I’ve been on a bit of a rollercoaster with Jess Kidd – I have really loved some of her books, and been a bit disappointed with others. This one, for me, falls somewhere in the middle. It’s a period piece, set in (I don’t know, maybe) Dickensian times, about a girl (Bodkin) adopted at aContinue reading “Little Spark – Jess Kidd – (AUDIOBOOK) Narrated by: Juanita McMahon – 10.09.26”
Author Archives: sarahrwray
A Little Life – Hanya Yanagihara – 31.08.26
Goodness, what to say about this book…?! I certainly went through all the feels when reading. For at least the first half/three quarters, I thought it was great – I enjoyed the writing, I was gripped by the narrative and felt connections to the characters. The story follows four college roommate friends into adulthood. OneContinue reading “A Little Life – Hanya Yanagihara – 31.08.26”
Dead Romantic – CJ Skuse – 20.08.26
After struggling through the booker prize nominated Creation Lake, I wanted something much more lowbrow , which this certainly was. I think I’m just too old for this type of young adult fare. I almost gave up, but it did kind of grow on me. Camille is a college student obsessed with finding a boyfriend,Continue reading “Dead Romantic – CJ Skuse – 20.08.26”
Creation Lake – Rachel Kushner – 13.08.26
Ugh, I found this book to be a real drag. The main character, Sadie, works undercover, insinuating herself into radical groups and then inciting them into criminal acts which they are then arrested for. The book is set in rural France where a commune of radical eco-activists are situated whom Sadie is targeting. Apart fromContinue reading “Creation Lake – Rachel Kushner – 13.08.26”
How to Survive Camping: The Lady in Chains (AUDIOBOOK) – Bonnie Quinn – Narrated by: Jeremy Carlisle Parker – 13.08.26
I enjoyed this second book in the series at least as much as the first – I’m even not put off by the American narrator (which I sometimes am, to my shame, I guess) who is brilliant. It’s a horror series set in a camp site in America somewhere that is linked somehow to magicalContinue reading “How to Survive Camping: The Lady in Chains (AUDIOBOOK) – Bonnie Quinn – Narrated by: Jeremy Carlisle Parker – 13.08.26”
Flint in the Bones (Norwich Map Runners Book 1) – Eva St. John – 03.08.26
This is a fun first instalment of an urban fantasy type series. In the book, Norwich, a town in England, has for some reason got weak spots between times and people regularly appear, in a very confused state, from various periods of history both ancient and modern. The way the authorities dealt with it wasContinue reading “Flint in the Bones (Norwich Map Runners Book 1) – Eva St. John – 03.08.26”
Murder at the Spirit Lounge: Nora Breen Investigates – Jess Kidd (AUDIOBOOK) Narrated by: Philippa Dunne – 30.07.26
I have really enjoyed books by Jess Kidd in the past (particularly those with supernatural or magical realism elements) and I quite enjoyed Murder At Gulls Nest (narrated by the fabulous Siobhán McSweeney) so was quite excited by this. Hmmm. I didn’t love it. It was okay, I mean the style of writing and theContinue reading “Murder at the Spirit Lounge: Nora Breen Investigates – Jess Kidd (AUDIOBOOK) Narrated by: Philippa Dunne – 30.07.26”
Luminous – Silvia Park – 19.07.26
I really enjoyed this topical and thought provoking book. Part coming of age, part sci-fi thriller and part police procedural. Set in a near (?) future where AI robots are common, lots of aspects of the good and bad potentials of human/robot interactions are explored. Issues like whether robots are truly sentient and therefore ifContinue reading “Luminous – Silvia Park – 19.07.26”
Guilt: (Department Q Book 4) – Jussi Adler-Olsen and Martin Aitken – 12.07.26
I started reading the Carl Morck novels after watching the brilliant BBC (I think it was BBC) adaptation set in Scotland (the books are Nordic). I have enjoyed them (mostly – this one dragged a bit, I thought). The characters of Carl and his colleagues continue to develop and the main serial killer plot ofContinue reading “Guilt: (Department Q Book 4) – Jussi Adler-Olsen and Martin Aitken – 12.07.26”
Solace House – Will MacClean – 28.06.26
I really liked this book – a mind bending, haunting gothic horror. A group of students are employed over the summer to clear out an old mansion and surrounding estate which had been purchased for conversion by the university. They uncover various strange and mysterious things from old keys to locked tunnels and underground chambers,Continue reading “Solace House – Will MacClean – 28.06.26”
