Hmmm, what to say about this book… I have mixed feelings. It is clearly well written, with lyrical prose and a richness and depth of characters, but why are the characters all so angry and sad and broken?? My book group read The Spinning Heart by Donal Ryan, and I was just looking back atContinue reading “From a Low and Quiet Sea – Donal Ryan – 08.09.20”
Category Archives: Uncategorized
House of Many Ways – Diana Wynne Jones – 06.09.20
I’m still loving Diana Wynne Jones! I wish I could go back in time and introduce my childhood self to these books (not that I don’t love them as an adult, because I do!) because I feel like I should be nostalgic about them as if I did love them as a child. This thirdContinue reading “House of Many Ways – Diana Wynne Jones – 06.09.20”
Castle in the Air – Diana Wynne Jones – 04.09.20
This second book in the Ingary trilogy by Diana Wynne Jones initially felt a little different to the first book. If you’ve read C.S Lewis’s Narnia chronicles, then it was like The Horse and his Boy, in that it is set in the same world as the other books in the series, but at firstContinue reading “Castle in the Air – Diana Wynne Jones – 04.09.20”
Utopia Avenue – David Mitchell – (AUDIOBOOK) –03.09.20
Wow – this is a big book. I listened on Audiobook and it took just over 25 hours. It’s the story of a band in the 1960s and follows each of the four band members as well as their manager giving them all a rich and in depth backstory and character development journey. There areContinue reading “Utopia Avenue – David Mitchell – (AUDIOBOOK) –03.09.20”
Howl’s Moving Castle – Diana Wynne Jones – 01.09.20
I can’t believe I’m only reading my first Diana Wynne Jones novel now, at the age of 51! This is exactly the kind of book I have loved since early childhood, and I have no idea how they managed to pass me by?! This is a dark, witty and thoughtful look at traditional fairytale/fantasy storytelling.Continue reading “Howl’s Moving Castle – Diana Wynne Jones – 01.09.20”
Lanny – Max Porter – 27.08.20
Like the fabulous Grief Is a Thing With Feathers, also by Max Porter, this book is a beautiful merging of poetry, prose, magical realism and raw human emotion. It uses the technique (which I had to google but is apparently called concrete or visual poetry) where the arrangement of words on the page is partContinue reading “Lanny – Max Porter – 27.08.20”
The Last – Hanna Jameson – 26.08.20
I’m just back from a visit with my daughter and her boyfriend in Wales, and we had the clever idea to swap kindles for the visit and read each other’s books. When flicking through her kindle my finger accidentally lingered on this book which opened it. I started reading, and was instantly hooked. It’s aContinue reading “The Last – Hanna Jameson – 26.08.20”
The Midnight Library – Matt Haig – 19.08.20
I have loved everything I’ve read by Matt Haig, even his self-help type books, when normally I wouldn’t go near that sort of book. This is a novel, with a bit of self-help thrown in for free. During a suicide attempt, Nora finds herself in the state between life and death in a mysterious libraryContinue reading “The Midnight Library – Matt Haig – 19.08.20”
Everything Under – Daisy Johnson – 14.08.20
I wish I knew how to capture or even quantify the quality that makes some books just so darn beautiful. Like dipping my toes into water that is just the right temperature I knew right away that I would relish swimming through this book (am I stretching this metaphor too far?!). It’s similar in feelContinue reading “Everything Under – Daisy Johnson – 14.08.20”
The Limpet Syndrome – Tony Moyle – (AUDIOBOOK) – 14.08.20
This audiobook is the first in a darkly comedic supernatural series and I received it and also the first in another series by the same author as a free promotion. I approached it with a slightly snobby ‘well, if they have to give it away for free, it can’t be that good’ attitude (despite meContinue reading “The Limpet Syndrome – Tony Moyle – (AUDIOBOOK) – 14.08.20”
Sarah Wray Writer 