Review — Hourglass by Keiran Goddard

Birds creating an hourglass shape against a pink background with whispy clouds. Hourglass
By: Keiran Goddard
Release Date: February 14, 2023
Publisher: Europa Editions
Award: Desmond Elliott Prize Nominee for Longlist (2022)
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


Keiran Goddard’s 2022 novel Hourglass straddles the line between prose and poetry, giving readers a lyrical insight into love in all of its aspects: yearning for love, finding love, and losing love. Goddard has previously published two volumes of poetry titled For the Chorus and Votive. His works have also been shortlisted for both the Melita Hulme and William Blake prizes. Hourglass is his first novel, however, and one that certainly succeeds in what it sets out to do.

Review – Little White Lies

Little White Lies
By: Philippa East
Website: https://www.harpercollins.com/blogs/authors/philippa-east
Release Date: February 4th, 2020
Publisher: HQ
Rating:


This is one of those books where giving a full review would definitely lead to spoilers so I’m going to do my best to avoid doing that to all of you.

Seven years ago Anne White looked away for a second but then her daughter Abigail was gone. Now, Abigail is home but not everything is a happily ever after now that she’s returned.

Review — Lacuna by Fiona Snyckers

The front cover of the book Lacuna by Fiona Snyckers, featuring the image of a dog Lacuna
By: Fiona Snyckers
Release Date: January 11, 2022
Publisher: Europa Editions
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


If author J.M. Coetzee’s award-winning novel Disgrace is mentioned in a room full of people, it will certainly become the topic of hot debate, despite it being released several decades ago. Literary responses to this work aren’t short in number, but standing out among them is Fiona Snyckers’s novel Lacuna.

Review – Shadow Sands (Kate Marshall #2)

Shadow Sands (Kate Marshall #2)
By: Robert Bryndza
Website: https://robertbryndza.com/
Release Date: November 3rd, 2020
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Series: Kate Marshall
Rating:


Book two in the Kate Marshall series and I’m still in a crime thriller haze of fiction love. We’re back with Kate Marshall as she and her assistant Tristan try and figure out what is going on at the Shadow Sands reservoir and why, after the body of a skilled swimmer is found, that everyone associated with the reservoir is acting off and missing persons cases are being ignored.

Just as I said with the first novel in this series there is a lot of heavy subject matter in this book including kidnapping, abduction, rape, abuse etc. If that’s not something you care to read about turn back now.

Review – Nine Elms (Kate Marshall #1)

Nine Elms
By: Robert Bryndza
Website: https://robertbryndza.com/
Release Date: December 1st, 2019
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Series: Kate Marshall
Rating:


Sometimes book suggestions are so perfect it’s as if the website providing it to you is really inside your head. Nine Elms by Robert Bryndza was one such suggestion that, despite the heavy topics and intense scenes that were admittedly uncomfortable at times, was a perfect fit for me. If you like crime, thrillers, mysteries and tough female main characters the story of Kate Marshall may be a good fit for you as well.

Review – The Last Agent (Charles Jenkins #2)

The Last Agent (Charles Jenkins #2)
By: Robert Dugoni
Website: https://www.robertdugonibooks.com/
Release Date: September 22nd, 2020
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Series: Charles Jenkins
Received From: NetGalley
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


When we return to the life and world of Charles Jenkins we learn that, luckily, he has been exonerated. All should be well as the retired man focuses on his family, right? Well, that wouldn’t be much of a story. If you haven’t read book one and are looking for an edge of your seat espionage novel, start with The Eighth Sister. Then join me with The Last Agent.

Review- Driftwood

Driftwood
By: Marie Brennan
Website: https://www.swantower.com/
Release Date: August 14th, 2020
Publisher: Tachyon Publications
Rating:


I don’t know what I expected when I saw this lovely ARC on NetGalley. The concept was interesting and I liked the idea behind it but I’m not sure I was ready for the purely amazing read this book was.

The world of Driftwood is a strange place — it is where worlds come to die and as entire worlds are shrunk down in size and people are disappearing left and right everything is slowly coming to an end. Think of Driftwood as a story of a post-apocalyptic world…but with some of the worlds still in the middle of their own end. If you’re looking for an amazing fantasy read, be on the lookout for Driftwood which comes out August 14th, 2020. If you want to know more about the story and my reaction, read on but please be aware there may be tiny spoilers.

Review – The Patient

The Patient
By: Jasper DeWitt
Website: https://www.jasperdewitt.com/
Release Date: July 7th, 2020
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Rating:


When I saw this book on the NetGalley website I was intrigued. Normally I reserve my horror reads for the fall time, when the theme seems to fit the weather. Still, a chance at an advanced reader copy for such an interesting story was something I couldn’t resist so I put the request in and was approved. I waited for a day that I felt ready to jump into the horror genre and here we are, talking about a book that took me on a wild ride and that surprised me.

Review- A Body in the Village Hall (Kate Palmer #1)

A Body in the Village Hall (Kate Palmer #1)
By: Dee MacDonald
Website: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/m/dee-macdonald/
Release Date: June 29th, 2020
Publisher: Bookouture
Series: Kate Palmer
Rating:


This is a slight departure from my normal mystery reads because, while this is a mystery (surrounding murders) this book falls into the genre of Cozy Mystery. Let me quickly define this for anyone who doesn’t know what this means.