Tag: historical fiction

The Paper Bracelet by Rachael English

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 6th Jul 2020
3 Comments on The Paper Bracelet by Rachael English

Published: July 9th, 2020
Publisher: Headline
Format: Paperback, Kindle, Audio
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery

Welcome to my stop on the tour for this poignant novel. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tour for the invitation to take part, and Headline for the gifted copy.

SYNOPSIS:

Every paper bracelet held a mother’s heartbreaking secret…

Inspired by heartrending true events in a home for unwed mothers, set in Ireland, Boston and London, this novel is perfect for readers of Jill Childs, Emily Gunnis and Kathryn Hughes.

For almost fifty years, Katie Carroll has kept a box tucked away inside her wardrobe. It dates from her time working as a nurse in a west of Ireland home for unwed mothers in the 1970s. The box contains a notebook holding the details of the babies and young women she met there. It also holds many of the babies’ identity bracelets.

Following the death of her husband, Katie makes a decision. The information she possesses could help reunite adopted people with their birth mothers, and she decides to post a message on an internet forum. Soon the replies are rolling in, and Katie finds herself returning many of the bracelets to their original owners. She encounters success and failure, heartbreak and joy. But is she prepared for old secrets to be uncovered in her own life?

MY REVIEW:

“For the first time, she was seeing how the sins of the past reverberated around them. She’d realised that the story wasn’t confined to black-and-white film and bleached-out Polaroids. The women weren’t exhibits in a museum.”

Moving, powerful, compelling, and utterly heartbreaking, The Paper Bracelet is a fictional novel based around the infamous unwed mother and baby homes and forced adoptions that took place in Ireland in our not too distant history.

Told in dual timelines from multiple points of view, we follow Katie, a former nurse at Carrigbrack, a home for unwed mothers in west Ireland, as she tries to reunite babies born during her time at the hospital with their paper identity bracelets, which she has kept secretly in a box for nearly fifty years, and twenty-year-old Patricia, an unmarried, pregnant woman who is taken to Carrigbrack under a cloud of shame. But there is more to Katie’s story of her time at the home than she’s admitting. Is she ready for her own secrets to be revealed?

What an emotional read. This is certainly one of those books where you need a pack of tissues close to hand whilst reading. I have obviously heard of the homes for unwed mothers in Ireland and some of the horrors that took place there, but it isn’t a subject I’d read a lot about. Rachael English has clearly done a lot of research, and her wealth of knowledge, along with richly drawn and believable characters, made the novel feel so authentic it was like I was reading Katie and Patricia’s memoirs, rather than a work of fiction. This was my first read by the author and I will be buying her previous books after falling in love with her wonderful storytelling.

While the whole novel is moving, it was the flashbacks to Patricia’s time at Carrigbrack and the stories of what happened to the young women forced to live in the homes, that touched me most of all. Patricia is a twenty-year-old woman studying to be a nurse when she falls pregnant. Knowing that if this had happened just a decade or two later, she would have not been sent to a home and been allowed to make her own choice about whether or not she kept her child was devastating. The lack of autonomy she had, even as a grown woman, was unimaginable to those of us living in the UK in 2020. While there is nothing graphic, it was still difficult, and eye-opening, to read about the bleak, cruel life they were forced to live at the home and the appalling way in which they were treated. I don’t want to say more about the storyline or characters as I don’t want to ruin the book for those yet to read it.

The Paper Bracelet is a poignant, affecting and beautifully written novel. There are still many people living today that are living with the repercussions of the events depicted and it is vital we remember them and what they were subjected to.

Rating: ✮✮✮✮.5

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Rachael English is a presenter on Ireland’s most popular radio programme, Morning Ireland. She lives in Dublin, but was born in England and grew up in County Clare on Ireland’s west coast. Her first novel, GOING BACK, was shortlisted for the most-promising newcomer award at the 2013 Bord Gáis Irish Book Awards.

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Tags 4.5 star review, Headline, historical fiction, July 2020, July Books, mystery, Rachael English, Random Things Tours, The Paper Bracelet

Blog Tours book reviews

The Colours by Juliet Bates

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 16th Jun 2020
3 Comments on The Colours by Juliet Bates

Published: April 9th, 2020
Publisher: Fleet
Format: Hardcover, Kindle
Genre: Historical Fiction, Domestic Fiction, War Story, Coming-of-Age Story

Today I’m thrilled to be opening the blog tour for this beautiful novel. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part and Fleet for the gifted copy of the book .

SYNOPSIS:

Ellen sees the world differently from everyone else, but living in a tiny town in the north-east of England, in a world on the cusp of war, no one has time for an orphaned girl who seems a little strange. When she is taken in to look after a rich, elderly widow all seems to be going better, despite the musty curtains and her aging employer completely out of touch with the world. But pregnancy out of wedlock spoils all this, and Ellen is unable to cope. How will Jack, her son, survive – alone in the world as his mother was? Can they eventually find their way back to each other?

The Colours is a sweeping novel of how we can lose ourselves, and our loved ones, for fans of Kate Atkinson and Virginia Baily.

MY REVIEW:

Told through the eyes of Ellen and her son Jack, the narrative of this beautifully written novel moves between timelines and points of view to tell the story of one family over the course of almost seventy years.

The Pearson family goes through a lot in this book. Loss, abandonment and mental illness are addressed in an authentic and heart-rending manner and we see Ellen and Jack both go through life-changing trauma at a young age – Ellen becoming an orphan and being sent to a convent and Jack being left with a stepfather he doesn’t get on with after his mother is sent to an asylum – and see the ripple effect of these issues. The reminder of how stigmatised and poorly treated mental illness stood out in particular to me and left me feeling very thankful for the advancements that have been made, however imperfect they may be.

As well as being the title of the book, colour is a theme that runs through the heart of this novel. Ellen has synesthesia, which means everything she sees and hears has a colour, while Jack is an artist, which combined with the lyrical and descriptive prose make this an evocative read which enables you to see the world through the narrators’ eyes.

I enjoyed this novel but did find it felt a bit slow at times. I think that part of this was because I found Ellen to be a more engaging character who I instantly connected with, while I struggled to connect with Jack. It picked up about half way through and I was enjoying his sections more.

Wonderfully written and elegant, The Colours is a moving story about family, loss and healing.

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✫

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Juliet Bates studied art and art history in Bristol, Birmingham and Strasbourg, and has since lectured at graduate and post graduate levels. She moved to France in 2000 to a post as professeur at the Ecole régionale des beaux-arts Caen la mer. She has published a number of short stories in British and Canadian literary journals.

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Tags Coming of Age fiction, Domestic Fiction, Fleet, Four star reads, historical fiction, Juliet Bates, June 2020, June Books, The Colours, War Fiction

Blog Tours

Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – July 2020

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 14th Jun 2020
No Comments on Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – July 2020

Another month, another round of anticipated books.

July is a month filled with great books and July 9th is rivaling February 6th for it’s bumper publication day spot; I could have easily added another four or five books out that day.

So here are the books out in July that I’m most excited about:

Spirited by Julie Cohen
Published: July 9th, 2020
Publisher: Orion
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance

It’s no secret I’m a huge fan of Historical Fiction, and as soon as I saw the cover and read the synopsis of this book I was dying to read it. I’ve been lucky enough to get a spot on the blog tour for this so look out for my review on July 16th.

SYNOPSIS:
Viola has an impossible talent. Searching for meaning in her grief, she uses her photography to feel closer to her late father, taking solace from the skills he taught her – and to keep her distance from her husband. But her pictures seem to capture things invisible to the eye . . .

Henriette is a celebrated spirit medium, carrying nothing but her secrets with her as she travels the country. When she meets Viola, a powerful connection is sparked between them – but Victorian society is no place for reckless women.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, invisible threads join Viola and Henriette to another woman who lives in secrecy, hiding her dangerous act of rebellion in plain sight.

Faith. Courage. Love. What will they risk for freedom?

Driven by passionate, courageous female characters, SPIRITED is your next unforgettable read!

The Shadow Friend by Alex North
Published: July 9th, 2020
Publisher: Michael Joseph
Genre: Thriller, Suspense, Horror Fiction, Police Procedural

The Whisper Man was one of my favourite books of last year so when I heard the author had a second book coming out it became a must-read. This one sounds just as chilling as his last book and I can’t wait to read it.

SYNOPSIS:
The victim was his friend. So was the murderer.

Twenty-five years ago, troubled teenager Charlie Crabtree committed a shocking and unprovoked murder.

For Paul Adams, it’s a day he’ll never forget. He’s never forgiven himself for his part in what happened to his friend and classmate. He’s never gone back home.

But when his elderly mother has a fall, it’s finally time to stop running.

It’s not long before things start to go wrong. A copycat killer has struck, bringing back painful memories. Paul’s mother insists there’s something in the house.

And someone is following him.

Which reminds him of the most unsettling thing about that awful day twenty-five years ago.

It wasn’t just the murder.

It was the fact that afterwards, Charlie Crabtree was never seen again . . .

The Waiting Rooms by Eve Smith
Published: July 9th, 2020
Publisher: Orenda
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Mystery, Science Fiction, Urban Fiction, Dystopian Fiction

Orenda are one of my favourite publishers. I’ve loved everything I’ve read that they publish. When I heard about this earlier this year I instantly pre-ordered it and started the count down. Who would have thought it would become so timely by the time it was released. I’m on the blog tour for this one and my review will be published on June 18th.

SYNOPSIS:
Decades of spiraling drug resistance have unleashed a global antibiotic crisis. Ordinary infections are untreatable, and a scratch from a pet can kill. A sacrifice is required to keep the majority safe: no one over seventy is allowed new antibiotics. The elderly are sent to hospitals nicknamed ‘The Waiting Rooms’ … hospitals where no one ever gets well.

Twenty years after the crisis takes hold, Kate begins a search for her birth mother, armed only with her name and her age. As Kate unearths disturbing facts about her mother’s past, she puts her family in danger and risks losing everything. Because Kate is not the only secret that her mother is hiding. Someone else is looking for her, too.

Sweeping from an all-too-real modern Britain to a pre-crisis South Africa, The Waiting Rooms is epic in scope, richly populated with unforgettable characters, and a tense, haunting vision of a future that is only a few mutations away.

If I Can’t Have You by Charlotte Levin
Published: July 9th, 2020
Publisher: Mantle
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Urban Fiction, Domestic Fiction, Romance

I am so excited to be taking part in the blog tour for this debut thriller. Look out for my review on July 16th.

SYNOPSIS:
What if the problem with your love life is you?

If I Can’t Have You by Charlotte Levin is an all-consuming novel about loneliness, obsession and how far we go for the ones we love.

Samuel, the day we met I knew I’d finally found what I’ve been waiting for.

You.

Happiness, at last.

Then you left me.

And now I am alone.

Everyone I love leaves in the end.

But not this time.

I’m not giving up on us.

I’m not giving up on you.

When you love someone, you never let them go.

That’s why for me, this is just beginning.

How To Disappear by Gillian McAllister
Publisher: Michael Joseph
Published: July 9th, 2020
Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Legal Thriller

Over the last few years Gillian McAllister has become a must-read author for me and her latest book sounds like it could be her best yet.

SYNOPSIS:
You can run, you can hide, but can you disappear for good?

Lauren’s daughter Zara witnessed a terrible crime. But speaking up comes with a price, and when Zara’s identity is revealed online, it puts a target on her back.

The only choice is to disappear.

To keep Zara safe, Lauren will give up everything and everyone she loves, even her husband.

There will be no goodbyes. Their pasts will be rewritten. New names, new home, new lives.

The rules are strict for a reason. They are being hunted. One mistake – a text, an Instagram like – could bring their old lives crashing into the new.

They can never assume someone isn’t watching, waiting.

As Lauren will learn, disappearing is easy. Staying hidden is harder . . .

Somebody’s Daughter by Carol Wyer (Detective Natalie Ward 7)
Published: July 9th, 2020
Publisher: Bookouture
Genre: Mystery, Crime Fiction, Police Procedural

The Detective Natalie Ward Series is one of my favourites and any new installment makes my most anticipated list that month. Keep an eye out for my review as part of the blog tour on July 11th.

SYNOPSIS:
One by one the girls disappeared…

When the frail body of a teenage girl is discovered strangled in a parking lot, shards of ice form in Detective Natalie Ward’s veins. As Natalie looks at the freckles scattered on her cheeks and the pale pink lips tinged with blue, she remembers that this innocent girl is somebody’s daughter…

The girl is identified as missing teenager Amelia Saunders, who has run away from home and her controlling father. Natalie’s heart sinks further when it becomes clear that Amelia has been working on the streets, manipulated by her violent new boyfriend Tommy.

A day later, another vulnerable girl is found strangled on a park bench. Like Amelia, Katie Bray was a runaway with connections to Tommy, and Natalie is determined to find him and track down the monster attacking these scared and lonely girls.

But when a wealthy young woman is found murdered the next morning, the word ‘guilty’ scrawled on her forehead, Natalie realises that the case is more complex than she first thought. Determined to establish a connection between her three victims, Natalie wastes no time in chasing down the evidence, tracing everyone who crossed their paths. Then, a key suspect’s body turns up in the canal, a mole in Natalie’s department leaks vital information and everything seems to be against her. Can Natalie stop this clever and manipulative killer before they strike again.

All My Lies Are True by Dorothy Koomson (Ice Cream Girls 2)
Published: July 9th, 2020
Publisher: Headline
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime Fiction

In May I took part in a readalong of The Ice Cream Girls with Tandem Collective. I loved the book so much that this one instantly went on my anticipated list for this month. You can imagine my excitement when I was offered the chance to take part in a readalong of the sequel. Keep an eye out for my posts on Instagram starting around June 25th.

SYNOPSIS:
Verity is telling lies…

And that’s why she’s about to be arrested for attempted murder.

Serena has been lying for years. . .
And that may have driven her daughter, Verity, to do something unthinkable…

Poppy’s lies have come back to haunt her . . .
So will her quest for the truth hurt everyone she loves?

Everyone lies.
But whose lies are going to end in tragedy?

The Resident by David Jackson
Published: July 16th, 2020
Publisher: Viper
Genre: Mystery, Thriller

This is another thriller I’m excited to be on the blog tour for. Look out for my review on publication day.

SYNOPSIS:
THERE’S A SERIAL KILLER ON THE RUN
AND HE’S HIDING IN YOUR HOUSE

Thomas Brogan is a serial killer. Having left a trail of bodies in his wake, and with the police hot on his heels, it seems like Thomas has nowhere left to hide. That is until he breaks into an abandoned house at the end of a terrace on a quiet street. And when he climbs up into the loft, he realises that the can drop down into all the other houses on the street through the shared attic space.

That’s when the real fun begins. Because the one thing that Thomas enjoys even more than killing, is playing games with his victims. And his new neighbours have more than enough dark secrets to make this game his best one yet…

Do you fear The Resident? Soon you’ll be dying to meet him.

The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue
Published: July 23rd, 2020
Published: Picador
Genre: Historical Fiction, Medical Fiction, Dystopian Fiction

Room is one of my favourite books of all time and I’m a huge fan of historical and medical fiction, so I have high hopes for this novel.

SYNOPSIS:
In an Ireland doubly ravaged by war and disease, Nurse Julia Power works at an understaffed hospital in the city centre, where expectant mothers who have come down with an unfamiliar Flu are quarantined together. Into Julia’s regimented world step two outsiders: Doctor Kathleen Lynn, on the run from the police, and a young volunteer helper, Bridie Sweeney.

In the darkness and intensity of this tiny ward, over three days, these women change each other’s lives in unexpected ways. They lose patients to this baffling pandemic, but they also shepherd new life into a fearful world. With tireless tenderness and humanity, carers and mothers alike somehow do their impossible work.

In The Pull of the Stars, Emma Donoghue once again finds the light in the darkness in this classic story of hope and survival against all odds.

Precious You by Helen Monks Takhar
Published: July 23rd, 2020
Publisher: HQ
Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Noir Ficiton

Ever since I first heard about this debut thriller last year I’ve been desperate to read it. I’m hoping to be on the blog tour for this one so keep an eye out for my review next month.

SYNOPSIS:

She’s got your job. She wants your life…

When Katherine first meets her new intern Lily, she’s captivated. Young, beautiful and confident, Lily reminds Katherine of everything she once was – and it’s not long before she develops a dark fascination with her new colleague.

But is Lily as perfect as she seems, or does she have a sinister hidden agenda? As Katherine is drawn into an obsessive power struggle with the intern, a disturbing picture emerges of two women hiding dark secrets – and who are desperate enough to do anything to come out on top…

Breathlessly addictive and deeply unsettling, Precious You is a thriller like no other. Taut, terrifying and with shocking twists at every turn, it will keep you guessing until the very last page.

The Orphan Collector by Ellen Marie Wiseman
Published: July 28th, 2020
Publisher: Kensington Publishing
Genre: Historical Fiction, Coming-of-Age Fiction

As soon as I read the synopsis of this novel I knew I had to read it. As with The Waiting Rooms and The Pull of the Stars it also feels like a particularly timely read right now.

SYNOPSIS:
Ellen Marie Wiseman, acclaimed author of What She Left Behind and The Life She Was Given, weaves the stories of two very different women into a page-turning novel as suspenseful as it is poignant, set amid one of history’s deadliest pandemics.

In the fall of 1918, thirteen-year-old German immigrant Pia Lange longs to be far from Philadelphia’s overcrowded streets and slums, and from the anti-German sentiment that compelled her father to enlist in the U.S. Army, hoping to prove his loyalty. But an even more urgent threat has arrived. Spanish influenza is spreading through the city. Soon, dead and dying are everywhere. With no food at home, Pia must venture out in search of supplies, leaving her infant twin brothers alone . . .

Since her baby died days ago, Bernice Groves has been lost in grief and bitterness. If doctors hadn’t been so busy tending to hordes of immigrants, perhaps they could have saved her son. When Bernice sees Pia leaving her tenement across the way, she is buoyed by a shocking, life-altering decision that leads her on a sinister mission: to transform the city’s orphans and immigrant children into what she feels are “true Americans.”

As Pia navigates the city’s somber neighborhoods, she cannot know that her brothers won’t be home when she returns. And it will be a long and arduous journey to learn what happened–even as Bernice plots to keep the truth hidden at any cost. Only with persistence, and the courage to face her own shame and fear, will Pia put the pieces together and find the strength to risk everything to see justice at last.

The Butterfly Lampshade by Aimee Bender
Published July 30th, 2020
Publisher: Hutchinson
Genre: Literary Fiction

I’ll admit it was the cover that initially drew me to this book, but it was the synopsis that earned it’s place on this list. This one sounds like a powerful novel that will linger long after reading.

SYNOPSIS:
On the night her mother is taken to a mental hospital after a psychotic episode, eight year-old Francie is staying with her babysitter. Next to the couch on which she’s sleeping, there is a lamp that catches her eye, its shade adorned with butterflies. When she wakes, Francie sees a dead butterfly floating in a glass of water. She drinks it before the babysitter can see.

Twenty years later, Francie is compelled to make sense of that moment, and two other incidents – her discovery of a desiccated beetle from a school paper, and a bouquet of dried roses from some curtains. Her recall is exact: she is sure these things were real. But despite her certainty, she wrestles with the hold these memories have over her, and with what they say about her place in the world.

Told in lush, lilting prose, The Butterfly Lampshade is a heartfelt and heartbreaking examination of the sometimes overwhelming power of the material world, and of a broken love between mother and child.

Tags Aimee Bender, Alex North, All My Lies Are True, book series, Carol Wyer, Charlotte Levin, Coming of Age fiction, crime fiction, Crime series, David Jackson, debut novel, Detective Natalie Ward, Dorothy Koomson, Dystopian Fiction, Ellen Marie Wiseman, Emma Donoghue, Emma's Anticipated Treasures, Eve Smith, favourite authors, Favourite series, Gillian McAllister, Headline, Helen Monks Takhar, historical fiction, Horror Fiction, How To Disappear, HQ, Hutchinson, If I Can't Have You, Julie Cohen, July 2020, July Books, Kensington Publishing, Legal Thriller], Literary Fiction, Mantle, medical fiction, Michael Joseph, mystery, Noir Fiction, Orenda, orion books, Picador, Police Procedural, Precious You, psychological thrillers, Recommended authors, romance, science fiction, Somebody's Daughter, Spirited, suspense, Tandem Collective, Tandem Collective Readalong, The Butterfly Lampshade, The Ice Cream Girls, The Orphan Collector, The Pull of the Stars, The Resident, The Shadow Friend, The Waiting Rooms, thriller, Urban Fiction, Viper

Blog Tours book reviews

A Theatre For Dreamers by Polly Sampson

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 2nd Jun 2020
2 Comments on A Theatre For Dreamers by Polly Sampson

Published: April 2nd, 2020
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audio
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for A Theatre For Dreamers. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part and Bloomsbury for the eBook ARC.

SYNOPSIS:

1960. The world is dancing on the edge of revolution, and nowhere more so than on the Greek island of Hydra, where a circle of poets, painters and musicians live tangled lives, ruled by the writers Charmian Clift and George Johnston, troubled king and queen of bohemia. Forming within this circle is a triangle: its points the magnetic, destructive writer Axel Jensen, his dazzling wife Marianne Ihlen, and a young Canadian poet named Leonard Cohen.

Into their midst arrives teenage Erica, with little more than a bundle of blank notebooks and her grief for her mother. Settling on the periphery of this circle, she watches, entranced and disquieted, as a paradise unravels.

Burning with the heat and light of Greece, A Theatre for Dreamers is a spellbinding novel about utopian dreams and innocence lost – and the wars waged between men and women on the battlegrounds of genius.

MY REVIEW:

When she was eighteen-years-old Erica followed her first love to Hydra, an island inhabited by dreamers: writers, poets, painters and musicians who all came to create under the heat of the Greek sun. The novel tells the story of their lives on the island that summer; the trials and tribulations, romance, heartache and self-discovery, all through Erica’s eyes.

This captivating and evocative novel was pure escapism. Beautifully and elegantly written, the rich, vivid imagery transported me to the Greek Island of Hydra and the heady summer of 1960 so clearly that I could feel the sun on my skin and taste the salt on my tongue. The author brings to life a time of freedom, innocence and discovery when everything seemed so much simpler. After finishing I was left with a longing for that summer like I myself had lived it.

The fantastic cast of characters leap from the page and it was only after reading the author’s notes that I realised that these are real people and the story is based in fact. It is clear that the author has extensively researched her characters and I found myself heading to google to learn more about them. I loved Erica. When she arrives on the island she is fleeing from the sadness of her mother’s death and her father’s tyranny and is in the throes of passionate first love. In this bohemian society she finds a home like she has never experienced before and I enjoyed watching her journey of self-discovery. Erica’s pain at her mother’s death and longing for her is a theme that runs throughout the book. She is searching for that mother figure she’s lost in Charmian but doesn’t really get back what she hoped for in return and it made me want to put my arms around her and mother her myself.

A Theatre For Dreamers is an atmospheric, immersive and delightful novel. It offers an escape and enables you to visit the shores of a Greek Island during a time when we are all unable to go much further than our back gardens.

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✫

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Polly Samson is an English novelist, lyricist and journalist. She is married to musician David Gilmour, and has written the lyrics to many of Gilmour’s works, both as a solo artist and with the group Pink Floyd.

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Tags A Theatre For Dreamers, April 2020, Bloomsbury UK, Four star reads, historical fiction, June 2020, June Books, Polly Samson, romance

Blog Tours book reviews

The Glass House by Eve Chase

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 30th May 2020
2 Comments on The Glass House by Eve Chase

Published: May 14th, 2020
Publisher: Michael Joseph
Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audio
Genre: Mystery, Gothic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Suspense, Domestic Fiction

Today is my stop on the blog tour for this captivating mystery. Thank you to Gaby at Michael Joseph for the invitation to take part and the eBook ARC.

SYNOPSIS:

Outside a remote manor house in an idyllic wood, a baby girl is found.

The Harrington family takes her in and disbelief quickly turns to joy. They’re grieving a terrible tragedy of their own and the beautiful baby fills them with hope, lighting up the house’s dark, dusty corners.

Desperate not to lose her to the authorities, they keep her secret, suspended in a blissful summer world where normal rules of behaviour – and the law – don’t seem to apply.

But within days a body will lie dead in the grounds.

And their dreams of a perfect family will shatter like glass.

Years later, the truth will need to be put back together again, piece by piece . . .

From the author of Black Rabbit Hall, The Glass House is an emotional, thrilling book about family secrets and belonging – and how we find ourselves when we are most lost.

MY REVIEW:

“Only the trees know what happened in the woods that night.”

August 1971. The Harrington family are spending their summer at Foxcote Manor in the Forest of Dean in the hope that the idyllic setting will help them recover after a family tragedy. But it doesn’t seem to be working and they feel more fractured than ever.

But then a baby girl is found on a tree stump in the woods by their house. The family decide to keep her secret and take her in rather than alerting the authorities and it seems like their answer to their healing has arrived.

But then a few days later a body is found in the woods and their idyll is shattered. None of their lives will be the same again.

The Glass House is an atmospheric, mysterious, compelling and riveting story about deep, dark family secrets that hold the key to the truth of a mystery that has lingered for almost fifty years. It is one of the most beautifully written mysteries that I’ve read and each word has been perfectly polished so that not one is wasted. The author has created a memorable cast of characters and a richly drawn sense of place that gave the novel a mysterious, eerie and haunting ambience.

Told in dual timelines by multiple narrators, the complex and layered story is tightly plotted and I loved how the author slowly wove together the mysterious and tragic events of 1971 with those in the present day. I was utterly immersed in its pages and inhabited the world inside this book along with the characters.

The Glass House is an enthralling, dark, and twisting mystery. It was one of my most anticipated books this year and did not disappoint. I highly recommend this exquisitely written book.

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮

MEET THE AUTHOR:

From Amazon:

I’m an author who writes rich and suspenseful novels about families – dysfunctional, passionate – and the sort of explosive secrets that can rip them apart. I write stories I’d love to read. Mysteries. Page-turners. Worlds you can lose yourself in. Reading time is so precious: I try to make my books worth of that sweet spot.

My office is a garden studio/shed. There are roses outside. I live in Oxford with my three children, husband, and a ridiculously hairy golden retriever, Harry.

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Tags Domestic Fiction, Emma's Anticipated Treasures, Eve Chase, Five star reads, Gothic Fiction, historical fiction, May 2020, May books, Michael Joseph, mystery, suspense, The Glass House

Blog Tours book reviews

Tsarina by Ellen Alpsten ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 23rd May 2020
5 Comments on Tsarina by Ellen Alpsten ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Published: May 14th, 2020
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audio
Genre: Historical Fiction, Biographical Fiction

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this magnificent debut. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part and Bloomsbury for the gifted copy.

SYNOPSIS:

Lover. Murderer. Mother. Meet TSARINA, the most powerful woman history ever forgot.

Spring 1699: Illegitimate, destitute and strikingly beautiful, Marta has survived the brutal Russian winter in her remote Baltic village. Sold by her family into household labour at the age of fifteen, Marta survives by committing a crime that will force her to go on the run.

A world away, Russia’s young ruler, Tsar Peter I, passionate and iron-willed, has a vision for transforming the traditionalist Tsardom of Russia into a modern, Western empire. Countless lives will be lost in the process.

Falling prey to the Great Northern War, Marta cheats death at every turn, finding work as a washerwoman at a battle camp. One night at a celebration, she encounters Peter the Great. Relying on her wits and her formidable courage, and fuelled by ambition, desire and the sheer will to live, Marta will become Catherine I of Russia. But her rise to the top is ridden with peril; how long will she survive the machinations of Peter’s court, and more importantly, Peter himself?

MY REVIEW:

“He is dead. My beloved husband, the mighty Tsar of all the Russias, has died – and just in time.”

Tsarina is a story of power, lust, sex, murder and betrayal. Of rags-to-riches. Of Catherine, the first Tsarina of all the Russias.

It begins in February 1725, on the night that Peter the Great, Tsar of All the Russias, dies. Catherine, her children and his advisors try to conceal his death for as long as possible to delay their fate. It is a matter of life and death. The story then moves between that night and flashbacks to Catherine’s life, beginning when she was just thirteen-years-old, still known as Marta and living with her serf family. We then follow her journey from poor peasant girl to Tsarina; a story that would be deemed too far fetched if you tried to sell it to a publisher. But every word of this novel is based in fact, with just a few liberties taken as the details of Catherine’s early life is shrouded in mystery.

I have always had a love for history and ever since studying the fall of the Tsars for my History A Level I have been fascinated with their story. So when I saw this book advertised I knew from just the title that I HAD to read it and after reading the synopsis it became one of my most anticipated books of the year. Thankfully, this magnificent debut surpassed every one of my high expectations. It was an all-encompassing read. A book that I took my time with, taking time to soak in every word, but also one that I couldn’t put down or stop thinking about when I had to do so.

Ellen Alpsten is a new talent to watch. Exquisitely written and wonderfully crafted, her meticulous research shines through on every page, bringing back to life those who lived and died three hundred years ago and making you feel like they are right there beside you with her powerful storytelling. I was hooked from the start and became totally lost in Catherine’s story, living every word of this book while reading it. Every moment of love and joy, every piercing pain of heartbreak and every gut-wrenching horror she witnessed and experienced, I felt along with her.

“Together, we have lived and loved, and together, we ruled.”

After reading this novel it seems unimaginable that Catherine’s story has been forgotten. That such a strong, brave and remarkable woman had been consigned to a footnote in history. At that time life for most of Russia’s people was hard, harsh and bleak. Even those in the upper classes lived in fear of falling out the Tsar’s favour and losing not only their wealth but their lives. Peter had a new vision for Russia and was a ruthless leader who was willing to sacrifice anyone and everything to achieve it. Even as his wife Catherine walked a tightrope knowing she could be stripped of everything and either sent to a convent or killed should the fancy take him. The brutality of life at that time and the lack of rights that were held by even the highest-ranking women is starkly illuminated in Catherine’s story in sobering detail.

Tsarina is a masterpiece of historical fiction. Atmospheric, intoxicating, unsettling, and compelling, this outstanding novel is one that will linger long after you close it’s pages. This gloriously decadent debut is one you don’t want to miss.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Ellen Alpsten was born and raised in the Kenyan highlands. Today, Ellen works as an author and as a journalist for international publications such as Vogue, Standpoint, and CN Traveller. She lives in London with her husband, three sons, and a moody fox red Labrador. Tsarina is her debut novel.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:

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BUY THE BOOK:

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Tags biographical fiction, Bloomsbury UK, debut novel, Ellen Alpsten, Emma's Anticipated Treasures, favourite books, Five star reads, historical fiction, May 2020, May books, recommended books, Tsarina

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Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – June 2020

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 20th May 2020
2 Comments on Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – June 2020

It seems impossible that we’re almost half way through the year already. Will lockdown continuing, books are providing a much needed escape for so many of us right now. Here are the books out in June that I’m most excited about escaping into.

The House Guest by Mark Edwards
Published: June 3rd, 2020
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Genre: Psychological Thriller

One of my fave authors. I’m lucky to be one of Mark’s early readers and have already read this gripping thriller.

SYNOPSIS:
A perfect summer. A perfect stranger. A perfect nightmare.

When British twenty-somethings Ruth and Adam are offered the chance to spend the summer housesitting in New York, they can’t say no. Young, in love and on the cusp of professional success, they feel as if luck is finally on their side.

So the moment that Eden turns up on the doorstep, drenched from a summer storm, it seems only right to share a bit of that good fortune. Beautiful and charismatic, Eden claims to be a friend of the homeowners, who told her she could stay whenever she was in New York.

They know you’re not supposed to talk to strangers—let alone invite them into your home—but after all, Eden’s only a stranger until they get to know her.

As suspicions creep in that Eden may not be who she claims to be, they begin to wonder if they’ve made a terrible mistake…

The Cat and the City by Nick Bradley
Published: June 4th, 2020
Publisher: Atlantic Books
Genre: Urban Fiction

I’m a big cat lover and this book sounds like a quirky read that’s right up my street.

SYNOPSIS:
In Tokyo – one of the world’s largest megacities – a stray cat is wending her way through the back alleys. And, with each detour, she brushes up against the seemingly disparate lives of the city-dwellers, connecting them in unexpected ways.

But the city is changing. As it does, it pushes her to the margins where she chances upon a series of apparent strangers – from a homeless man squatting in an abandoned hotel, to a shut-in hermit afraid to leave his house, to a convenience store worker searching for love. The cat orbits Tokyo’s denizens, drawing them ever closer.

All Fall Down by M. J. Arlidge (D.I. Helen Grace Series 9)
Published: June 11th, 2020
Publisher: Orion
Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Young Adult Ficiton

M.J Arlidge is one of my favourite authors and the Helen Grace series is my favourite crime series. love it’s set near where I used to live and evokes so many memories too. Excited to be on the blog tour for this on July 3rd.

SYNOPSIS:
“You have one hour to live.”

Those are the only words on the phone call. Then they hang up. Surely, a prank? A mistake? A wrong number? Anything but the chilling truth… That someone is watching, waiting, working to take your life in one hour.

But why?

The job of finding out falls to DI Helen Grace: a woman with a track record in hunting killers. However, this is A case where the killer seems to always be one step ahead of the police and the victims.

With no motive, no leads, no clues – nothing but pure fear – an hour can last a lifetime…

Valentine by Elizabeth Wetmore
Published: June 11th, 2020
Publisher: Fourth Estate
Genre: Historical Fiction, Southern Fiction, Youth Novel

I’m really enjoying historical fiction at the moment and this one sounds brilliant.

SYNOPSIS:
With the haunting emotional power of American Dirt and the atmospheric suspense of Where the Crawdads Sing: a compulsive debut novel that explores the aftershock of a brutal crime on the women of a small Texas oil town.

Mercy is hard in a place like this. I wished him dead before I ever saw his face…

Mary Rose Whitehead isn’t looking for trouble – but when it shows up at her front door, she finds she can’t turn away.

Corinne Shepherd, newly widowed, wants nothing more than to mind her own business, and for everyone else to mind theirs. But when the town she has spent years rebelling against closes ranks she realises she is going to have to take a side.

Debra Ann is motherless and lonely and in need of a friend. But in a place like Odessa, Texas, choosing who to trust can be a dangerous game.

Gloria Ramírez, fourteen years old and out of her depth, survives the brutality of one man only to face the indifference and prejudices of many.

When justice is as slippery as oil, and kindness becomes a hazardous act, sometimes courage is all we have to keep us alive.

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
Published: June 11th, 2020
Publisher: Dialogue Books
Genre: Mystery, Youth Novel

I’ve read some great reviews for this one and it is now one of my most anticipated reads of the month.

SYNOPSIS:
The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it’s not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it’s everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. Ten years later, one sister lives with her black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape. The other secretly passes for white, and her white husband knows nothing of her past. Still, even separated by so many miles and just as many lies, the fates of the twins remain intertwined. What will happen to the next generation, when their own daughters’ story lines intersect?

Weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family, from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s, Brit Bennett produces a story that is at once a riveting, emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passing. Looking well beyond issues of race, The Vanishing Half considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person’s decisions, desires, and expectations, and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins.

The Phone Box at the Edge of the World by Laura Imai Messina
Published: June 25th, 2020
Publisher: Manilla Press
Genre: Literary Fiction, Psychological Fiction

I feel very lucky to have an ARC of this debut and am doing a buddy read with my book friend Beth in early June.

SYNOPSIS:
The most moving and powerful novel of our times, inspired by true events.

We all have something to tell those we have lost . . .

When Yui loses her mother and daughter in the tsunami, she wonders how she will ever carry on. Yet, in the face of this unthinkable loss, life must somehow continue.

Then one day she hears about a man who has an old disused telephone box in his garden. There, those who have lost loved ones find the strength to speak to them and begin to come to terms with their grief. As news of the phone box spreads, people will travel to it from miles around.

Soon Yui will make her own pilgrimage to the phone box, too. But once there she cannot bring herself to speak into the receiver. Then she finds Takeshi, a bereaved husband whose own daughter has stopped talking in the wake of their loss.

What happens next will warm your heart, even when it feels as though it is breaking.

For when you’ve lost everything – what can you find . . ?

The Silent Wife by Karin Slaughter (Will Trent Series 17)
Published: June 25th, 2020
Publisher: HarperCollinsUK
Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Crime Fiction, Books Series

Karin is one of my fave crime writers and I will pick up anything she writes. I’m excited to take part in the blog tour for this one on June 29th.

SYNOPSIS:
He watches.
A woman runs alone in the woods. She convinces herself she has no reason to be afraid, but she’s wrong. A predator is stalking the women of Grant County. He lingers in the shadows, until the time is just right to snatch his victim.

He waits.
A decade later, the case has been closed. The killer is behind bars. But then another young woman is brutally attacked and left for dead, and the MO is identical.

He takes.
Although the original trail has gone cold – memories have faded, witnesses have disappeared – agent Will Trent and forensic pathologist Sara Linton must re-open the cold case. But the clock is ticking, and the killer is determined to find his perfect silent wife….

The Heatwave by Katerina Diamond
Published: June 25th, 2020
Publisher: Avon Books
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Mystery, Police Procedural, Adventure Fiction

I’ve heard a lot of good things about this author and this sounds like a perfect summer read.

SYNOPSIS:
One summer. One stranger. One killer…

Two bad things happened that summer:
A stranger arrived. And the first girl disappeared.

In the wake of the crime that rocked her community, Felicity fled, knowing more than she let on.

But sixteen years later, her new life is shattered by the news that a second girl has gone missing in her hometown.

Now Felicity must go back, to face the truth about what happened all those years ago.

Only she holds the answers – and they’re more shocking than anyone could imagine.

The heatwave is back. And so is the killer.

Monstrous Souls by Rebecca Kelly
Published: June 25th, 2020
Publisher: Agora Books
Genre: Mystery, Thriller

I’m taking part in the blog tour for this fascinating thriller and my review will be posted in June 23rd.

SYNOPSIS:
What if you knew the truth but couldn’t remember?

Over a decade ago, Heidi was the victim of a brutal attack that left her hospitalised, her younger sister missing, and her best friend dead. But Heidi doesn’t remember any of that. She’s lived her life since then with little memory of her friends and family and no recollection of the crime.

Now, it’s all starting to come back.

As Heidi begins retracing the events that lead to the assault, she is forced to confront the pain and guilt she’s long kept buried. But Heidi isn’t the only one digging up the past, and the closer she gets to remembering the truth, the more danger she’s in.

When the truth is worse than fiction, is the past worth reliving?

An addictive thriller about a case gone cold and the dangers lurking on our doorsteps, Monstrous Souls will have you gripped to the very end.

The Weekend by Charlotte Wood
Published: June 25th, 2020
Publisher: W&N
Genre: Literary Fiction

I love stories about friendship and have been really enjoying books with senior protagonists lately so I’m excited to check this one out.

SYNOPSIS:
Sylvie, Jude, Wendy and Adele have a lifelong friendship of the best kind: loving, practical, frank and steadfast. But when Sylvie dies, the ground shifts dangerously for the remaining three.

These women couldn’t be more different: Jude, a once-famous restaurateur with a spotless life and a long-standing affair with a married man; Wendy, an acclaimed feminist intellectual; Adele, a former star of the stage, now practically homeless.

Struggling to recall exactly why they’ve remained close all these years, the grieving women gather for one last weekend at Sylvie’s old beach house – not for a celebration of her life, but to clean the place out before it is sold.

But fraying tempers, an elderly dog, unwelcome guests and too much wine collide in a storm that brings long-buried hurts to the surface – a storm that will either remind them of the bond they share, or sweep away their friendship for good.

Tags Agora Books, All Fall Down, Atlatic, Avon, book series, Brit Bennett, Charlotte Wood, crime fiction, debut novel, DI Helen Grace Series, Dialogue Books, Elizabeth Wetmore, Emma's Anticipated Treasures, Fourth Estate, historical fiction, June 2020, June Books, Karin Slaughter, Katerina Diamond, Laura Imai Messina, Literary Fiction, M. J. Arlidge, Manilla Press, Mark Edwards, Monstrous Souls, mystery, Nick Bradley, orion books, Police Procedural, psychological thrillers, Rebecca Kelly, Southern Fiction, suspense, The Cat and the City, The Heatwave, The House Guest, The Phone Box at the Edge of the World, The Silent Wife, The Vanishing Half, The Weekend, Thomas & Mercer, thriller, Urban Fiction, Valentine, W&N, Will Trent Series, youth novel

Blog Tours

Extract – A Death in Mayfair by Mark Ellis

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 11th May 2020
No Comments on Extract – A Death in Mayfair by Mark Ellis

Published: November 21st, 2019
Publisher: Accent Press Ltd
Format: Paperback, Kindle, Audio
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Crime Fiction

Today I’m sharing an extract from the latest installment in the acclaimed DCI Frank Merlin series. Thank you to Amber at Midas PR for the invitation and extract.

1
CHAPTER 1
Friday December 5th 1941

London
It was an hour before dawn when the officers gathered at the street corner. Their target was ten doors down the terrace. Clouds of frozen breath trailed off into the darkness above them. Across the way a parked cart stank of the horse manure stored under its tarpaulin covers. A cat wailed in the distance.
They were seven. Merlin and his men, Johnson and Cole, and four uniformed constables from the local East End station. Merlin examined faces with his torch. Everyone was tensed for action. He raised his right hand. They all knew the drill and moved silently down the road towards the house.
The two stockiest constables carried a compact battering ram, a heavy iron tube with a large rounded end. They waited for a whispered ‘Yes’ from Merlin before smashing it into the front door. After four blows the policemen were able to clamber into the unlit hallway. There they were met by panicked screams, shouts, and the sound of frantic footsteps. In the midst of this came the unmistakeable noise of gunfire. One of the constables fell to the ground, and the other policemen took cover. More shots lit up the air but none hit home. When the firing stopped, Merlin’s torch picked out several shadowy figures racing up the stairs.
“Inspector Johnson, take Cole and one of the constables and follow. You two others search the ground floor. For Christ’s sake be careful. I’ll check on the lad here.” Merlin knelt down to the stricken constable who was conscious but clearly in pain.
“It’s my arm, sir.”
Merlin found the wound a couple of inches above the elbow. “It looks like it’s just a flesh wound, lad. I’ll tie something around it. We’ll call the medics as soon as we can.”
Merlin made a makeshift tourniquet with his handkerchief, squeezed the man’s hand then headed up the stairs. The first and second floors were clear. On the third and final floor the stairs opened onto a large space, unfurnished save for a heavy metal bedframe in the middle of the room. Two unhappy-looking men were standing handcuffed to the bed under the gaze of a constable.
“That was quick work, officer.”
“They tripped over each other, sir, and fell flat on their faces. We were right on them so it was easy, really. Two others got out onto the roof, though.” There was a noise from behind and Merlin turned to see Cole climbing out of a window with Johnson about to do the same.
Merlin followed his men out onto the roof and found them with his torch scrambling along the gables to his right. The street terrace was a long one with interconnected roofs. They were not steeply cambered but the surface was icy and treacherous. Gunshots suddenly rang out from somewhere and Merlin ducked and braced himself against the wall beneath the window. A bullet whizzed past his ear and thudded into the window
casement. He waited a moment then edged carefully along the brickwork. The moon came out from behind some clouds and he saw his men lying flat twenty yards ahead. There was another shot and, to his surprise, he saw one of his men rise and return fire. Someone screamed and a heavy clattering sound followed. Merlin’s heart was pounding as he skidded from his cover to a chimney pot ten yards further along. He shone his torch again and saw a man racing away in the distance with his officers in pursuit. A loud animal cry from below made Merlin jump; he went to the roof edge and pointed his torch down. A motionless body was spreadeagled in an alleyway and something was crawling over it. He had little religious belief these days but by reflex he made a sign of the cross. Then Johnson was shouting for him, and he turned and hurried on.
His men were on the roof of the furthest house, looking down. “It’s no good, sir” said Johnson. “He’s hopped it down the drainpipe. Cole here wanted to follow him down but I said it was too dangerous.”
“I’m sure I can manage it, sir. He looked like he was limping before he went down. If I go now, he won’t have got far.”
Merlin edged forward and saw the drainpipe. “Sorry, Constable. The Inspector is right. It’s not a risk worth taking. We’ve bagged two of them, at least. The other fellow you were chasing has had it. From your bullet or the fall I’m not sure. Where did you get the gun?”
“One of those two inside was carrying and I pocketed it” answered Johnson.
“Good thing you did, or one or both of you might have copped it. There’ll be some tedious questions to answer but you were clearly within your rights to fire.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Mark Ellis is a thriller writer from Swansea and a former barrister and entrepreneur.

He is the creator of DCI Frank Merlin, an Anglo-Spanish police detective operating in World War 2 London. His books treat the reader to a vivid portrait of London during the war skilfully blended with gripping plots, political intrigue and a charismatic protagonist.

Mark grew up under the shadow of his parents’ experience of the Second World War. His father served in the wartime navy and died a young man. His mother told him stories of watching the heavy bombardment of Swansea from the safe vantage point of a hill in Llanelli, and of attending tea dances in wartime London under the bombs and doodlebugs.

In consequence Mark has always been fascinated by WW2 and in particular the Home Front and the fact that while the nation was engaged in a heroic endeavour, crime flourished. Murder, robbery, theft and rape were rife and the Blitz provided scope for widespread looting.

This was an intriguing, harsh and cruel world. This is the world of DCI Frank Merlin.

Mark Ellis’ books regularly appear in the Kindle bestseller charts.

He is published by Headline Accent, an imprint of Headline.

He is a member of Crime Cymru, the Welsh crime writing collective, and of the Crime Writers Association (CWA).

His third book, Merlin at War, was on the CWA Historical Dagger Longlist in 2018.

The new Frank Merlin book, A Death In Mayfair, came out in November 2019.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:

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BUY THE BOOK:

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Tags A Death In Mayfair, Accent Press Ltd, book series, crime fiction, Crime series, DCI Frank Merlin, Extract, historical fiction, Mark Ellis, Midas PR, mystery, suspense, thriller

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Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – May 2020

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 19th Apr 2020
2 Comments on Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – May 2020

Another month, more books I’m excited to read. There are eleven books in this month’s list and, as always, it was hard to narrow it down. Is it just me or are there increasing amounts of great books out there to read?

So, here is what I’m most excited to read in May:

Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier
Published: May 7th, 2020
Publisher: Corvus
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense

I became and instant fan of Jennifer Hillier when I read Jar of Hearts last year. Her latest book’s synopsis has me really excited and I’ve been counting down to it for months.

SYNOPSIS:
All it takes to unravel a life… is one home truth.

Marin used to have it all. Married to the love of her life, she owns a chain of upscale hair salons, and Derek runs his own company. They’re admired in their community and are a loving family – until their world falls apart the day their son Sebastian is taken.

A year later, Marin is a shadow of herself. The FBI search has gone cold. The publicity has faded. She and her husband rarely speak. With her sanity ebbing, Marin hires a private investigator to pick up where the police left off.

But instead of finding Sebastian, she learns that Derek is having an affair with a much younger woman. This discovery sparks Marin back to life. She’s lost her son; she’s not about to lose her husband. Derek’s mistress is an enemy with a face, which means this is a problem Marin can fix. Permanently.

People Like Us by Louise Fein
Published: May 7th, 2020
Publisher: Head of Zeus
Genre: Mystery, General Fiction

This debut novel has been all over bookstagram and book twitter. I’m a big fan of novels set in the WW2 era and this sounds like a beautiful story.

SYNOPSIS:
‘I nearly drowned and Walter rescued me. That changes everything.’

Leipzig, 1930’s Germany.

Hetty Heinrich is a perfect German child. Her father is an SS officer, her brother in the Luftwaffe, herself a member of the BDM. She believes resolutely in her country, and the man who runs it.

Until Walter changes everything. Blond-haired, blue-eyed, perfect in every way Walter. The boy who saved her life. A Jew.

Anti-semitism is growing by the day, and neighbours, friends and family members are turning on one another. As Hetty falls deeper in love with a man who is against all she has been taught, she begins to fight against her country, her family and herself. Hetty will risk have to risk everything to save Walter, even if it means sacrificing herself…

Her Last Mistake (Detective Gina Harte Book 6) by Carla Kovach
Published: May 11th, 2020
Publisher: Bookouture
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Noir Fiction, Crime Fiction, Police Procedural

The Detective Gina Harte series is one of my favourite crime series. The books are always gripping and well written and I would recommend them to anyone looking for a good series to read. So it goes without saying that the latest installment is on my most anticipated list.

SYNOPSIS:
Dressed in a sage green bridesmaid dress, and smiling for pictures, Holly is the happiest she’s ever been. Hours later, Holly is dead.

People love to hate Holly Long. Smart, beautiful and a woman who men find it hard to say no to, she’s the town’s most gossiped about resident.

Now Holly’s body lies in her hotel room, strangled at her best friend’s wedding party. And the gossip has stopped, because nobody wants to look like they did it.

When police search Holly’s immaculate apartment, amongst her stylish furnishings and expensive jewellery, they discover a different side to Holly. Orderly and precise, she wasn’t the chaotic party girl everyone thought her to be. In fact, Holly was a planner, and her next plan was to come out and tell her biggest secret – something she had been hiding for months, something that had the potential to ruin the lives of more than one wedding guest.

There are plenty of people who might have wanted to kill Holly, but only one who has finally made good on their promise.

An unputdownable crime thriller with an ending you will never see coming, this is the latest gripping novel from bestselling author Carla Kovach.

These Lost & Broken Things by Helen Fields
Published: May 11th, 2020
Publisher: Wailing Banshee
Genre: Historical Ficiton

I am a huge fan of Helen Fields’ DI Callanach crime series and enjoyed her standalone novel, Degrees of Guilt, last year. As I just mentioned, I love historical fiction, so I am very excited to read one of my favourite authors’ first foray into one of my favourite genres.

SYNOPSIS:
Girl. Mother. Assassin.

How dangerous is a woman with nothing left to lose?

The year is 1905. London is a playground for the rich and a death trap for the poor. When Sofia Logan’s husband dies unexpectedly, leaving her penniless with two young children, she knows she will do anything to keep them from the workhouse. But can she bring herself to murder? Even if she has done it before…

Emmet Vinsant, wealthy industrialist, offers Sofia a job in one of his gaming houses. He knows more about Sofia’s past than he has revealed. Brought up as part of a travelling fair, she’s an expert at counting cards and spotting cheats, and Vinsant puts her talents to good use. His demands on her grow until she finds herself with blood on her hands.

Set against the backdrop of the Suffragette protests, with industry changing the face of the city but disease still rampant, and poverty the greatest threat of all, every decision you make is life or death. Either yours or someone else’s.

Dear Child by Romy Hausmann
Published: May 14th, 2020
Publisher: Quercus
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Mystery

I was fortunate enough to read a sampler of this book last summer and have been eagerly waiting to read the full book every since. I do have an ARC on my shelf so I’m hoping to get to it before publication day.

SYNOPSIS:
A windowless shack in the woods. Lena’s life and that of her two children follows the rules set by their captor, the father: meals, bathroom visits, study time are strictly scheduled and meticulously observed. He protects his family from the dangers lurking in the outside world and makes sure that his children will always have a mother to look after them.

One day Lena manages to flee – but the nightmare continues. It seems as if her tormentor wants to get back what belongs to him. And then there is the question whether she really is the woman called ‘Lena’, who disappeared without a trace over thirteen years ago. The police and Lena’s family are all desperately trying to piece together a puzzle that doesn’t quite seem to fit.

The Glass House by Eve Chase
Published: May 14th, 2020
Publisher: Penguin UK
Genre: Gothic Fiction, Historical Mystery, Suspense, Domestic Fiction

As soon as I saw the gorgeous cover and read the eerie synopsis I knew this was a book that would be on this list. I’m excited to be taking part in the blog tour for book. My review will be posted on May 30th

SYNOPSIS:
Outside a remote manor house in an idyllic wood, a baby girl is found.

Desperate not to lose her to the authorities, they keep her secret, suspended in a blissful summer world where normal rules of behaviour – and the law – don’t seem to apply.

But within days a body will lie dead in the grounds.

And their dreams of a perfect family will shatter like glass.

Years later, the truth will need to be put back together again, piece by piece . . .

Tsarina by Ellen Alpsten
Published: May 14th, 2020
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Genre: Historical Fiction, Biographical Fiction

I’ve been fascinated with the Tsars ever since studying the end of their reign at A Level and I have discovered that I love historical fiction based on real people, so I was immediately drawn to this novel. I’m also taking part in the blog tour fort this one and my review will be posted on May 21st.

SYNOPSIS:
Spring 1699: Illegitimate, destitute and strikingly beautiful, Marta has survived the brutal Russian winter in her remote Baltic village. Sold by her family into household labour at the age of fifteen, Marta survives by committing a crime that will force her to go on the run.

Where We Belong by Anstey Harris
Published: May 14th, 2020
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Genre: General Ficiton

This is another one I keep seeing on book twitter and it’s had me counting down to publication.

SYNOPSIS:
One summer.
One house.
One family learning to love again.

Cate Morris and her son, Leo, are homeless, adrift. They’ve packed up the boxes from their London home, said goodbye to friends and colleagues, and now they are on their way to ‘Hatters Museum of the Wide Wide World – to stay just for the summer. Cate doesn’t want to be there, in Richard’s family home without Richard to guide her any more. And she knows for sure that Araminta, the retainer of the collection of dusty objects and stuffed animals, has taken against them. But they have nowhere else to go. They have to make the best of it.

But Richard hasn’t told Cate the truth about his family’s history. And something about the house starts to work its way under her skin.
Can she really walk away, once she knows the truth?

What Lies Between Us by John Marrs
Published: May 15th, 2020
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense

John Marrs is one of my favourite male authors and any book of his is eagerly anticipated and an auto buy for me.

SYNOPSIS:
Nina can never forgive Maggie for what she did. And she can never let her leave.

They say every house has its secrets, and the house that Maggie and Nina have shared for so long is no different. Except that these secrets are not buried in the past.

Every other night, Maggie and Nina have dinner together. When they are finished, Nina helps Maggie back to her room in the attic, and into the heavy chain that keeps her there. Because Maggie has done things to Nina that can’t ever be forgiven, and now she is paying the price.

But there are many things about the past that Nina doesn’t know, and Maggie is going to keep it that way—even if it kills her.

Because in this house, the truth is more dangerous than lies.

His & Hers by Alice Feeney
Published: May 28th, 2020
Publisher: HQ
Genre: Psychological Thriller

I loved I Know Who You Are when it was released last year so I’ve been counting down to this author’s next novel ever since it was announced. I’ll be taking part in the blogger day on publication day for this book.

SYNOPSIS:
If there are two sides to every story, someone is always lying…

Jack: Three words to describe my wife: Beautiful. Ambitious. Unforgiving.
Anna: I only need one word to describe my husband: Liar.

When a woman is murdered in Blackdown village, newsreader Anna Andrews is reluctant to cover the case. Anna’s ex-husband, DCI Jack Harper, is suspicious of her involvement, until he becomes a suspect in his own murder investigation.

Someone is lying, and some secrets are worth killing to keep.

Heatstroke by Hazel Barkworth
Published: May 28th, 2020
Publisher: Headline
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Youth Novel

I’ve been desperate to get my hands on this book ever since seeing people receiving ARCs last year. Everything about it screams ‘read me’ and I’ve heard nothing but great reviews.

SYNOPSIS:
The summer burns with secrets…

It is too hot to sleep. To work. To be questioned time and again by the police.

At the beginning of a stifling, sultry summer, everything shifts irrevocably when Lily doesn’t come home one afternoon.

Rachel is Lily’s teacher. Her daughter Mia is Lily’s best friend. The girls are fifteen – almost women, still children.

As Rachel becomes increasingly fixated on Lily’s absence, she finds herself breaking fragile trusts and confronting impossible choices she never thought she’d face.

It wasn’t supposed to happen like this.

Intoxicating and compulsive, Heatstroke is a darkly gripping, thought-provoking novel of crossed boundaries, power and betrayal, that plays with expectations at every turn.

Blog Tours book reviews Emma's Anticipated Treasures

Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Post author By emmasbibliotreasures
Post date 8th Apr 2020
3 Comments on Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Published: March 31st, 2020
Publisher: Tinder Press
Format: Hardcover, Kindle
Genre: Historical Fiction, Biographical Fiction

Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part in this blog tour and Tinder Press for the eBook ARC.

SYNOPSIS:

TWO EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE. A LOVE THAT DRAWS THEM TOGETHER. A LOSS THAT THREATENS TO TEAR THEM APART.

On a summer’s day in 1596, a young girl in Stratford-upon-Avon takes to her bed with a fever. Her twin brother, Hamnet, searches everywhere for help. Why is nobody at home?

Their mother, Agnes, is over a mile away, in the garden where she grows medicinal herbs. Their father is working in London. Neither parent knows that one of the children will not survive the week.

Hamnet is a novel inspired by the son of a famous playwright. It is a story of the bond between twins, and of a marriage pushed to the brink by grief. It is also the story of a kestrel and its mistress; flea that boards a ship in Alexandria; and a glovemaker’s son who flouts convention in pursuit of the woman he loves. Above all, it is a tender and unforgettable reimagining of a boy whose life has been all but forgotten, but whose name was given to one of the most celebrated plays ever written.

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MY REVIEW:

For months I have been itching to get my hands on this book and was green with envy of those fortunate enough to get an early proof. So when the chance arose to take part in a last minute blog tour for this eagerly anticipated novel I jumped at it. Breathtaking, atmospheric, tender and absorbing, this exquisite story has instantly become my favourite book this year. It feels almost impossible to write this review as I know whatever I write cannot do justice to its sheer brilliance. But I will try.

Hamnet is a fresh perspective on Shakespeare’s greatest tragedy; the heartbreaking events that touched his family in 1596. It seamlessly moves between characters and timelines, using flashbacks to tell the story of the family prior to that fateful year. Before reading this book I knew almost nothing about Shakespeare’s personal life, but I was immediately immersed in their world as the author brought to life sixteenth century England. It is a work of both fact and fiction, the author creating a rich tapestry woven from the little known facts of Hamnet and his family. The writing is lyrical, poetic, and meticulous, telling the story with fluency as I savoured each word.

Each character is deftly and vividly written, with Agnes, Hament and Judith being the ones I particularly felt a connection with. Hament’s energy shines from the pages while his twin, Judith, exudes a delicate aura that, like her brother, made me want to protect her. Agnes took me some time to warm to but she was soon the character I related to most of all, probably because we are both mothers and I could recognise my own maternal feelings in hers. The myth of her childhood also made her incredibly fascinating and a bit of an enigma.

The most surprising element for me was how timely this story felt. I’ve read a lot about the plague, particularly Eyam, but until now have never been able to relate to the idea of being quarantined for fear of spreading a deadly illness for which there is no cure. Being able to relate to this made the fear, helplessness and heartache all the more palpable and like something that could actually happen to me and my family, rather than simply a tragic story that only happened to people many years ago.

Hamnet is an outstanding work of literature. Affecting, poignant and lingering, it is also an example of storytelling at its finest. I’m ashamed to say that this is the first time I’ve read the author’s work and I’m now wondering why I waited so long. I can’t recommend this novel highly enough. Read it now!

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Maggie O’Farrell is the author of the Sunday Times no. 1 bestselling memoir I Am, I Am, I Am, and eight novels: After You’d Gone, My Lover’s Lover, The Distance Between Us, which won a Somerset Maugham Award, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, The Hand That First Held Mine, which won the 2010 Costa Novel Award, Instructions For A Heatwave, which was shortlisted for the 2013 Costa Novel Award, This Must Be The Place, which was shortlisted for the 2016 Costa Novel Award, and Hamnet.

She lives in Edinburgh.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:

Website
Facebook

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BUY THE BOOK:

Amazon
Waterstones
Apple Books