Month 2 Of My Reading Challenge by Frances Colville

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Margaret Graham

I began with a book I probably wouldn’t have picked up myself, but which was the book of choice for one of my two reading groups.The Girl Under The Olive Tree by Leah Fleming (published Simon and Schuster UK 2013). It should have been a good read (interesting storyline about an English nurse working for the resistance in Crete during WW2) but there were some irritating anomalies and frequent failures to capitalise on opportunities for dramatic tension. I was left feeling dissatisfied, though I did learn some fascinating facts about Crete and WW2.

My second book also failed to grab me fully. I recently went to a talk by author Natasha Solomons and thought she spoke well and interestingly. I picked up a copy of The Gallery of Vanished Husbands(published Sceptre 2013) and keenly anticipated reading it. But I wasn’t completely convinced by her portrayal of the main character and I found the plot unrealistic in places. However, it is well written; her use of language appealed to me, as did the pace of the book, and there are some excellent descriptive passages. I think I will try another of her books. One more to add to my list.

Next I moved on to another reading group choice: The Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks(published Fourth Estate 2002). This was in fact a re-read for me, but I relished the opportunity to have a fresh look at a book which has long been on my Top Ten List. It’s based on the true story of a Derbyshire village coping with an outbreak of plague in the seventeenth century and is one of those books which is almost unbearable to read, and yet equally you can hardly bear to put it down.

As an aspiring short story and flash fiction writer, I have been eagerly awaiting the chance to read Hilary Mantel’s new short story collection The Assassination of Margaret Thatcher(published Fourth Estate 2014) and I wasn’t disappointed. Each individual story is a compelling read and all are powerful, harrowing, disturbing and haunting. In fact they made me question why I read. Is it for pleasure and relaxation? To learn? To be challenged? Or to appreciate the skill of the writer? In the case of this book, I think it is the latter two. And that is a tribute to Hilary Mantel who is a supremely good writer.

After that, I needed something less stressful and turned to Claire Sandy’s novel What Would Mary Berry Do?(published Pan Books 2014) Who doesn’t love Mary Berry and the Bake Off programmes? I’m a big fan, and this lighthearted tale of a harassed mother teaching herself with Mary Berry’s help to bake appealed to me. In fact I could have done with a bit more of the baking and a bit less of the rest of the story. It isn’t a book that will stick in my mind for years to come, but it is an enjoyable and relaxing read and I definitely recommend it if that’s the sort of book you’re looking for.

It’s a truism to say variety is the spice of life, but I’m learning that my choice of books reflects just that. So now I have a problem. What to pick up first for month 3?

At The Break of Day By Margaret Graham Book Review

Posted on February 25, 2015 by Catherine Balavage

Margaret Graham has written many good books, in fact she is working on her 14th. Many of these books are compelling and well-researched books set during wartime. At The Break of Day is no exception. It is yet another brilliant novel to lose yourself in while the author takes you into another time and setting.

Many of the main characters in Margaret Graham’s novels are women making the best of themselves in hard circumstances. In this novel Rosie Norton is facing a bright future in America in 1946, until she is called home from Pennsylvania. Rosie was evacuated by her grandfather in 1939 by her beloved grandfather and she returns to a devastated Europe which is still picking itself up after the war. She has developed an American accent and finds it hard to be accepted by the people around her. Many who refer to her as a dumb yank. She is supported by her childhood sweetheart Jack, but lies and people with bad intentions get between them. Jack is sent to war in Korea and a homeless Rosie, together with the child he doesn’t know they have, is left to fend for herself in London.

This is a wonderful novel that I really enjoyed reading. The character of Rosie is a great one. She makes the most of herself and her circumstances. She is an inspirational character who it is impossible to not fall in love with. I also loved the parallels between the UK and US. McCarthyism is on the rise in the US and her American family write about it in their letters. This is an engaging novel which captures the time it is set in perfectly. Highly recommended: another triumph for Margaret Graham.

At the Break of Day is available here.

My Reading Challenge by Frances Colville

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Frostie

How many books can you read in a year? It recently occurred to me that life is far too short to read everything I want to read. There simply aren’t enough hours in the day or years in a lifetime. So I’ve set myself a challenge for 2015 – to be organised about what I read, to make deliberate choices and above all to emphasis variety. But there has to be quality there too. I haven’t any time to waste.

So here’s the pick of the books I’ve read in January. First up were two Agatha Christie novels. The first, Ordeal by Innocence was a re-read and the second, Death in the Clouds, new to me. I thoroughly enjoyed both. For me Agatha Christie is a master craftsman, able to weave together the intricate threads of a plot in remarkably few words, and at the same time create a view of her world with all its idiosyncrasies. Agatha Christie paperbacks are readily available in secondhand bookshops.

Next I moved on to Stoner by John Williams (First published 1965, Vintage classic reprint 2012). Another brilliantly crafted book and a beautifully written one, it tells the story of William Stoner, an American academic, who seems to stumble through life with a sense of not being quite sure what he is actually doing there. I was hooked from the first page although it’s hard to analyse why. Perhaps it’s just simply enough to say I recognised him. I would like to have known him.

And then something completely different; a memoir entitled Love, Nina written by Nina Stibbe (Penguin paperback 2014) telling the story of the time she spent as a nanny for a family in London in the 1980s. This well written and very humorous book particularly resonated with me as I too worked as a nanny for a London family in my gap year. Nina Stibbe has a delightfully light and self-deprecating voice and a casual way of dropping big names (Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller for example) into her writing, adding both depth and interest. I see she has also written a novel and I look forward to checking that out – though maybe not this year.

My final book this month was Margaret Forster’s Good Wives? (Vintage paperback 2002) With a mixture of biographical writing, and personal reflection, Forster tells the story of three ‘good wives’ from different times (Mary Livingstone, Fanny Stevenson and Jennie Lee) and tries to work out just what it is that makes a good wife. It’s an interesting premise for a book, and generally a good read, though it suffers from being neither biography nor memoir, falling somewhere between the two. Perhaps inevitably I am left feeling dissatisfied and wanting to know more – about the people whose stories she tells and about her.

So I end the month by adding yet more books to my list – further biographies of the three ladies, and re-reads of Margaret Forster’s novels. Not quite what I’d originally planned.

This Month’s Top Books

Posted on February 5, 2015 by Frostie

It is still bloody freezing outside, so what better time to curl up with a good book? Here are some of our top books for this month.

I Should Have Said Daisy de Villeneuve

The French have a particular expression for when words fail – ‘’Pensées d’escalier.’ It refers to the inability to think of the perfect response in painful or awkward situations until you’re out of the door – a scenario many of us can relate to at some point in our lives.In I Should Have Said, London born illustrator, designer and writer Daisy de Villeneuve pools together her personal experiences of friendships, flirtations and full-blown romances to equip you with quips for when dialogue dramas strike.From forthright frenemies, bemusing boyfriends or lukewarm liaisons, Daisy’s artistic, anti-romantic antics will be your armour against unrequited amour so that shocked silences, desperate dilemmas and wavering words are a thing of the past.

We loved this book. Wonderful illustrations and witty retorts. Daisy de Villeneuve is effortlessly cool and this book is fun and entertaining.

I Should Have Said…: Quick-Witted Comebacks I Only Wish I’d Said – to Friends and Lovers is available here.

100 Ideas That Changed Advertising Simon Veksner

Like it or not, advertising shapes our lives. This book is thorough, entertaining and educational without being boring. Perfect for anyone with an interest in advertising. 100 Ideas That Changed Advertising takes a look at the key concepts and developments that have shaped the world of advertising, from the early Twentieth century to the present day. Divided into mini-essays, it explores the socio-political and cultural factors behind these changes and the impact that they have on the ads we’re exposed to every day.

Illustrated throughout with hundreds of examples of classic and contemporary ads from companies such as Apple, McDonalds, Dyson and Coca Cola, it’s an accessible and informative read that offers a fascinating insider’s insight into the ad industry.

100 Ideas that Changed Advertising is available here.

Obsession in Death J.D Robb

Another brilliant crime thriller from J.D Robb AKA Nora Roberts. Entertaining and indulgent.

A crisp winter morning in New York. In a luxury apartment, the body of a woman lies stretched out on a huge bed. On the wall above, the killer has left a message in bold black ink: FOR LIEUTENANT EVE DALLAS, WITH GREAT ADMIRATION AND UNDERSTANDING.

Eve Dallas is used to unwanted attention. Famous for her high-profile cases and her marriage to billionaire businessman Roarke, she has learned to deal with intense public scrutiny and media gossip. But now Eve has become the object of a singular and deadly obsession. She has an ‘admirer’, who just can’t stop thinking about her. Who is convinced they have a special bond. Who is planning to kill for her – again and again…

With time against her, Eve is forced to play a delicate – and dangerous – psychological dance. Because the killer is desperate for something Eve can never provide – approval. And once that becomes clear, Eve knows her own life will be at risk – along with those she cares about the most.Nora Roberts published her first novel using the pseudonym J.D. Robb in 1995, introducing to readers the tough as nails but emotionally damaged homicide cop Eve Dallas and billionaire Irish rogue, Roarke.

With the In Death series, Robb has become one of the biggest thriller writers on earth, with each new novel reaching number one on bestseller charts the world over.

Obsession in Death is available here.

At The Break of Day Margaret Graham

Another brilliant novel from Frost favourite Margaret Graham. Brilliantly researched and engrossing. A must read.

It is 1946, and as Europe slowly picks itself up after the trauma of war, Rosie Norton faces a bright future in America. Evacuated in 1939 by her grandfather, she escaped the cramped streets of London to a new world in Pennsylvania.Suddenly, at the age of sixteen, she is called home to a Britain bruised by war and still suffering the hardships that America knows nothing about.While struggling to become accepted again by her family she is supported by her childhood sweetheart Jack.Until Jack is sent to war in Korea and a homeless Rosie, together with the child he doesn’t know they have, is left to fend for herself in London.

At the Break of Day is available here.

When I Met You Jemma Forte

The new novel by best-selling author and TV personality Jemma Forte. When I Met You is the third book from Jemma. Jemma writes about a range of hugely relatable issues with reverence and emotional intelligence including family, illness, life decisions, romance, love and growing older. This is the perfect novel to lose yourself in. Imaginative, clever and addictive.

Marianne Baker is happy. Sort of. She’s had the same job for 15 years. She’s 31, still living at home with her mum and sleeping in a single bed. Playing the violin is her only real passion – but nobody like her does that for a living.Then one night everything changes. The father who abandoned Marianne as a child turns up on the doorstep, with a shocking secret that changes her live forever. Suddenly her safe, comfortable world is shattered. If her father isn’t the man she though he was, then who is he? And more to the point, who is she?

When I Met You is available here.

And if you are getting married…

Check out our editor’s book The Wedding Survival Guide: How To Plan Your Big Day Without Losing Your Sanity by Catherine Balavage. It has had some five star reviews and covers every aspect of wedding planning from the perceptive of someone who survived planning their own wedding. It is well-researched and entertaining.

Engaged? Daunted by wedding planning? Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, this book is a no-nonsense guide to planning the perfect wedding no matter what your budget. With time and money-saving costs, advice on handling difficult relatives and hints and tips to plan your perfect day. This is the only wedding book you will ever need.

The Wedding Survival Guide: How To Plan Your Big Day Without Losing Your Sanity is available here.

A Time For Courage By Margaret Graham Book Review

Posted on December 24, 2014 by Catherine Balavage

I have been a fan of Margaret Graham for a while now and have read many of her books. It was with much excitement I got my hands on a copy of A Time For Courage. Margaret Graham has a special talent for writing about ballsy heroines who are worthy of making history. More than role models, these women tend to change history and pave the way for future generations, Hannah is no exception, she is the heroine of this story. Daughter to a tyrant, the sexism of the world starts at home but this is Victorian times and women are not even allowed to vote.

War is a running theme in this book and Graham has a rather special knack of writing about war well. Few writers can match her skill and knowledge of military historical fiction. You can tell that she knows her stuff. Her book draws you in and does not let go. At the start of the book is the Boer war and the aftermath, later is the first world war. That great destroyer of generations of men and broken women. Hannah is torn between one class and another, she is born into wealth and much is expected of her. If you consider embroidery and simply being a wife and mother a lot. But Hannah wants to be a teacher, she wants an education. University is denied to her by her tyrannical, misogynistic father but she finds a way with the help of her mother, even though her mother is weak, broken by her father and multiple pregnancies. In contrast Hannah has a cousin called Esther. The difference between Hannah and the selfish Esther is vast.

This is not just a story about Hannah, but also about her brother, Harry. The siblings have much in common: decency, morality, a love of family and an understanding of what is wrong and what is right. Unfortunately their decency and morality is ahead of its time. Harry fights against racism and Hannah fights against sexism. They both face penalties and conflicts of loyalty for their values. Sometimes doing the right thing brings consequences.

This book is so well-researched it is impossible to not be impressed. This book is gritty and complex with a love story at its beating heart. Over 400 pages long and I raced through it and was sad when it finished. There is much in this book to applaud and I found myself learning a lot about history. Much is covered, including the Suffragists and Suffragette (not everyone will know the history behind the two different groups), diamond mining, human rights after war, social changes…this is more than a novel, it is also a social document. Her writing really works the imagination, creating a beautiful, wonderful and vivid story. I was sad to leave Hannah and her story behind after the last page. I feel the author probably did too.

Stunning: a must read.

A Time for Courage is available here.

Sophie Duffy The Generation Game Book Review

Posted on September 24, 2014 by Catherine Balavage

The Generation Game is Sophie Duffy’s debut novel. And what a debut. This book truly is unputdownable. Wonderfully written, fresh, relatable and with enough surprises to keep you hooked. It captures family life and human emotion perfectly. In fact, it is now one of my favourite books and I will recommend it to everyone I know. The novel is inspired by Sophie’s childhood growing up in a sweet shop in Torquay

Philippa Smith is in her forties and has a beautiful newborn baby girl. She also has no husband, and nowhere to turn. So she turns to the only place she knows: the beginning.
Retracing her life, she confronts the daily obstacles that shaped her very existence. From the tragic events of her childhood abandonment, to the astonishing accomplishments of those close to her, Philippa learns of the sacrifices others chose to make, and the outcome of buried secrets.

Philippa discovers a celebration of life, love, and the Golden era of television. A reflection of everyday people, in not so everyday situations.

Sophie won the 2010 Luke Bitmead Writers Bursary and the Yeovil Literary Prize 2006. She has another novel that I will definitely be reading soon called This Holey Life.

I highly recommend this book. It is a stunning debut.

The Generation Game is available here.

Autumn Book Special

Posted on August 22, 2014 by Frostie

So many books, such little time. Don’t know what to read? Here is our little guide of books to read this Autumn. Each one is a corker.

Festive In Death J.D. Robb

The kitchen knife jammed into his cold heart pinned a cardboard sign to his well-toned chest. It read: Santa Says You’ve Been Bad!!! Ho, Ho, Ho!

It’s Christmas, but Lieutenant Eve Dallas is in no mood to celebrate. While her charismatic husband Roarke plans a huge, glittering party, Eve has murder on her mind.

The victim – personal trainer Trey Ziegler – was trouble in life and is causing even more problems in death. Vain, unfaithful and vindictive, Trey had cultivated a lot of enemies. Which means Eve has a lot of potential suspects. And when she and Detective Peabody uncover Trey’s sinister secret, the case takes a deadly turn.

Christmas may be a festival of light, but Eve and Roarke will be forced once more down a very dark path in their hunt for the truth.

Nora Roberts published her first novel using the pseudonym J.D. Robb in 1995, introducing to readers the tough as nails but emotionally damaged homicide cop Eve Dallas and billionaire Irish rogue, Roarke.

With the In Death series, Robb has become one of the biggest thriller writers on earth, with each new novel reaching number one on bestseller charts the world over.

This is a thrill-seeking unputdownable thriller. A great read from beginning to end. We loved it.

Festive in Death is available here. Out on September 11th.

Seven Wonders Ben Mezrich

From the New York Times bestselling author Ben Mezrich comes Seven Wonders, a globe-trotting thriller in the vein of The DaVinci Code – rife with historic secrets, conspiracies, intrigue, and a whole lot of adventure.

When the reclusive mathematician Jeremy Grady is murdered, it’s up to his estranged brother Jack to find out why. His search leads him on a far-flung journey – from Brazil, India, Peru, and beyond – as he unravels the mystery that links the Seven Wonders of the World, and discovers that Jeremy may have hit upon something that has been concealed for centuries. With the help of scientist Sloane Costa, they discover a conspiracy to hide a roadmap to the Garden of Eden – and the truth behind a mythological ancient culture.

With a heart-pounding pace and panoramic backdrops, Seven Wonders is an electrifying read, and will be the first in a trilogy.

A fast-moving thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Enjoyable and a huge credit to the imagination of Ben Mezrich. This book is the first in a trilogy so if you enjoyed it as much as we did, you will have more books coming along soon. It is also being turned into a film directed by Brett Ratner.

Seven Wonders is available here. Out on September 11th.

The Last Boat Home Dea Brovig

Explosive, dark and tender, The Last Boat Home is a devastating novel about sacrifice, survival and a mother’s love. If you loved The Light Between Oceans or The Snow Child, this is for you.

On the wind-swept southern coast of Norway, sixteen-year-old Else is out on the icy sea, dragging her oars through the waves while, above her, storm clouds are gathering. Surrounded by mountains, snow and white-capped water, she looks across the fjord and dreams of another life, of escape and faraway lands.

Back on shore, her father sits alone in his boathouse with a jar of homebrew. In the Best Room, her mother covers her bruises and seeks solace in prayer. Each tries to hide the truth from this isolated, God-fearing community they call home.

Until one night changes everything.

More than thirty years later, the return of an old friend forces Else to relive the events that marked the end of her childhood.

Explosive, dark and tender, The Last Boat Home is a devastating novel about sacrifice, survival and a mother’s love.

This is an intriguing, dark novel. It really grabbed us and would not let go. A very good debut novel, fresh and definitely worth a read.

The Last Boat Home is available here. Out on August 14th.

Ghost Child Caroline Overington

From the bestselling author of I Came to Say Goodbye. Can you ever escape the secrets of your past? Perfect for fans of Susan Lewis

The photograph shows four smiling children. But look closer and you can tell that one of the boys has been crying.

Weeks later, that little boy is dead. His mother and her boyfriend are in prison for his murder, and his brother and sisters have been fostered to separate families.

No one knows for sure what happened that day, except, possibly, the three remaining children, and they’re not talking.

But the past cannot be buried forever, and years later, when the truth about what happened is revealed, will it bring a final healing? Or will the legacy of fear that the children have lived with for so long, finally destroy them?

An amazing story told in an original way. A very good read and the characters are written so well. Recommended.

Ghost Child is available here. Out on September 11th.

Five Days Left Julie Lawson Timmer

Destined to be a book club favorite, a heart-wrenching debut about two people who must decide how much they’re willing to sacrifice for love.

Mara Nichols is a successful lawyer, devoted wife, and adoptive mother who has received a life-shattering diagnosis. Scott Coffman, a middle school teacher, has been fostering an eight-year-old boy while the boy’s mother serves a jail sentence. Scott and Mara both have five days left until they must say good-bye to the ones they love the most.

Through their stories, Julie Lawson Timmer explores the individual limits of human endurance and the power of relationships, and shows that sometimes loving someone means holding on, and sometimes it means letting go.

This is a deeply moving debut. This book is about heartbreak and human endurance. Unforgettable, thought-provoking and controversial. A brilliant debut.

Five Days Left is available here. Out on August 28th.

Which ones will you read?

You’re A Big Girl Now By Neil Gordon Book Review

Posted on August 20, 2014 by Catherine Balavage

Upon reading the inlay for You’re A Big Girl Now I was immediately hooked. It has a lot of the stuff I am interested in: politics, privacy, human rights, journalism. I was not disappointed. It grabs you from the start and I also feel like Neil Gordon really knows his stuff. As he should of course, this is his fourth novel and he is also Professor of Writing at The New School and Professor of Comparative Literature and Dean of The American University in Paris. Add in that he is the literary editor at the Boston Review and you have a man who knows a lot about writing. This certainly comes across in his novel.

This novel is a sequel but I only realised that after reading the blurb on the Pan Macmillan website. Despite this, you can read this book as a standalone novel and still understand and enjoy it.

It is a gripping thriller that holds you. It has plenty of twists and turns. The main character, Isabel Montgomery, is not necessarily a likeable person. She is over-privileged but she knows it, gets work because of her family name but knows it, is a drug addict and a flake, but she knows it. I didn’t know if I liked her but the fact is, Isabel Montgomery certainly would not care whether or not I liked her. There is an echo of Girl With The Dragon Tattoo here. I must admit that sometimes I struggled with her character. I don’t know why female characters have to be so broken sometimes. The drug use annoyed me and I couldn’t relate to it. She is in her late-twenties and is still blaming her family for her problems, all whilst making a living trading off their name.

But she has her good points. She is an excellent writer, ballsy, opinionated. If it wasn’t for the drug use and the alcoholism she could actually be a heroine. She just lets her demons overcome her, not realising that many people have had a much worse life then she has.

The book is excellent, relevant and tells an important story about surveillance and politics. It is an enjoyable and educating read, even if Isabel annoys you sometimes.

A contemporary literary thriller, You’re A Big Girl Now is the gripping sequel to The Company You Keep, recently adapted into a major film directed by and starring Robert Redford, alongside Shia LeBoeuf and Susan Sarandon.

In 1995, Isabel Montgomery was abandoned by her father in a downtown Manhattan hotel room, and the world of her childhood fell apart. After years undercover, he was exposed as one of America’s most wanted fugitives, for his role in violent anti-Vietnam protests.

In 2011, Isabel is a twenty-seven-year-old star reporter – despite a bad attitude and a substance-abuse problem – and she’s about to put her career on the line by writing a New York Times front-page story on the Obama administration’s unconstitutional surveillance of its citizens.

Forced into hiding after the story breaks, she takes refuge in her grandparents’ abandoned home. There, surrounded by the past she’s run from for years, she makes a discovery that sees her turn her investigative skills on her own family to finally understand the truth about everything that led her to this moment.

You’re A Big Girl Now is a gripping, intelligent thriller that questions the morals and politics of America in the contemporary Age of Surveillance.

You’re a Big Girl Now is available here.

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