Isaac And The Egg by Bobby Palmer (Audiobook)

 

Isaac Addy stands on a bridge in the woods contemplating suicide. He screams and something screams back. It's not a normal scream. Isaac investigates and discovers a large egg, four times the size of an ostrich egg. Isaac knows he can't leave the egg in the cold, damp woods so takes it home. Once home he discovers that it's not really an egg.

Fairy tale? Science fiction? Family drama? This is a story that defies genre. A tale about grief and how life finds a way to stop us from simply giving up. Isaac is desolate, overcome with grief. Life simply stopped being worth living the moment he heard the news of his wife's death. Despite the help offered by family and friends Isaac just doesn't see the point in going on any more. That is until he discovers the egg and a strange friendship develops. It really is difficult to say more than that without including spoilers.

This story will have you swinging through a range of emotions. I laughed and I cried, and at one point in particular I gasped aloud. This is one of those stories that is going to stay with me for quite a while.

Isaac And The Egg by Bobby Palmer is available now in ebook and audio format. The hardback will be published on 18th August 2022. My thanks to NetGalley and Headline Audio for a review copy.

The It Girl by Ruth Ware

 

When Hannah Jones arrives at Oxford University she discovers that she is to share a set of rooms with April Clarke-Cliveden. The girls are complete opposites but quickly strike up an unlikely friendship. Towards the end of their first year April is brutally murdered and as a result of the tragedy Hannah drops out of university.

Ten years later Hannah is living a quiet life in Edinburgh when she hears that John Neville, the man convicted of murdering April, has died in prison. John Neville has always maintained his innocence and a journalist contacts Hannah with startling new evidence, causing Hannah to doubt what she saw on the night of the murder.

I've a couple of books by Ruth Ware on my TBR pile but for some reason they keep getting overlooked, however the fantastic reviews for The It Girl meant that I couldn't keep ignoring this author. Thankfully The It Girl didn't disappoint, this was a fantastic read. An engrossing story that has you hooked from page one, characters that you are fully invested in and a whodunnit that keeps you pondering.

The story is set in two time periods. We have the "Before" which covers the arrival at Oxford and the year leading up to April's murder and then we have "After" which is set in present day, ten years on from the murder. For the vast majority of the story the chapters alternate between the two time periods and this works really well to keep the reader engaged. The glimpses of university life, interspersed with the investigation that Hannah pursues keeps you hooked, desperate to know what happens next in both aspects of the story.

Hannah is a likeable character. From a state school, she feels like an imposter at Oxford University. The imposter syndrome is compounded when she discovers that many of the people she meets on her first day are from public schools and seem to know each other. Thanks to April she forms a small group of friends, Will, Ryan, Hugh and Emily. Hannah is always in awe of these friends, who seem to have their lives sorted out, particularly April.

The Hannah that we meet ten years later is still likeable but she is very different. Having dropped out of university following the murder Hannah has done everything possible to avoid being associated with the notorious case. Relocating to Scotland, changing her appearance and refusing to engage with journalists, her life seems to be settled until she hears about the death of John Neville. At the time of the murder Hannah was certain about what she had witnessed but questions now begin to arise and Hannah has doubts, doubts that send her on a quest to find out what really happened.

April is a strange character. Initially extremely engaging. Cool, glamorous, the life and soul of the party and the centre of the small group of friends. April takes Hannah under her wing and shows her she deserves to be at Oxford. The more we get to know April though we realise that she has another side to her. Spoilt, controlling and manipulative. Even with these traits it is still difficult to dislike April when you consider that she is only eighteen and living life as a student.

As you become engrossed in the lives of the group of friends it seems as if the murder is an open and shut case, all the evidence points to porter John Neville being responsible. As evidence is uncovered you do begin to suspect others but keep coming back to John Neville because of what Hannah witnessed. Ruth Ware keeps the reader on tenterhooks, including some terrifying moments, right until the big reveal. 

The Favour by Nicci French

In the summer between the end of A levels and the start of university Jude Winter falls madly in love with Liam Birch. After an accident Liam simply ghosts Jude.

Eleven years later and Jude is now a doctor, engaged and soon to be married to Nat, when Liam suddenly reappears. Liam asks Jude for a favour, to drive his car to a remote cottage and he will join her later and explain everything. Jude feels that she can't refuse Liam's request. Later it's not Liam that turns up at the cottage but the police to inform her that Liam has been murdered. Everyone is convinced she was having an affair with Liam and her life begins to unravel.

Writing team Nicci French have produced one of those stories that hooks the reader and gradually draws you in, you keep turning the pages wanting to know more. Although this is a murder mystery it's far more about the characters populating Liam's life. We see very early on that Jude is entranced by the bohemian lifestyle they appear to live, a lifestyle which is in complete contrast to her own organised and normal life. Jude is obviously asking herself those "What if Liam and I hadn't split up?" questions and wondering where her life would be now.

I was very conflicted by the character of Jude Winter. Intelligent, driven and committed. A successful doctor and about to be married. I couldn't come to terms with why she would agree to carry out a favour for someone she hadn't seen in eleven years (although we do find out why as the story progresses). Liam wasn't "the love of her life" or "the one that got away", he was simply the boy she was in love with at one stage in her life and now she's moved on. I was even less impressed with her attraction to the people Liam used to live with. Yes they were very different to her normal friends but she seemed to be more repulsed by them than attracted to them, yet she couldn't stay away from them.

About two-thirds of the way through I began to lose interest as I felt Jude was going round in circles, intent on punishing herself for having failed Liam in some way. Towards the end, as the murderer was revealed, the pace did pick up and the story was even finished with a slightly sinister tone.

The Favour by Nicci French will be published on 13th October 2022 in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster UK for a review copy.

 

A Bookshop Christmas by Rachel Burton (Audiobook)

 

When Megan Taylor's husband dies of leukemia she is overcome with grief. Retreating from the world she gives up her job in publishing and her home in London, returning to her family home in York. Three years on and Megan is still living with her mother and helping to run the family bookshop. Given the chance to launch the new book by renowned author Xander Stone Megan thinks this could be an opportunity to help the ailing finances of the bookshop. Unfortunately Megan and Xander don't seem to like each other.

This story has everything you would expect from romance fiction. Megan is still grieving the loss of her husband and wracked with guilt that she wasn't with him when he died. Returning to her family home has allowed her to grieve at her own pace, unfortunately it also means she's been completely protected from having to deal with life in general.

Along comes handsome author Xander Stone. Megan and Xander immediately rub each other up the wrong way, a very common romantic trope, so we all know right from the start where this story is going to end. As we gradually get to know Xander we, and more importantly Megan, learn that he is very misunderstood. Xander also has a good understanding of the grief Megan is coming to terms with as he is struggling with the death of his mother. 

The story goes through all the twists you expect, from the hostility, gradually thawing, stranded in a snow storm, meddling people, a misunderstanding that threatens to wreck a blossoming romance and a secret or two. In fact every romantic trope going. What really makes the story enjoyable is that it features a book group that pulls to pieces all the tropes in romantic fiction. It's great to read a book that pokes fun at itself.

There are a host of minor characters to enliven the story, many of whom make Megan realise she's been walking around with blinkers on for three years. Narrator Laura Brydon does an excellent job at giving each character a distinct voice, at one point I thought I was listening to Jane Horrocks.

A Bookshop Christmas by Rachel Burton will be available in audio format on 1st September 2022. Paperback and ebook formats are available already. My thanks to NetGalley and Saga Egmont for a review copy. 

See No Evil by David Fennell

 

The bodies of two men are discovered in a park. One of the men has been mutilated, including having his eyes cut out. DI Grace Archer and her colleagues are tasked with investigating. As other bodies with similar mutilations appear the team wonder if they have a serial killer and are the murders linked to a local cult.

A week ago I read The Art Of Death which is the first novel by David Fennell and enjoyed it so much I moved See No Evil straight to the top of my TBR pile. I was so pleased to see the return of DI Grace Archer, along with her partner DS Harry Quinn, grandfather Jake, analyst Klara and even her boss DCI Clare Pierce.

The novel is set three months after the events in The Art Of Death and Grace is just returning to work after recuperating. She still has to deal with hostility from some of her colleagues but it is pleasing to see that her relationship with her immediate boss is on a better footing.

This time around we have a more controlled story, however the murders are no less gruesome. Links to a possible religious cult dial up the creepiness a notch, particularly when we are introduced to the leader of the cult. Aaron Cronin appears to have slavish devotion from the other members of the cult and no empathy at all.

We get more information on Grace's background as the story progresses and it is good to see Klara and Quinn having a greater voice in this novel. Grace is also winning round some of her colleagues, however she is warned that someone within the Met is watching her and this raises doubts about who she can trust.

To make things more difficult for Grace she discovers that the drug lord who ordered her fathers murder, Frankie "Snow" White, is to be released from prison and has a vendetta against Grace. This certainly increases the menace (as if a possible serial killer isn't enough) and offers so much potential for future books in the series. The thought of a detective and a crime lord dancing around each other, hating one another but tolerating each other because of the mutual benefits is appealing.

I did manage to figure out who was responsible about halfway through but thanks to a few red herrings from David Fennell I had no idea as to why so the big reveal was still as much of a surprise and certainly didn't spoil my enjoyment. Roll on the next book in the series.

The Big Bang Of Numbers by Manil Suri

 

I don't read much non-fiction but when I do it tends to be science based. Having taught Maths at secondary school level (11 to 16 years old) for 35 years I was tempted by the claim that The Big Bang Of Numbers is for "maths aficionados and an accessible introduction for enthusiastic novices".

Author Manil Suri wants readers to stop thinking of maths as simply the arithmetic processes we are taught in school and use in our day to day lives. To view maths in a completely different way.

We are all familiar with the creation theories given by religion or physics. Manil Suri approaches creation from the perspective of numbers. He starts by simply asking where numbers come from? From a creation point of view this isn't as easy to answer as you would first think. If nothing exists numbers don't develop as a means of counting objects (since objects don't exist). 

The creation of numbers initially is very abstract, however the author then leads the reader through a natural evolution of the number system. From natural (counting numbers) we develop integers (positive and negative numbers), on to rational numbers (fractions and decimals) and then irrational numbers (such as pi). The concept of imaginary numbers is introduced in a very accessible way.

Once numbers have been created we then move on to how geometry would develop. Where possible practical examples are given to illustrate ideas, I particularly liked the use of crochet to explain the hyperbolic plane.

From geometry we moved on to algebra. Not the "find the value of x" type of algebra from school but the language used to construct laws and patterns. These laws can then be used as building blocks to construct our universe.

Overall this is an interesting addition to the genre of popular science. More philosophical argument than mathematical text. You do not need an advanced maths qualification to get something out of The Big Bang Of Numbers, however you do need to be comfortable using numbers. 

The Big Bang Of Numbers by Manil Suri will be published in hardback and ebook on 27th October 2022. My thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Books for a review copy.

July 2022 Reads

 

Not sure about anyone else but the warm weather really had an effect on me last month. No sooner had I picked up my book to read but I wanted to have a snooze. Reading time was also eaten into by four trips to the cinema. Finally catching up on all the blockbusters I wanted to see but also the luxury of sitting in an air-conditioned room for a couple of hours.

There was slightly more variety in books during July. Starting with the books that don't fall into the thriller catagory we had Love Untold from Ruth Jones. I enjoyed the story of four generations of women from one family and how circumstances had molded them. The main character, Grace, is wonderful and her story is the most surprising of all. Every time a character spoke I just had Nessa's voice in my head.

Another book outside my normal genre was Christmas At The Borrow A Bookshop by Kiley Dunbar. This is the sequel to The Borrow A Bookshop Holiday which I haven't read but that really didn't matter to the story. Set in a quaint coastal village people pay to rent and run the local bookshop as as a staycation. In the run up to Christmas it's the turn of Magnus Sturluson who has recently split up from his girlfriend and also seen his own bookshop business fold. Lots of eccentric characters populate the village and help Magnus realise that things will get better. It felt very strange reading a book with "Christmas" in the title during July but there really wasn't much of a holiday theme, it was more about winter.

The remainder of the month was devoted to thrillers. Author Jack Jordan was new to me when I picked up Do No Harm. The story really packs a punch right from the start. You really do wonder how surgeon Anna Jones is going to rescue her kidnapped son. Will she do as the kidnappers have demanded and kill the prominent politician she is to operate on? A great beginning and end let down by a weak middle section and too many coincidences.

David Fennell was another author new to me this month. I have his second novel, See No Evil, near the top of my TBR pile but wanted to read The Art Of Death first. Shocks abound in this story about an anonymous artist who uses dead bodies in his work. DI Grace Archer is in a race against time to discover his identity. Loved the character of Grace Archer, damaged, vulnerable and formidable. I really do hope we haven't seen the last of her.

The rest of the reads this month were all five star reads. At this stage I'd normally say that it's impossible to chose between them but that's not quite the case this time around.

I struggled initially with The Island Of Lost Girls by Alex Marwood, lots of different threads over different time periods were a little confusing. Once I'd got to grips with the different characters I was gripped by this sordid tale of greed and corruption. A Mediterranean island becomes the playground of the uber-rich and anything goes. Be prepared to be shocked, saddened and angered by the way in which the rich and powerful use people as commodities.

The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh, was full of twists and turns. A luxury resort of second homes nestles the edge of a Welsh lake. When a body washes up the police have to investigate the possibility of murder. We move between the police involved in the investigation and the owners of the resort homes. As well as the current day investigation we move backwards and forward through the previous six months to find that lots of people are hiding secrets they would kill for. What really made this story for me was the way in which the author had fleshed out the murder victim, he has to be one of the most loathsome characters I've come across in recent times.

DS Max Craigie and the rest of the team investigating police corruption in Scotland return in The Night Watch, third book in the Max Craigie series. Neil Lancaster just gets better with each book. This time the team are dealing with a forensically aware killer out to murder criminals who have evaded justice and everything points to the killer being a serving police officer. The reader is left wondering if Max has met his match this time around. I love the way in which the team interact with each other, my favourite being analyst Norma. This can easily be read as a standalone novel but if you haven't read the first two books in the series I would heartily recommend starting with them.

Which brings me to my absolute favourite of the month (apologies to the other five star reads, I really do hate to favour one book over others). The Accomplice by Steve Cavanagh is a fantastic page turner, the type of book you simply cannot put down. When the serial killer who has been terrorising New York evades arrest his unsuspecting wife is arrested as an accomplice. Evidence points to her being involved in at least six of the murders. Lawyer Eddie Flynn and his team are drafted in a the last minute to prove her innocence. We have twist after twist and lots of OMG moments in this seventh book in the Eddie Flynn series. Fans of the series will be on the edge of their seat wondering how Eddie is going to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. 

I managed two audiobooks this month. What The Flock! by Sally Urwin was a look at the life of a working farm in the north of England. It was interesting to hear about the ways in which farms have had to diversify to survive and how they have had to deal with unprecedented events such as foot and mouth and Covid. My second audiobook was A Lady's Guide To Fortune-Hunting by Sophie Irwin. In the vein of Jane Austen and Bridgerton we have a young woman seeking a wealthy husband out of duty to her family. The story flows pretty much as you would expect, the hero is identified early on, but the characters have the intricate battle of wills you would expect before realising they love each other. 

Publication dates to watch out for listed below.

The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh will be published in hardback, ebook and audio format on 4th August 2022.

Christmas At The Borrow A Bookshop by Kiley Dunbar will be published in paperback and ebook format on 1st September 2022.

The Night Watch by Neil Lancaster will be published in ebook and audio format on 8th September 2022, the hardback follows a week later on 15th September.

Love Untold by Ruth Jones will be published in hardback, ebook and audio format on 29th September 2022.