Author: emmasbibliotreasures

Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – April 2020

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 2nd Apr 2020
3 Comments on Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – April 2020

I am finally posting my most anticipated books being released in April. Sorry it is so late. As a lot of you know I haven’t been well and am only just getting back into reading and posting online.

2020 seems to be one great month after another, and April just proves this point. Let me know what you think of my choices and which ones you’re most looking forward to in the comments.

Strangers by C.L.Taylor

Published: April 2nd, 2020
Publisher: Avon
Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Noir Fiction, Psychological Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
Ursula, Gareth and Alice have never met before.

Ursula thinks she killed the love of her life.
Gareth’s been receiving strange postcards.
And Alice is being stalked.

None of them are used to relying on others – but when the three strangers’ lives unexpectedly collide, there’s only one thing for it: they have to stick together. Otherwise, one of them will die.

Three strangers, two secrets, one terrifying evening.

The Silent Treatment by Abbie Greaves

Published: April 2nd, 2020
Publisher: Century
Genre: Psychological Fiction, Domestic Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
A lifetime of love. Six months of silence. One last chance.

Frank hasn’t spoken to his wife Maggie for six months.

For weeks they have lived under the same roof, slept in the same bed and eaten at the same table – all without words.

Maggie has plenty of ideas as to why her husband has gone quiet, but it will take another heartbreaking turn of events before Frank finally starts to unravel the secrets that have silenced him.

Is this where their story ends?
Or is it where it begins?

With characters that will capture your heart, THE SILENT TREATMENT celebrates the phenomenal power of love and the importance of leaving nothing unsaid.

The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley

Published: April 2nd, 2020
Publisher: Bantam Press
Genre: Literary Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
Six strangers with one universal thing in common: their lives aren’t always what they make them out to be.

What would happen if they told the truth instead?

Julian Jessop is tired of hiding the deep loneliness he feels. So he begins The Authenticity Project – a small green notebook containing the truth about his life.

Leaving the notebook on a table in his friendly neighbourhood café, Julian never expects Monica, the owner, to track him down after finding it. Or that she’ll be inspired to write down her own story.

Little do they realize that such small acts of honesty hold the power to impact all those who discover the notebook and change their lives completely.

A story about connection, community, and the kindness of strangers.

We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

Published: April 2nd, 2020
Publisher: Zaffre
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Crime Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
‘You can’t save someone that doesn’t want to be saved . . .’

Thirty years ago, Vincent King became a killer.

Now, he’s been released from prison and is back in his hometown of Cape Haven, California. Not everyone is pleased to see him. Like Star Radley, his ex-girlfriend, and sister of the girl he killed.

Duchess Radley, Star’s thirteen-year-old daughter, is part-carer, part-protector to her younger brother, Robin – and to her deeply troubled mother. But in trying to protect Star, Duchess inadvertently sets off a chain of events that will have tragic consequences not only for her family, but also the whole town.

Murder, revenge, retribution.

How far can we run from the past when the past seems doomed to repeat itself?

The Secret Admirer by Carol Wyer (Detective Natalie Ward 6)

Published: April 2nd, 2020
Publisher: Bookouture
Genre: Crime Fiction, Police Procedural, Thriller
SYNOPSIS:
‘I tried to talk to you today but you snubbed me and walked away. It wasn’t wise to give me the brush-off, Gemma. I can be a truly good friend but I also make the perfect enemy.’

Sasha’s eighteen-year-old daughter Gemma was all she had in the world. Sasha fell pregnant with Gemma when she was still at school, and the two are as close as sisters. So when Gemma’s burned and broken body is found, Sasha’s world ends. What kind of person would want her beautiful daughter dead?

Leading the case is Detective Natalie Ward, scarred by her own recent tragedy. When she finds a note in Gemma’s diary from ‘a secret admirer’, she moves quickly, determined to un-mask them. But interviews with Gemma’s devastated ex-boyfriend, and her charismatic teacher, who has been seen embracing his student far away from the classroom, don’t give Natalie the answers she’d hoped for…

And then the case takes a devastating, personal twist. CCTV footage reveals Natalie’s estranged husband David followed Gemma home every evening the week before she died.

Natalie is forced to put personal feelings aside and follow procedure, even though she can’t believe David could be guilty. But when Gemma’s housemate is found murdered, Natalie thinks the killer could still be at large. Is she right to trust her instincts about David and can she discover the truth before another precious life is taken?

Magpie Lane by Lucy Atkins

Published: April 2nd, 2020
Publisher: Quercus
Genre: Psychological Fiction, Suspense, Mystery, Domestic Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
When the eight-year-old daughter of an Oxford College Master vanishes in the middle of the night, police turn to the Scottish nanny, Dee, for answers.

As Dee looks back over her time in the Master’s Lodging – an eerie and ancient house – a picture of a high achieving but dysfunctional family emerges: Nick, the fiercely intelligent and powerful father; his beautiful Danish wife Mariah, pregnant with their child; and the lost little girl, Felicity, almost mute, seeing ghosts, grieving her dead mother.

But is Dee telling the whole story? Is her growing friendship with the eccentric house historian, Linklater, any cause for concern? And most of all, why is Felicity silent?

Roaming Oxford’s secret passages and hidden graveyards, Magpie Lane explores the true meaning of family – and what it is to be denied one.

The Switch by Beth O’Leary

Published: April 16th, 2020
Publisher: Quercus
Genre: Fiction, Romance
SYNOPSIS:
Eileen is sick of being 79.
Leena’s tired of life in her twenties.
Maybe it’s time they swapped places…

When overachiever Leena Cotton is ordered to take a two-month sabbatical after blowing a big presentation at work, she escapes to her grandmother Eileen’s house for some overdue rest. Eileen is newly single and about to turn eighty. She’d like a second chance at love, but her tiny Yorkshire village doesn’t offer many eligible gentlemen.

Once Leena learns of Eileen’s romantic predicament, she proposes a solution: a two-month swap. Eileen can live in London and look for love. Meanwhile Leena will look after everything in rural Yorkshire. But with gossiping neighbours and difficult family dynamics to navigate up north, and trendy London flatmates and online dating to contend with in the city, stepping into one another’s shoes proves more difficult than either of them expected.

Leena learns that a long-distance relationship isn’t as romantic as she hoped it would be, and then there is the annoyingly perfect – and distractingly handsome – school teacher, who keeps showing up to outdo her efforts to impress the local villagers. Back in London, Eileen is a huge hit with her new neighbours, but is her perfect match nearer home than she first thought?

I Am Dust by Louise Beech

Published: April 16th, 2020
Publisher: Orenda
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Horror, Psychological Fiction, Fairytale
SYNOPSIS:
When iconic musical Dust is revived twenty years after the leading actress was murdered in her dressing room, a series of eerie events haunts the new cast, in a bewitching, beguiling, moving and terrifyingly dark psychological thriller…

The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd

Published: April 21st, 2020
Publisher: Tinder Press
Genre: Historical Fiction, Biographical Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
An extraordinary story set in the first century about a woman who finds her voice and her destiny, from the celebrated number one New York Times bestselling author of The Secret Life of Bees and The Invention of Wings

‘I am Ana. I was the wife of Jesus.’

In her mesmerizing fourth work of fiction, Sue Monk Kidd brings her acclaimed narrative gifts to imagine the story of a young woman called Ana.

Ana is a rebellious young woman, a gifted writer with a curious, brilliant mind, who writes secret narratives about the neglected and silenced women around her. Raised in a wealthy family in Galilee, she is sheltered from the brutality of Rome’s occupation of Israel. Ana is expected to marry an elderly widower to further her father’s ambitions, a prospect that horrifies her. A chance encounter with the eighteen-year-old Jesus changes everything: his ideas and his passion are intoxicating.

Taking Ana on a journey she could never have imagined, The Book of Longings is a glorious evocation of a time and a place where astounding events unfolded, and of one woman’s fate when she fights to make her voice heard.

The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel

Published: April 30th, 2020
Publisher: Picador
Genre: Mystery, Psychological Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
Vincent is the beautiful bartender at the Hotel Caiette, a five-star glass-and-cedar palace on the northernmost tip of Vancouver Island. New York financier Jonathan Alkaitis owns the hotel. When he passes Vincent his card with a tip, it’s the beginning of their life together. That same day, a hooded figure scrawls a note on the windowed wall of the hotel: ‘Why don’t you swallow broken glass.’ Leon Prevant, a shipping executive for a company called Neptune-Avramidis, sees the note from the hotel bar and is shaken to his core. Thirteen years later Vincent mysteriously disappears from the deck of a Neptune-Avramidis ship.

Weaving together the lives of these characters, Emily St. John Mandel’s The Glass Hotel moves between the ship, the towers of Manhattan, and the wilderness of remote British Columbia, painting a breathtaking picture of greed and guilt, fantasy and delusion, art and the ghosts of our pasts.

The Split by Sharon Bolton

Published: April 30th, 2020
Publisher: Orion
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Crime Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
SHE’S GOT NOWHERE LEFT TO HIDE.

A year ago, in desperation, Felicity Lloyd signed up for a lengthy research trip to the remote island of South Georgia.

It was her only way to escape.

AND NOW HE’S COMING FOR HER.

Freddie Lloyd has served time for murder. Out at last, he’s on her trail.

And this time, he won’t stop until he finds her.

BECAUSE NO MATTER HOW FAR YOU RUN, SOME SECRETS WILL ALWAYS CATCH UP WITH YOU…

He Started It by Samantha Downing

Published: April 30th, 2020
Publisher: Penguin UK
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense
SYNOPSIS:
This is a story about three siblings. Like any family, sometimes they don’t get along.

It’s a story about a secret that they’ve all kept since they were children.

It’s a story about lying. A story about murder.

It’s a story where only one can win.

Q by Christina Dalcher

Published: April 30th, 2020
Publisher: HQ
Genre: Dystopian Fiction, Thriller, Fantasy, Fairytale
SYNOPSIS:
Elena Fairchild is a teacher at one of the state’s new elite schools. Her daughters are exactly like her: beautiful, ambitious, and perfect. A good thing, since the recent mandate that’s swept the country is all about perfection.

Now everyone must undergo routine tests for their quotient, Q, and any children who don’t measure up are placed into new government schools. Instead, teachers can focus on the gifted.

Elena tells herself it’s not about eugenics, not really, but when one of her daughters scores lower than expected and is taken away, she intentionally fails her own test to go with her.

But what Elena discovers is far more terrifying than she ever imagined…

The Silence by Susan Allott

Published: April 30th, 2020
Publisher: The Borough Press
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Fiction, Crime Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
It is 1997, and in a basement flat in Hackney Isla Green is awakened by a call in the middle of the night: her father, phoning from Sydney.

30 years ago, in the suffocating heat of summer 1967, the Greens’ next-door neighbour Mandy disappeared. At the time, it was thought she had gone to start a new life; but now Mandy’s family is trying to reconnect, and there is no trace of her. Isla’s father Joe was allegedly the last person to see her alive, and now he’s under suspicion of murder.

Reluctantly, Isla goes back to Australia for the first time in a decade. The return to Sydney will plunge her deep into the past, to a quiet street by the sea where two couples live side by side. Isla’s parents, Louisa and Joe, have recently emigrated from England ― a move that has left Louisa miserably homesick while Joe embraces this new life. Next door, Steve and Mandy are equally troubled. Mandy doesn’t want a baby, even though Steve ― a cop trying to hold it together under the pressures of the job ― is desperate to become a father.

The more Isla asks about the past, the more she learns: about both young couples and the secrets each marriage bore. Could her father be capable of doing something terrible? How much does her mother know? And is there another secret in this community, one which goes deeper into Australia’s colonial past, which has held them in a conspiracy of silence?

Deftly exploring the deterioration of relationships and the devastating truths we keep from those we love, The Silence is a stunning debut from a rising literary star.

Would Like To Meet by Rachel Winters

Published: April 30th, 2020
Publisher: Trapeze
Genre: Romance, Humourous Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
Long-suffering assistant Evie Summers will lose her job unless she can convince her film agency’s biggest and most difficult client, Ezra Chester, to finish the script for a Hollywood romcom. The catch? He hasn’t started writing it.

Suffering from ‘writer’s block,’ he will only put pen to paper if singleton Evie can prove to him that you can fall in love like they do in the movies. Forget internet dating, Evie can only meet a man the way that Sally met Harry, or Hugh Grant meets anyone. Cue her entering into one ridiculous romcom scenario after another. But can life ever be like the movies?

Of course, real life is never that straightforward . . .

Tags Abbie Greaves, April 2020, April Books, Avon, Bantam Press, Beth O'Leary, Bonnier Zaffre, book series, Bookouture, Borough Press, C.L. Taylor, Carol Wyer, Century, Chris Whitaker, Christina Dalcher, Clare Pooley, debut novel, Detective Natalie Ward, Emily St. John Mandel, Emma's Anticipated Treasures, He Started It, HQ, I Am Dust, Louise Beech, Lucy Atkins, Magpie Lane, Orenda Books, orion books, Penguin UK, Picador, Q, Quercus books, Rachel Winters, Samantha Downing, Sharon Bolton, Strangers, Sue Monk Kidd, Susan Allott, The Authenticity Project, The Book of Longings, The Glass Hotel, The Secret Admirer, The Silence, The Silent Treatment, The Split, The Switch, Tinder Press, Trapeze Books, We Begin at the End, Would Like To Meet, Zaffre

Blog Tours book reviews

Dark Corners by Darren O’Sullivan ⭐⭐⭐.5

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 1st Apr 2020
No Comments on Dark Corners by Darren O’Sullivan ⭐⭐⭐.5

Published: April 2nd, 2020
Pubisher: HQ
Format: Paperback, Kindle
Genre: Mystery, Suspense

Welcome to my spot on the blog tour for this absorbing thriller. Thank you to HQ for the invitation to take part and the gifted copy of the book.

SYNOPSIS:

You thought you’d escaped your past

It’s been twenty years since Neve’s best friend Chloe went missing. Neve has never recovered and promised herself she’d never go back to that place.

But secrets can come back to haunt you

When Neve receives news that her first boyfriend Jamie has gone missing, she’s forced to return. Jamie has vanished without a trace in a disappearance that echoes the events of all those years ago. Somebody is watching and will stop at nothing until the truth about what took place that night is revealed …

MY REVIEW:

“One way or another, secrets were debts that had to be paid.”

Dark Corners is an eerie, mysterious and gripping thriller that had me hooked from the first page. It is a story about friendships, secrets, lies and revenge. How we can run from the past but it will always catch up with you.

Neve Chambers left the small mining village where she was born and raised after the disappearance of her best friend, Chloe, and has tried not to look back. But when an old friend gets in touch to tell her that Jamie, her first love, is now missing, she feels she has no choice but to go back. Returning to the claustrophobic village, she immediately feels everyone’s eyes on her and the whispered rumours resume. As she reconnects with the friends she left behind and searches for Jamie the evidence seems to suggest that his disappearance is connected to Chloe’s, forcing Neve to confront the part she played in events twenty-one years ago.

The story is told in dual timelines. In flashbacks we go back to the summer of 1998, when Neve and her six friends are hanging out and celebrating the end of their exams, unaware that before the summer ends one of them will vanish and the rest of them will see their lives changed forever. The flashbacks made the book feel part coming-of-age story, which I enjoyed, and felt authentic, bringing back memories of my own teenage years with friends in the late nineties, when we would hang out with just a curfew and there were no mobile phones and social media. I loved that these flashbacks gave the reader a sense of why Neve was so anxious about returning to the village while also providing a dual sense of mystery alongside what had happened to Jamie.

In the present day we follow Neve as she returns to the village and searches for Jamie, finding herself embroiled deeper in mystery and danger than she’d anticipated as it seems The Drifter, a mysterious man the friends saw near the mine when Chloe vanished, is back and taking his revenge on those who saw him all those years ago. The author did a great job of keeping the reader guessing and I was totally at a loss as to who The Drifter might be or what had happened to Chloe and Jamie.

The atmospheric, chilling, ghostly and claustrophobic small mining village was the perfect setting for the story, adding extra layers to the mystery and foreboding and casting its shadow over all who live there. The dual disappearances and timelines were easy to follow and as the tension was raised in the flashbacks, you could feel it increasing in the present day too as like Neve you became suspicious of everyone and didn’t know who to trust.

Dark Corners is a twisty, intriguing and cryptic thriller that I devoured in just a few hours. Cleverly written, it is filled with twists and turns that keep you guessing right up until the jaw-dropping finale. A great read for anyone who enjoys this genre.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Darren O’Sullivan is the author of #1 bestsellers, Our Little Secrets, Close Your Eyes and Closer Than You Think. His latest, Dark Corners is coming April 2020.

When Darren isn’t writing, he is usually rolling around on the floor, pretending to be a pirate with his 4 year old.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:

Twitter
Instagram
Facebook

BUY THE BOOK:

Amazon
Waterstones
Book Depository
Google Books
Apple Books
Kobo

Tags 3.5 stars, April Books, Dark Corners, Darren O'Sullivan, HQ, March 2020, March books, mystery, suspense

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She Came To Stay by Eleni Kyriacou -Extract

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 18th Mar 2020
No Comments on She Came To Stay by Eleni Kyriacou -Extract

Published: March 5th, 2020
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audiobook
Genre: Historical Fiction

Today I’m thrilled to be sharing an extract from a exciting new author and her historical fiction debut.

SYNOPSIS:

London, 1952…

Dina Demetriou has travelled from Cyprus for a better life. She’s certain that excitement and adventure are out there, waiting – if only she knew where to look. At the seedy Pelican Revue bar, she meets stylish, mysterious Bebba and the two become firm friends. With her bleached-blonde hair and an appetite for mischief, Bebba is like no Greek Dina has ever met before and the two women take on Soho. But Bebba has a secret. And as thick smog brings the city to a standstill, the truth emerges with devastating results.

EXTRACT:

After bolting the door behind her, Bebba slipped out of her pointed-toe shoes and placed them neatly against the wall. Then she walked to the battered wardrobe, put her finger under the metal filigree handle and pulled. There it was. She leaned over the grey suitcase and let her fingertips stroke the sturdy, hard shell. Suddenly she was aware of a gnawing sensation in her stomach. Maybe she should eat? But she looked at the loaf of bread on the counter and couldn’t bring herself to start cutting and toasting now. And anyway, the baklava and kaffe had left her jittery and a little nauseous.

Grabbing the crocheted blanket, she lay down and wrapped herself tight in its multi-coloured squares. God, being Bebba exhausted her; all that perkiness, all that sparkle. She could never go back, she knew that. As sleep pulled her in tightly, she heard a soft, long wheeze. She sat up with a start. The wardrobe door had swung open and there sat the suitcase, watchful. She slid back down.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Eleni Kyriacou is an award-winning editor and journalist. She has worked in various roles across publishing and her writing has appeared in the Guardian, the Observer, Marie Claire, Grazia, You, Stella and Red, among others. Eleni was the Editor of national magazines New Woman and Looks and has also worked in digital media.

The daughter of Greek Cypriot immigrant parents, Eleni has never felt completely British nor Cypriot, but has always felt a Londoner. She was born and grew up in Camden, then Elephant & Castle, Finsbury Park, Tottenham and now lives in Ealing. She has lived north, south and west. East London is another country to her. Every year, she has long conversations with friends and family about leaving London but probably never will.

Eleni is now freelance so knows where all the plug points are in London cafés. She Came to Stay is her first novel.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:

Website
Twitter, Instagram and Facebook: @elenikwriter

BUY THE BOOK:

Amazon
Waterstones

Tags debut novel, Eleni Kyriacou, Extract, historical fiction, Hodder & Stoughton, She Came To Stay

Blog Tours book reviews

The Twin by Natasha Preston ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 12th Mar 2020
2 Comments on The Twin by Natasha Preston ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Published: March 3rd, 2020
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Format: Paperback, Kindle
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Young Adult Fiction

Thank you to Darkroom Tours for the invitation to take part in this blog tour and to Delacorte Press for the gifted copy of the novel.

SYNOPSIS:

In this twisty psychological thriller from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of THE CELLAR, Ivy finds out that her twin sister, Iris, is trying to push her out of her own life–and might be responsible for their mother’s death.

After their parents divorced, 10-year-old twins Ivy and Iris were split up–Ivy lived with Dad, Iris with Mom. Now, after a tragic accident takes their mom’s life, the twins are reunited and Iris moves in with Ivy and their dad. Devastated over Mom’s death, Iris spends the first few weeks in almost total silence–the only person she will speak to is Ivy. Iris feels her life is over and she doesn’t know what to do. Emmy promises her twin that she can share her life now. After all, they’re sisters. Twins.

It’s a promise that Iris takes seriously. And before long, Ivy’s friends, her life at school, and her boyfriend, Tyler, fall under Iris’s spell. Slowly, Ivy realizes she’s being pushed out of her own life. But she’s just being paranoid, right? And Mom’s accident was . . . just an accident. Right? It’s not like she–or Dad–or Tyler–are in any danger. . . .

MY REVIEW:

Sixteen-year-old twins Ivy and Iris haven’t lived together since their parents divorced when they were ten. But after their mother’s death in a tragic accident Iris is now moving in with Ivy and their dad. The two have always been different and are more like strangers than sisters. But Ivy is determined to rebuild her relationship with her twin and promises she can share her life.

It’s a promise she comes to regret. Iris seems to not be satisfied with sharing Ivy’s life and appears to want to take it from her. Slowly, Ivy’s life begins to spiral out of control and everyone is turning away from her. Things get increasingly sinister and she knows that Iris is behind it. But everybody else is charmed by her, even their father. How can she prove that her sister is out to steal her life?

I find that YA can be hit or miss for me but I absolutely loved this one. The story and characters were well written and I liked that the protagonist and antagonist were twins. It added extra tension as Ivy couldn’t just cut ties with the person she’s sure is out to get her, she has to live with her too. It meant there was so much more at stake and made it a more personal. My favourite scenes were as the book was heading towards it’s dramatic ending. The tension had my heart racing and I couldn’t guess what was going to happen. When it ended I literally went back to see if I missed something as it was so abrupt and sitting there in a fury that the author had ended it that way. But, after thinking about it, I love how it ended and think it was a clever way for the author to finish the book.

The story is told from Ivy’s point of view so Iris remains an enigma, with the reader wondering if what they think they see is real or if it’s Ivy’s skewed perspective and paranoia. Though I think this added more suspense to the book at times, there is part of me that would have liked to read from Iris’ perspective, maybe short paragraphs peppered between some chapters to have us see her plans and games from another side and maybe to even throw us off course a bit. We don’t know Iris’ true colours until near the end; is she sinister and conniving or is she misunderstood and Ivy just paranoid? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

The Twin is an exciting, intriguing and gripping novel. I’ve wanted to read this author’s books for a while and I’m now a fan. I will definitely be reading her other books. I’d recommend this book if you enjoy mysteries and thrillers even if you don’t usually read young adult fiction.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

My name is Natasha, but most people call me Tash or Tasha. I don’t mind either. I was born in England and have lived in small towns and villages out in the countryside ever since.

My husband, Joseph, is the most supportive person in my life. Without his love, help and patience I wouldn’t be where I am today. I’m a proud mummy to two amazing little boys who are my whole world.

At school I drifted through, achieving average grades. I fell into administration and receptionist jobs, thinking that I couldn’t really do anything else.

In 2010 I stumbled into writing completely by accident. I was searching the ‘app store’ and came across Wattpad – an amateur writing site. For the first few months I just read, but then I decided to type out some of the ideas swirling around in my head. I’m so glad I did because I love creating new stories.

Writing gave me an escape and Wattpad gave me the confidence I lacked.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:

Website
Twitter
Facebook

BUY THE BOOK:

Amazon
Book Depository
Apple Books
Google Books
Kobo

Tags Darkroom Tours, Delacorte Press, Four star reads, March 2020, March books, mystery, Natasha Preston, The Twin, thriller, Young Adult Fiction

Blog Tours book reviews

The Operator by Gretchen Berg ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 11th Mar 2020
1 Comment on The Operator by Gretchen Berg ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Published: March 10th, 2020
Publisher: Headline
Format: Hardcover, Kindle
Genre: Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this atmospheric novel. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part and to Headline for the gifted copy of the book.

SYNOPSIS:

It’s 1952. The switchboard operators in Wooster, Ohio, love nothing more than to eavesdrop on their neighbours’ conversations, and gossip about what they learn. Vivian Dalton is no different (despite her teenage daughter’s disapproval), and always longs to hear something scandalous. But on the night of December 15th, she wishes she hadn’t. The secret that’s shared by a stranger on the line threatens to rip the rug of Vivian’s life from under her.

Vivian may be mortified, but she’s not going to take this lying down. She wants the truth, no matter how painful it may be. But one secret tends to lead to another . . .

This moving, heart-felt and ultimately uplifting novel brilliantly weaves together an irresistible portrayal of a town buzzing with scandal, and an unforgettable story of marriage, motherhood and the unbreakable ties of family.

MY REVIEW:

The Operator is a character study about life in a small town. We take a peek behind the bright smiles and perfect family images of its residents, discovering the secrets and lies they hide when the town is rocked by scandal.

Vivian Dalton is a switchboard girl at Ohio Bell. They aren’t supposed to listen in when they connect the calls but everybody does it. And who wouldn’t take the chance to discover the juicy gossip about their friends and neighbours? But Vivian’s eavesdropping comes back to bite her when she overhears some scandalous gossip about her own family that shatters her world. Worst of all, the information is in the hands of the town’s biggest gossip Betty Miller.

Mortified, Vivian tries to think of a way to stop the town from hearing the rumour and her family being humiliated. She soon learns that they aren’t the only ones harbouring a scandalous secret and there are others with far bigger skeletons in their closets waiting to be revealed.

This marvellously written debut was a joy to read. It drew me in from the first pages, the authentic language and vivid imagery transporting me to small-town 50s America and the glossy facade of the lives of its residents. I thought I knew what I was getting, but the author created a rich tapestry, woven from the myriad of seemingly insignificant threads of information, that looked nothing like what I had imagined. It was hard to predict and I loved not knowing where it was going or what would happen next. I enjoyed the various literary styles the author used to tell the story by peppering it with things such as word descriptions and recipes and giving the reader an in-depth look at Vivian’s history.

The story boasts a multitude of rich characters but centres around two women – Vivian and Betty – who are more competitors than friends. Though they despise each other, the women are more alike than they think: they both like to be in control, good appearances are important to them above all else and struggle with anger and use techniques to calm it – Vivian bakes and Betty strokes her angel charm on her watch. Neither character was particularly likeable, but Vivian did have a charm that drew me to her.

The Operator is a wonderful, witty, intriguing and heart-felt novel. I enjoyed watching it morph into something unexpected and that even after the story ends the author’s note shines a different light on the story. I would recommend this delightful, understated and readable book to anyone who enjoys historical or literary fiction.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Gretchen Berg is a writer with a Bachelor’s degree in something completely unrelated to writing. Both parents encouraged her to write, but she waited until she heard “you are a writer” from more trustworthy advisors: a London psychic and a taxicab driver in Athens, Greece. The taxicab driver also said they had been lovers in a previous life, though, so, everything with a grain of salt. Gretchen is a Cancer, with Scorpio rising, who was born and raised. She loves when people dress up.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:

Website
Facebook

BUY THE BOOK:

Amazon
The Operator
Book Depository
Apple Books
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Tags Emma's Anticipated Treasures, Four star reads, Gretchen Berg, Headline, historical fiction, Literary Fiction, March 2020, March books, Random Things Tours, The Operator

Blog Tours book reviews

This Lovely City by Louise Hare ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 10th Mar 2020
1 Comment on This Lovely City by Louise Hare ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Published: March 12th, 2020
Publisher: HQ
Format: Hardcover, Kindle
Genre: Historical Fiction, Urban Fiction

SYNOPSIS:

The drinks are flowing.
The music is playing.
But the party can’t last.

With the Blitz over and London reeling from war, jazz musician Lawrie Matthews has answered England’s call for help. Fresh off the Empire Windrush, he’s taken a tiny room in south London lodgings, and has fallen in love with the girl next door.

Touring Soho’s music halls by night, pacing the streets as a postman by day, Lawrie has poured his heart into his new home – and it’s alive with possibility. Until, one morning, he makes a terrible discovery.

As the local community rallies, fingers of blame are pointed at those who had recently been welcomed with open arms. And, before long, the newest arrivals become the prime suspects in a tragedy which threatens to tear the city apart.

Atmospheric, poignant and compelling, Louise Hare’s debut shows that new arrivals have always been the prime suspects. But, also, that there is always hope.

MY REVIEW:

This fabulous debut is not only great between the pages but it has a cover that just screams “read me.” Part love story, part coming-of-age and part crime novel, this fictional story also has a true story running through its pages; the story of the Jamaican men who travelled to England on the Windrush in the Summer of 1948 and their battle for acceptance and equality.

Told in dual timelines this is the story of immigrant Lawrie Matthews and Evie Coleridge, the girl next door that he’s in love with and also happens to be the only mixed race girl in the area. The pair are headed for marriage and, other than the daily racism they must navigate, life is good. But after Lawrie finds the body of a baby girl in the pond on Clapham Common everything changes. Lawrie finds himself the prime suspect in the case and trouble soon begins to seep into all areas of his life. As the press and public demand justice for the little girl, the city is divided, racial tensions rise and Lawrie and his friends find themselves more vulnerable than ever in the place they were told was their new home. Meanwhile, Lawrie’s discovery also threatens to uncover shameful secrets that were never meant to be revealed and could shatter their lives even further.

I’m a big fan of both historical and crime fiction so as soon as I read the synopsis I knew I had to read this book. Though the crime is introduced into the story early on, it didn’t feel like there was a lot of tension or suspense until later on and most of the time the story concentrated more on how being under suspicion, or being close to someone under suspicion, affected the characters in all areas of their lives. I liked this and felt that it gave the book a lot of heart that might have otherwise been missing. It also enabled important issues to be more visible in the story, rather than fading into the background.

The author’s wonderful storytelling and vivid imagery transported me to London in the late forties and early fifties. I could almost smell the smoke and hear the jazz band playing. I could see the grimy streets and feel the fear and loathing in the air. But what I loved most was the characters and community that the author created. Their authenticity immersed me in their world and helped me to feel connected to situations I never have or will experience. Lawrie was a kind, honest man who I quickly fell in love with. His good character added to the sense of injustice at what he went through after finding the baby as you really did get the sense he was the last person on earth who could do such a thing. He was the opposite of Rathborne, the racist and vile policeman in charge of the case, who was easily my least favourite character. Evie was a sweet, innocent young woman who longed to break free of her overbearing mother. I thought a lot about how hard it must have been for her being the only mixed race person, not knowing anyone else like herself and never really fitting in anywhere. I found myself furious at her mother for how she treated her and contributed to her pain at being different, thankful she’d found Lawrie and hoping they would overcome the obstacles and get their happy-ever-after.

This Lovely City is an atmospheric, affecting and thought-provoking debut. Deftly told, the story is steadily paced, building to a gradual crescendo as we approach the finale. I loved that there were things I found impossible to predict and I was certain I had the rest figured out. I couldn’t have been more wrong. The storylines cleverly dovetailed and my jaw hit the floor as all was revealed. I would recommend this book and am excited to see what the author writes next.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Louise Hare is a London based author. Her debut novel This Lovely City is due to be published by HQ (Harper Collins) on March 12th 2020 and House of Anansi (N. America) on April 7th 2020. She has an MA in Creative Writing (Distinction) from Birkbeck, University of London.

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Tags debut novel, Emma's Anticipated Treasures, Four star reads, historical fiction, HQ, Louise Hare, March 2020, March books, This Lovely City, Urban Fiction

Blog Tours book reviews

Things We Say in the Dark by Kirsty Logan – The Dylan Thomas Prize Longlist Blog Tour

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 10th Mar 2020
No Comments on Things We Say in the Dark by Kirsty Logan – The Dylan Thomas Prize Longlist Blog Tour

Published: October 3rd, 2019
Publisher: Harvill Secker
Genre: Fairy tale, Ghost Story, Horror, Dystopian Fiction

I’m excited to share my review for the first of two books I’ll be reading as part of The Dylan Thomas Prize longlist blog tour. Thank you to Midas PR for the invitation to take part and Harvill Secker for the gifted copy of this book.

SYNOPSIS:

A shocking collection of dark stories, ranging from chilling contemporary fairytales to disturbing supernatural fiction, by a talented writer who has been compared to Angela Carter.

So here we go, into the dark.

Some things can’t be spoken about in the light of day. But we can visit our fears at night, in the dark. We can turn them over and weigh them in our hands and maybe that will protect us from them. But maybe not.

The characters in this collection find their aspirations for happy homes, happy families and happy memories dissected and imbued with shimmering menace. Alone in a remote house in Iceland a woman is unnerved by her isolation; another can only find respite from the clinging ghost that follows her by submerging herself in an overgrown pool. Couples wrestle with a lack of connection to their children; a schoolgirl becomes obsessed with the female anatomical models in a museum; and a cheery account of child’s day out is undercut by chilling footnotes.

These dark tales explore women’s fears with electrifying honesty and invention and speak to one another about female bodies, domestic claustrophobia, desire and violence. From a talented writer who has been compared to Angela Carter, Things We Say in the Dark is a powerful contemporary collection of feminist stories, ranging from vicious fairy tales to disturbing horror and tender ghost stories.

KIRSTY LOGAN WAS SELECTED AS ONE OF BRITAIN’S TEN MOST OUTSTANDING LGBTQ WRITERS by Val McDermid for the International Literature Showcase in 2019

MY REVIEW:

“Some things can’t be spoken about in the light of day. But we can visit our fears at night, in the dark . We can turn them over and weigh them in our hands and maybe that will protect us from them. But maybe not.”

Things We Say in the Dark is a striking, dark, curious and unsettling collection of short stories that explore fear through a creative lens. Each story has a deeper meaning under its surface, the author addressing subjects such as love, loss, longing, relationships, parenthood, sexism, homophobia and abuse.

This was my first time reading anything by this author and I was immediately pulled in by the immersive writing and loved the elements of horror and dark comedy that was infused into the stories. I enjoyed this collection but there were one or two stories that were a little bizarre for my taste. The stories that stood out in my mind were Birds Fell From The Sky and Each One Spoke In Your Voice, My Body Cannot Forget Your Body, Good Good Good, Nice Nice Nice and The Only Thing I Can’t Tell You Is Why. I laughed, I grimaced, my heart was broken and I was full of rage as the author made me feel a variety of emotions over the course of this collection.

Between each story there is commentary from the author where she talks about her life, her motivations for writing the book and her writing process. These sections seemed to tell another, more personal, story and I enjoyed the glimpse into the author’s mind and feeling like she was almost there with me as I read.

So if you’re looking for something intelligent, thought-provoking and different, and don’t mind stories that are sinister and creepy, then I would recommend this fascinating collection. I flew through it quickly but it is also ideal for dipping in and out of when you only have a small time to read.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Kirsty Logan is a Scottish novelist, poet, performer, literary editor, writing mentor, book reviewer and writer of short fiction. She lives in Glasgow. She wrote her undergraduate thesis on retold fairytales, and her work has been broadcast on BBC Radio 4.

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Tags Dystopian Fiction, Fairytale, Ghost Story, Harvill Secker, Horror, Kirsty Logan, March 2020, March books, Midas PR, The Dylan Thomas Prize, Things We Say in the Dark

Blog Tours book reviews

Little Friends by Jane Shemilt ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 7th Mar 2020
No Comments on Little Friends by Jane Shemilt ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Published: February 20th, 2020
Publisher: Penguin UK
Format: Paperback, Kindle
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Domestic Fiction, Suspense, Crime Fiction

Thank you to Penguin UK for the invitation to take part and the gifted copy of the novel.

SYNOPSIS:

Their children are friends first. They hit it off immediately, as kids do. And so the parents are forced to get to know each other. Three wildly different couples. Three marriages, floundering.

There are barbecues, dinner parties, a holiday in Greece. An affair begins, resentments flare, and despite it all the three women become closer.

Unnoticed, their children run wild. The couples are so busy watching each other that they forget to watch their children.

Until tragedy strikes.

Because while they have been looking the other way, evil has crept into their safe little world and every parent’s biggest nightmare is about to come true…

MY REVIEW:

“I used to think truth was a simple thing. That there could only be one truth, single and essential – like light, say, or water. Now I know it comes in layers, some more transparent than others. If you look carefully – and we didn’t – you can see through the top layer to the darkness beneath…”

The lives of three families entwine with devastating consequences in this readable novel.

When Eve begins private tuition for children with dyslexia, Melissa and Grace sign their children up. Over the course of the summer, the families become friends: having barbecues and even going on holiday together. But the smiles and laughter are hiding three marriages in trouble and the adults are so busy with their own problems that they fail to notice the fear in their children and the evil lurking in their midst. Secrets are slowly revealed amid tragedy and heartbreak, leaving the three families shattered and their lives irrevocably changed.

Jane Shemilt is an author who’s been on my radar for a while but I’ve never got around to reading so I jumped at the chance to take part in this blog tour. The writing is subdued, affecting and compelling, starting slow before reaching a steady pace and then ramping up the tension as we approach the finale. The characters are deftly drawn and distinct, so that the reader never gets lost despite the multiple points of view. Eve, Melissa and Grace are each hiding marital problems and insecurities, putting on a mask in front of the others. There husbands feature prominently but it is only the women who narrate the story. We are only given small glimpses of the children’s perspectives, but they have a big impact. I did predict most of the twists but it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book or the tension as I anticipated them being discovered.

The two characters that I was drawn to most of all were mother and daughter Melissa and Izzy. It was obvious to me immediately that Melissa was in an abusive marriage, with red flags flashing loudly about her husband Paul and their relationship. Maybe it is my own history of such a relationship that made me feel so drawn to her, but I spent the book hoping she’d find the strength to finally leave and find safety away from the private hell of her marriage. Izzy is the rebel; the one who leads the other children and embroils them in games they don’t want to play. She also notices everything and seems keen to stir up trouble. I didn’t like Izzy but I felt sorry for her as I believed some of her issues could be down to living in a house with an abusive father. The dynamic between her and Melissa was sad and it seemed she needed some tough love rather than being indulged like she was by both parents.

Little Friends is an intricate, raw and tragic story about families and dark secrets. It is a reminder of how evil can lurk in the most unexpected places and wearing surprising disguises, just waiting to tear lives apart.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

While working as a GP, Jane Shemilt completed a postgraduate diploma in Creative Writing at Bristol University and went on to study for the MA in Creative Writing at Bath Spa, gaining both with distinction. Her first novel, Daughter, was selected for the Richard and Judy Book Club, shortlisted for the Edgar Award and the Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize, and went on to become the bestselling debut novel of 2014. She and her husband, a professor of neurosurgery, have five children and live in Bristol.

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Tags crime fiction, Domestic Fiction, Four star reads, Jane Shemilt, Little Friends, March 2020, March books, mystery, Penguin UK, psychological thrillers, suspense

book reviews

The Furies by Katie Lowe ⭐⭐⭐

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 6th Mar 2020
No Comments on The Furies by Katie Lowe ⭐⭐⭐

Published: February 20th, 2020
Publisher: HarperCollins UK
Format: Paperback, Kindle
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Gothic Fiction, Paramanoranol Fiction, Coming-of-Age Fiction

Thank you to Tandem Collective UK for the invitation to take part in this readalong and to HarperCollinsUK for the gifted copy of the book.

SYNOPSIS:

IT’S 1997. VIOLET IS A NEW STUDENT AT ELM HOLLOW ACADEMY AND DESPERATE TO FIT IN.

Quiet, artistic, unremarkable. When invited to an advanced study group by her alluring art teacher, Annabel, she is at once terrified and delighted.

There she meets Robin, Grace, and Alex: charismatic outsiders who invite her into their clique.

But once the study sessions on the school’s history of seventeenth-century witchcraft and magic become more than just theory, Violet must decide what she’s prepared to do in order to stay popular.

And maybe she’ll solve the mystery of what happened to a former member of their group. The one who went missing.

MY REVIEW:

“Some things simply cannot be believed. Even when you know they’re true.”

The Furies is a story about power and vengeance. It follows four teenage girls full of insecurities and desperate to fit in who, like the mythological Furies, use their powers to punish evil deeds. It shows the force peer pressure can wield and the damage that can be done by choosing the wrong friends.

Violet is the new girl at Elm Hollow College, a prestigious school with a past steeped in rumours of witchcraft. She is soon befriended by Robin, who is the yin to Violet’s yang. The pair soon become inseparable and Violet becomes friends with Robin’s other friends Alex and Grace. After being invited to be part of a secret group by one of the teachers, Violet learns more about the school’s inauspicious history and the four girls begin to study witchcraft, using it to wield power and seek vengeance on those they deem deserving.

Violet and Robin are drawn to each other for very different reasons – one wants a follower, the other to be accepted. Violet is a quiet, intelligent girl who overthinks everything. She is still coming to terms with the death of her father and sister and is just trying to get through each day, preferring to blend into the shadows. Robin is gregarious, spontaneous and loves any kind of attention. She has a reputation as a bad girl that she thrives on. Violet is beguiled by her and blindly follows wherever she goes, finding herself drawn down a dark path of debauchery, obsession and death. I liked their differences and felt like deep down they both had a vulnerability that’s rooted in a need to belong and feel seen. At times it seemed a stretch how Violet would do whatever Robin wanted without thinking, but peer pressure is a strong thing and many teenagers find themselves in situations they’d never have even considered because a friend dared or encouraged them to do it.

The Furies opens with a stunning prologue full of beautiful prose that is at odds with the dark, macabre things being described. There is a promise of something sinister and foreboding. Unfortunately, the rest of the book is a slow-burn and feels a bit lacklustre after such a compelling start.

But while I didn’t love the book, I did like it. The atmospheric, lyrical prose draws you in and brings the world to life around you. I enjoyed the school lore and the interesting perspective on vengeance that is offered through the study of myth and witchcraft – something that was clearly well researched. I did find some things about this book a little disappointing, such as the story was told like a stroll down memory lane rather than the eerie, murder mystery that the prologue and synopsis teased. Also, I found the characters in the book unlikeable and was unable to bring myself to really care who lived or died or what had happened to the missing girl.

Overall, this was a well-written book that was just a little too slow and not witchy enough for me. It may be more suited to a younger reader and I would recommend this if you’re looking for a coming-of-age story rather than a mystery.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Katie is a writer living in Worcester, UK, whose debut novel The Furies is published by Harperfiction (UK), St Martin’s Press (US) and eight other territories worldwide.

A graduate of the University of Birmingham, Katie has a BA(Hons) in English and an MPhil in Literature & Modernity. She returned to Birmingham in 2019 to complete a PhD in English Literature, with her thesis on female rage in literary modernism and the #MeToo era.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:

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Tags 3 stars, Coming of Age fiction, debut novel, Gothic Fiction, Harper Collins UK, Katie Lowe, March 2020, March books, Paranormal fiction, psychological thrillers, suspense, Tandem Collective, Tandem Collective Readalong, The Furies

Blog Tours book reviews

In Five Years by Rebecca Searle ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 5th Mar 2020
No Comments on In Five Years by Rebecca Searle ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Published: March 10th, 2020
Publisher: Quercus
Format: Hardcover, Kindle
Genre: Romance, Domestic Fiction

SYNOPSIS:

Perfect for fans of Me Before You and One Day, this heart-breaking story of love, loss and life will have you questioning everything you thought you knew about destiny…

Where do you see yourself in five years?

Type-A Manhattan lawyer Dannie Kohan has been in possession of her meticulously crafted answer since she understood the question. On the day that she nails the most important job interview of her career and gets engaged to the perfect man, she’s well on her way to fulfilling her life goals.

That night Dannie falls asleep only to wake up in a different apartment with a different ring on her finger, and in the company of a very different man. The TV is on in the background, and she can just make out the date. It’s the same night – December 15th – but 2025, five years in the future.

It was just a dream, she tells herself when she wakes, but it felt so real… Determined to ignore the odd experience, she files it away in the back of her mind.

That is, until four and a half years later, when Dannie turns down a street and there, standing on the corner, is the man from her dream…

In Five Years is a love story, brimming with joy and heartbreak. But it is definitely not the love story you’re expecting.

MY REVIEW:

True love doesn’t always look the way we expect. And that is certainly true in this unexpected and mesmerising love story.

I am a wreck after finishing this book. I couldn’t put this book down and was utterly, obliviously lost in this beautiful, heartbreaking and lingering novel. I stayed up until the early hours, reading it in pretty much one sitting, as there was no chance of sleep until I knew what happened.

In Five Years begins like a typical love story but through a number of clever twists it morphs into something I never saw coming; a story that is both devastating and uplifting. The author’s strong sense of place brings New York to life, transporting me into Dannie’s world and making the one around me disappear. With her wonderful characters and powerful and compassionate storytelling she reaches into your heart and soul. I went through a rainbow of emotions and cried many tears while reading.

Dannie was a great character. She is a type-A personality who believes in living by numbers and has no doubts that her five-year plan will come to fruition. Even though she’s someone who’d drive me crazy in real life I quickly fell for her and my heart went out to her as her meticulously organised life began to spiral out of her control. But the character who really took my heart was Bella, Dannie’s best friend, who is illuminating, wild and kindhearted. I adored their friendship and how their stark differences complemented each other.

This is one of those books that if you give too much away then you ruin it. So I’m not going to say any more about the plot. What I will say is that the hype is real. This affecting and profound book is one of the best you’ll read. Ever. It is a stunning celebration of love, friendship and life. A story that reminds us we can’t plan and control everything.

Now I really need someone to turn this into a movie. Reese, are you listening?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Rebecca Serle is an author and television writer who lives in New York and Los Angeles. She is the author of six novels and codeveloped the hit TV adaptation of her YA series Famous in Love. She received her MFA from the New School in NYC. She loves Nancy Meyers films, bathrobes, and giving unsolicited relationship advice

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