hell happened that night when Joe ‘fell’ from the bridge? Well we go on a mission to find out. I liked the character of Ela (or Elizabeth), and was rooting for her to figure out what went on. The side characters along the way were annoying, her Step Dad Liev for one was a big pain in the backside. But they all fit in somewhere, some more than others. I was quite shocked at the ending, a twist I didn’t see coming, I thought it was going to end in a different direction. So well done to Charlotte Bigland for that!

Thanks again to InstaBookTours, Charlotte Bigland, and Embala Books for letting me read this early.

Woom by Duncan Ralston

 

The Lonely Motel holds many dark secrets... and Room 6 just might possess the worst of them all.Angel knows all about pain. His mother died in this room. He's researched its history. Today he's come back to end it, no matter the cost, once and for all.Shyla, a plus-sized prostitute, thinks the stories Angel tells her can't be true. Secrets so vile, you won't want to let them inside you.But the Lonely Motel doesn't forget. It doesn't forgive. And it always claims its victim.

HOLY SHIT…… what the actual hell was this book?! Ok so this book I’ve avoided for a while but it intrigued me too, so I thought I may as well give it a go. Wow, what the actual. This book is mad, it’s absolutely off its head nuts. The stories Angel tells Shyla are so effed up, but I think the ending is the most disturbing part. I’m not suprised Shyla thinks the stories are made up as they’re crazy! 

We go through the book with Angel telling Shyla a few different stories, all while doing things to her, she’s a prostitute. Boy oh boy was this book unlike anything i’ve read before. If you like shock and freaked out gore, this one may be for you.

Saving Noah by Lucinda Berry

Meet Noah—an A-honor roll student, award-winning swimmer, and small-town star destined for greatness. There weren’t any signs that something was wrong until the day he confesses to molesting little girls during swim team practice. He’s sentenced to eighteen months in a juvenile sexual rehabilitation center. 

His mother, Adrianne, refuses to turn her back on him despite his horrific crimes, but her husband won’t allow Noah back into their home. In a series of shocking and shattering revelations, Adrianne is forced to make the hardest decision of her life. Just how far will she go to protect her son?

So I’ve been wanting to read a Lucinda Berry book for a while so why not jump in at the deep end and start with this one. It’s a massively controversial topic and I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about it.

This book was really good, I gave it 4 stars. So I cried, not for Noah but for his mother. The way this made me feel being the mother of a 14 year old boy was awful. The way I wanted to cuddle his mum and make her be ok was there all throughout the book. I hated Noah, but I also hated what he went through after, but was it justified? It’s an awful thing to think but I would move heaven and earth to punish someone who had hurt my child.

A good book, hard storyline, and a twist I didn’t see coming!! Onto her next book….

A Little Life Screenplay by Hanya Yanigahara and Ivo Van Hove

 

A Little Life follows the complex relationships of four college friends in New York City: Willem, an actor; Malcolm, an architect; JB, an artist; and, at the centre of their group, Jude, a lawyer.

Over the decades, their relationships deepen and darken, changed by ambition, addiction and pride. Yet their greatest challenge is Jude himself, whose secrets – and shame – define not just his own life, but that of his friends as well.

A bruising and beautiful story of love, the limits of human endurance, and the tyranny of memory, Hanya Yanagihara's novel A Little Life has sold over a million copies and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and the Women's Prize for Fiction.

The stage adaptation – conceived by Ivo van Hove, and adapted by Koen Tachelet, van Hove and Yanagihara herself – was first performed in a Dutch-language production at Internationaal Theater Amsterdam in the Netherlands in 2018, before transferring to New York in 2022. This English-language version opened in London's West End in 2023, directed by Ivo van Hove and with a cast led by James Norton as Jude.

After absolutely falling in love with Hanya Yanagihara’s A Little Life, I was waiting for my husband to have an MRI scan when an email popped up announcing the Screenplay. I quite obviously dived straight over to Nick Hern Books and preordered it without a second thought.

The screenplay is quite different to the book in the sense of its not as long, there are many details left out (which is obvious, they can’t squeeze a 25 million page book into a 3 hour stage show). But it took nothing away from the main focus on the storyline whatsoever. I haven’t seen the stage show as I’m faaaar away from London (sunny old Newcastle), but I really want to see it when it comes to the cinema. If you followed me reading A Little Life Novel, you’ll know how much I love it and that it’s pretty much my favourite book I’ve ever read. You get every single emotion possible while reading it. I didn’t cry reading the screenplay, but I did get emotional and slightly misty eyed. I feel the stageshow would be amazing though.

Again, thanks Hanya for destroying my soul, and thanks to Ivo Van Hove and Koen Tachelet for bringing the screenplay into my life.

Keep It in the Family by John Marrs

 

Mia and Finn are busy turning a derelict house into their dream home when Mia unexpectedly falls pregnant. But just when they think the house is ready, Mia discovers a shocking message scored into a skirting board: I WILL SAVE THEM FROM THE ATTIC. Following the clue up into the eaves, the couple make a gruesome discovery: their home was once a real-life murder house, with the evidence still concealed within the four walls. In the wake of their traumatic discovery, the baby arrives and Mia can't shake her fixation with the monstrous crimes that happened right above them. Tormented by the terrible things she saw, she is desperate to dig into the past to find answers. Secrecy shrouds the mystery of the attic, but when shards of a dark truth start to emerge, Mia realises the danger is terrifyingly present. She is prepared to do anything to protect her family-but will the previous tenants stop her from discovering their secret?

This was my first John Marrs book and oh my god it most certainly will not be my last! What a bloody good writer this guy is! 

So as you can tell I loved it, I wasn’t creeped out by it like I thought I would have been, but it was weird as hell. I liked Mia, I felt so bad for her throughout the whole story. I loved the little clues along the way, and I don’t think I really guessed the ending until it was right under my nose. It was so intense at times, gruesome, and brilliant. I’m looking forward to getting round to another of his books soon!

Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak

 

Mallory is delighted to have a new job looking after gorgeous four-year-old, Teddy. She's been sober for a year and a half and she's sure her new nannying role in the affluent suburbs will help keep her on the straight and narrow.

That is until Teddy starts to draw disturbing pictures of his imaginary friend, Anya. It is quite clear to Mallory and to Teddy's parents, even in his crude childlike style, that the woman Teddy is drawing in his pictures is dead.

Teddy's crayons are confiscated, and his paper locked away. But the drawings somehow keep coming, telling a frightening story of a woman murdered... and they're getting more sophisticated. But if Teddy isn't drawing the pictures anymore, who is? And what are they trying to tell Mallory about her new home?

I’d seen this book everywhere, and a couple of my good thriller loving book pals loved it, so I knew I had to get on it. Boy this book did not disappoint! From the start I was intrigued, wondering what was going to happen. Pretty quickly things start to shake up, and a few different characters crop up. I loved Mallory, and Teddy was a little cutie. Well until he became freaky teddy and drew those creepy pictures. I also loved the cabin where Mallory was staying in the family’s back yard, a lovely little retreat to relax and spend time to herself. 

So to show you how much this book scared me, I woke at 4am one morning and couldn't sleep so I carried on reading my ebook in the dark. I started to drift off to sleep so I closed my eyes. I breathed on my own arm, and nearly jumped out of bed with fright!! Freaked out was an understatement!

One thing I have to say is well done to the illustrators Will Staehle and Doogie Horner, those pictures throughout were scary as hell, and added so much to the story.

I love a good thriller and this is definitely up there with the best ones, so if you haven’t read it I would recommend it! 

Klara and The Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

The novel tells the story of Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, who, from her place in the store, watches carefully the behaviour of those who come in to browse, and of those who pass in the street outside. She remains hopeful a customer will soon choose her, but when the possibility emerges that her circumstances may change for ever, Klara is warned not to invest too much in the promises of humans.

I read this with my pal Kath as our buddy read in May. I’ve not read any Ishiguro before so I wasn’t sure what to expect, I also went into this blind and didn’t read the blurb. 

This was such a lovely story of friendship and love. I kept forgetting that Klara was an AF, she seemed so real at times, and she cared about Josie so much. I loved how she watched and made mental notes about people, and she didn’t forget a thing. I loved Rick too, the boy from across the field, Josie’s best friend. There was one part I felt so sorry for him, but things worked out, and I liked that. Josie was such a lovely character. She was going through so much and my heart broke for her. But she had Klara, and Klara was hell bent on doing whatever she could to help Josie get better.

The mother was a bit strange, but you kind of get why when you get further into the story. The whole ‘lifted kids’ thing went over my head a bit, I still don’t think I know why it was done to be honest.

This was a lovely story. I’ll definitely read another of Ishiguro’s books.

#books #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookblog #bookblogger #booksofinstagram #bookreview #review #klaraandthesun #buddyread #kashuroishiguro

Yellowface by Rebecca F Kuang

 Athena Liu is a literary darling and June Hayward is literally nobody.

White lies...

When Athena dies in a freak accident, June steals her unpublished manuscript and publishes it as her own under the ambiguous name Juniper Song.

Dark humour...

But as evidence threatens June’s stolen success, she will discover exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves.

Deadly consequences…

What happens next is entirely everyone else’s fault.

We all know the cover of this book by now, we all know its all over the BookTok, Bookstagram, and BookTwitter, not to mention all emails ive received recently from book related companies. So I obviously was dying to know what it was all about! 

I went into this with high hopes, everyone is raving about it. I didn’t love it. I liked it, and gave it 4 stars, but I thought with all the hype surrounding it, I was going to really love it. The scene of Athena’s death was quite traumatic, and I felt so bad for her, and June. I liked Athena, we didn’t really see much of her in the book but I kind of liked her character. I did quite like June too, a bit snarky at times etc, but she was alright. 

The story was a good telling of what I can only assume probably does go on in the writing industry, some not so great stuff, I just hope it doesn’t go on a lot.

#books #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookblog #bookblogger #booksofinstagram #bookreview #review #yellowface #athenaliu # junipersong #rebeccafkuang #booktok 

The Clearing by Simon Toyne

 

Women are going missing

Something deadly lurks in the forest around Cinderfield. Locals put the unusually high number of disappearances down to transients or runaways; some even blame the Cinderman, a figure of local legend rumoured to haunt the woods looking for unsuspecting victims.

Vanishing without a trace

Forensic specialist Laughton Rees doesn't believe in monsters. Already investigating the area's history of missing women, news of the latest 'runaway' Maddie Friar brings her to Cinderfield to find out the truth.

No one's talking

But, from the gruff leader of an off-grid commune to the mysterious Earl who presides over the crumbling abbey in the heart of the forest, everyone in Cinderfield has something to hide

But what lies in the shadows?

As Laughton searches for answers, with the help of DCI Tannahil Khan back in London, someone is watching - cataloguing her every move, prepared to do anything to keep their dark secrets from coming to light

I’ve never read any of Simon Toynes books before, my husband (who isn’t a reader) got halfway through Solomon Creed and loved it. So when I saw InstaBookTours doing a tour for this one I jumped at the chance. And I’m sso glad I did!

The prologue is only 3 pages long but boy did it have me hooked from the get go! Honestly, if you’re unsure on this one, get a sample and read those first 3 pages, you will want to read the rest! This book was creepy as hell, the chapters were short which helped as I kept wanting to read ‘just one more’, and ended up devouring the book over roughly 2 days. 

I loved the characters, Adele and Laughton being my favourites. The creepy side characters were interesting, and ‘the guy with no face’ weirded me out more than once! There were twists I didn’t see coming, some I did see, and some I thought I had figured out but turned out to be wrong! I will definitely go back and read the first book in the Laughton series, and I’d totally recommend this one to any thriller fan.

Thanks so much to InstaBookToursfor letting me join the tour, Harper Collins for my #gifted copy, and Simon Toyne for creeping me the hell out!